The Legend of Useppa

Self-published. No date, but circa 1939. 5 ½ in. x 7 ¾ in. 35 pp. Black and white historical photos (including a portrait of Barron Collier, Sr.), plus drawings and a map. Blue cloth with black titling on the front cover. Loosely inserted are the bookplates of Barron G. Collier, Sr. (1873-1939) and of his son Barron Collier, Jr. who died in 1976. The bookplates indicate that this copy probably came from the library of one of Barron Collier's heirs. Useppa Island is off the west coast of Florida, near Gasparilla, Sanibel, and Captiva islands. It had been used by pirates as a safe haven. Legends of sunken treasure were just that---legends. Because of its archaeological significance the island was added to the U. S. National Register of Historic Places. Barron Collier bought the island in 1911, enlarging an existing hotel and adding tennis courts and a golf course. In 1960 the island was used as a training site for Cuban exiles who were preparing for the Bay of Pigs invasion. Collier was a public figure of some renown. Under his leadership, the Collier family became the largest land developer in Florida, and were involved in such projects as drainage of the Everglades. In 1923 the Florida legislature named a county in his honor. He was also a public figure in New York state, where, among other duties, he was special deputy commissioner for public safety and introduced white and yellow lines to divide traffic lanes on highways. He was decorated by nine foreign governments. John Law Kerr (1862-1952) was Barron Collier's uncle and managed various properties for the Collier companies.…