VINTAGE blog - AUGUST 2012 by Jen Karetnik
Casa Marina | A Historic Jacksonville Beach Hotel ~ Posted on August 10, 2012
In a state where new development trumps historic preservation, Casa Marina is an all-too-rare gem from Jacksonville Beach’s heyday as a resort destination for the rich and famous.
Jacksonsville Beach, Fla., (not to be confused with the much larger Jacksonville 17 miles to its west) is a small city on the Atlantic Ocean that to the initiated brings to mind dive bars, surf boards and boiled shrimp. But this town, incorporated in 1907 as Ruby and later renamed Pablo Beach, was built on entertainment. Its Boardwalk Era, which began in 1915, put ring sports like boxing and wrestling in the region’s public eye for the first time, and it wasn’t long before traditional East Coast shore amusements, eateries and legalized gambling followed. Meanwhile, as in Daytona Beach to the south, cars raced on the wide, hard-packed sand beneath the boardwalk, an activity welcomed by many wagering visitors.
Casa Marina, the 60-room hotel opened on June 6, 1925—the day the town was given its current name—and was visited by the Jean Harlow, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, John D. Rockefeller, Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman. Today, it draws guests, including brides and grooms, seeking an old-world experience no longer available in the area.
Registered as a Historic Hotel of America with the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 2005, Casa Marina is a stately stucco-and-cement Mediterranean Revival structure that looks like it belongs in Spain. Like other Florida hotels, she served her country during World War II, doing duty as military housing. Afterwards, the old girl was renovated a number of times for a variety of uses: apartments, restaurants and retail.
Casa Marina was finally restored to her original purpose in 1991, and now has 23 bedrooms and parlor suites individually decorated to reflect the Prohibition and Art Deco eras that she lived through. A souvenir of one of her earlier remodels, she now boasts a third floor Penthouse Lounge serving up martinis, tapas and live music in the evening. Casa Marina ‘s first floor restaurant, which features a wooden-plank ceiling, is known for one of the best brunches in the region, one of the centerpieces being a giant whole snapper presented upright.
Behind the hotel, a paved boardwalk stretches south to college-type bars and north to the artsy enclave of Atlantic Beach and a fishing pier points off into the horizon. Here, you can almost hear the cars revving their engines for a run on the long, broad beach.
For all its historic charms, the hotel’s intimate feel and tendency to carry sound means that families with small children might do well to head instead to one of the mass-produced digs up the street. But for someone looking for an ideal perch from which to explore Jacksonville Beach with a like-minded, vintage-loving honey, Casa Marina’s romantic aura, beachside location and terrific fare might be just your vibe.
Visit CasaMarinaHotel.com.
—Jen Karetnick
(Editing, additional reporting and research by Shannon Roxborough)
Jen Karetnick is co-author of “Born Again Vintage: 25 Ways to Deconstruct, Reinvent & Recycle Your Wardrobe” and a columnist with MIAMI Magazine whose work has appeared in the New York Times, Southern Living and Forbes. Her latest book, “Romancing the Mango: Recipes for the Obsessed,” will be published next year by the University Press of Florida.
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