Skip to main content

Florida State Road 789 in Harding Circle of St. Armands Key

By

Florida State Road 789 departs from US Route 41 in downtown Sarasota and follows the Gulf Coast towards Florida State Road 64 at Anna Maria Key.  Headed northbound Florida State Road 789 crosses John Ringling Causeway and emerges into the unique Harding Circle of St. Armands Key.  Harding Circle is often more popularly referred to as "St. Armands Circle" and is a central attraction for visitors to the City of Sarasota.  


Part 1; the history of Harding Circle

Information pertaining to the history of Harding Circle is easily found at the intersection with western John Ringling Boulevard.  St. Armands Key is named after French investor Charles St. Armands who purchased the island in 1893.   St. Armands Key was later purchased by Circus Magnate John Ringling in 1923.  Ringling sought to build a planned community which would be centered around a circle shaped main street and park.  The grand opening of St. Armands Key and Harding Circle would come in 1928 when the first John Ringling Causeway was completed to downtown Sarasota.  Harding Circle is named after Warren G. Harding who was the residing President when the street grid of St. Armands Key was being planned.   

Note; several sources claim the first automobile to reach St. Armands Key from Sarasota arrived in 1926.  It is unclear if a ferry was required to make this trip to St. Armands Key or if the original John Ringling Causeway was constructed to a point where vehicles could cross.  The below postcard from bridgehunter.com depicts the original John Ringling Causeway. 

John Ringling Causeway first appear as an extension of pre-1945 State Road 18 for the first time in the 1935 Florida State Road System logbook.  The extension of pre-1945 Florida State Road 18 was intended to connect the highway to Florida State Road 18A at Anna Maria Key.   Pre-1945 Florida State Road 18 appears to have bypassed Harding Circle in favor of Washington Drive. 


John Ringling Causeway can be seen as part of pre-1945 Florida State Road 18 on the 1939 Rand McNally Map of Florida.  

During the 1945 Florida State Road Renumbering John Ringling Causeway were reassigned as Florida State Road 780.  Florida State Road 780 can be seen on the 1956 Shell Highway Map of Florida.  

The second John Ringling Causeway opened to traffic during 1957 and can be seen on this postcard hosted on bridgehunter.com.  The second John Ringling Causeway was a replacement for the original structure which had been completed during 1928.  

In time Florida State Road 780 over John Ringling Causeway was renumbered as Florida State Road 790.  This designation swap appears to occurred alongside Florida State Road 780 departing northward from St. Armands Key being reassigned as Florida State Road 789.  Around the turn of the 21st Century Florida State Road 789 was extended from St. Armands Key to downtown Sarasota.  In 2001 Harding Circle was designated as a National Historic District and placed on the National Register of Historic Places.  In 2003 the third John Ringling Causeway replaced the second structure.  It appears the opening of the third John Ringling Causeway coincided with Florida State Road 789 moving from Washington Drive to Harding Circle.  

Below the present John Ringling Causeway can be seen from Nora Patterson Bay Island Park.  The current John Ringling Causeway is 3,097 feet in length and does not have a draw span unlike it's two predecessors.  


Part 2; a tour around Harding Circle

From John Ringling Causeway Florida State Road 789 enters Harding Circle facing westward.  Traffic headed onto northbound Florida State Road 789 towards Longboat Key is advised to utilize both lanes.  




A closer view of Florida State Road 789 northbound transitioning from Harding Circle to northern Boulevard of the Presidents towards Longboat Key.  

Florida State Road 789 continues to loop Harding Circle and approaches western John Ringling Boulevard where traffic is advised Lido Key can be accessed.  


The street blades of Harding Circle show it now signed as St. Armands Circle. 


The park in the center of Harding Circle. 


Florida State Road 789 traversing Harding Circle to southern Boulevard of the Presidents. 




A statue of John Ringling located at Harding Circle and southern Boulevard of the Presidents. 

Florida State Road 789 completing the full loop of Harding Circle back towards eastern John Ringling Boulevard towards the John Ringling Causeway. 


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Grand Loop Road of Yellowstone National Park

By
  Grand Loop Road is a 140 mile loop highway which traverses the interior of Yellowstone National Park.  Grand Loop Road connects all of the major attractions and geological features of Yellowstone National Park along with the entrance roads.  Grand Loop Road is a seasonal highway and despite some conjecture never has been part of the US Route System.   Part 1; the history of Grand Loop Road The majority of history pertaining to Grand Loop Road was taken from the below National Park Service article: Historic Roads - Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) Yellowstone was declared the first National Park of the United States on March 1st, 1872.  The first real highway to access Yellowstone National Park came in 1873 when a tolled facility was constructed from Bozeman, Montana via Yankee Jim Canyon to Mammoth Hot Springs.  Numerous attempts were made to fund construction of roadway infrastructure during the early years of Yellows...
Post a Comment
Read more

The last 1956-63 era California Sign State Route Spade?

By
Along southbound California State Route 170 (the Hollywood Freeway Extension) approaching the Hollywood Freeway/Ventura Freeway interchange a white California State Route 134 Sign State Route Spade can be observed on guide sign.  These white spades were specifically used during the 1956-63 era and have become increasingly rare.  This blog is intended to serve as a brief history of the Sign State Route Spade.  We also ask you as the reader, is this last 1956-63 era Sign State Route Spade or do you know of others?  Part 1; the history of the California Sign State Route Spade Prior to the Sign State Route System, the US Route System and the Auto Trails were the only highways in California signed with reassurance markers.  The creation of the US Route System by the American Association of State Highway Officials during November 1926 brought a system of standardized reassurance shields to major highways in California.  Early efforts to create a Sign State Route ...
Post a Comment
Read more

California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway

By
From 2017 through to early 2019 I drove the majority of the California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway from CA 89 southwest to CA 99. CA 70 is an approximately 178.5 mile state highway which starts at US 395 near the Nevada State Line and travels west through the Feather River Canyon to CA 99.  CA 70 is often referred to as the Feather River Highway" given it's close association with the river.  Historically CA 70 was previously signed as US 40A and CA 24.  The Legislative Routes prior to the 1964 California Highway Renumbering that made up the current route of CA 70 are as follows: -  Legislative Route Number 21 from US 395 westward to Oroville. -  LRN 87 from Oroville south to Marysville. -  LRN 232 from Marysville to the current junction with CA 99.  CA 70 was even dual signed with CA 99 into Sacramento on what was LRN 232 for a time. The change from US 40A/LRN 21/LRN 87/LRN 232 can be seen by comparing the 1963 State Highway Ma...
Post a Comment
Read more