Flagler College in St. Augustine, FL

Flagler College, a liberal arts college in St. Augustine, has to have one of the most interesting histories of any small college in the nation. Its main buildings were built by tycoon Henry Flagler, a founding partner of Standard Oil (along with Rockefeller). What is now the college was originally the Ponce de Leon, a luxury hotel built by Flagler because his wife's health required the warm winters of the south.

St. Augustine did not provide the kind of accommodations Flagler was accustomed to so he built the

Ponce in 1883-1884 to accom- modate him and to attract up to 450 of his well-to-do acquain-tances. Being one of the wealthiest men in America, Flagler spared no expense. The building itself is poured concrete. Stained glass windows and chandeliers were designed by Tiffany of New York. Thomas Edison designed and installed the lighting system. The Ponce was the first building to have a totally electric lighting system throughout. Interior woodwork includes carving by some of Europe's finest woodcarners who were brought to St. Augustine to do the work on site. Four carved wooden columns in the entry hall depict women in various stages of pregnancy. From each direction the facial expression as well as her abdomen change.

The Grand Ballroom featured two alcoves above the dance floor where two orchestras provided continuous music. The final seven or eight measures of each orchestra's set was played by BOTH orchestras as a transition to ensure continuous entertainment. The Grand Ballroom is now the student cafeteria, probably one of very few with Tiffany stained glass windows.

Guest rooms prices ranged from $6 to $90 per night. Guests were expected to pay for three months regardless of how long they actually intended to stay. Our student guide indicated that guests paying the higher prices for their lodging, paid the current equivalent of $250,000 for their winter stay. Flagler and his wife frequently dined in the hotel dining room. The seating arrangement ensured that those who paid the higher room rates sat closer to Flagler's table. Those paying $6 a night occupied the far end of the dining hall.

Not all was so posh, however: there were only two bathrooms on each floor of the hotel. The Ponce also had only one safe for all guests' valuables.

Men spent most of the day doing business. Women were expected to spend their day in the salon reading, doing needlework, playing games or music. There were over a dozen crystal chandeliers in the salon to ensure that it was a bright and welcoming setting. Each chandelier was different from the others.

In addition to the Ponce, Flagler underwrote the costs of building several churches in St. Augustine as well as two other hotels. Also, to accommodate a speedy trip to St. Augustine from various northern locations, Flagler built over over 240 miles of railroad. The state of Florida gave him 8,000 acres of land for each mile of railroad he built in Florida.