September 14, 1997

Rusty Machine Recalls Baker, A Man Ahead Of His Time

The 800-pound chunk of rusty machinery dug up from a Punta Gorda parking is a relic of the remarkable career of Henry W. "Baker" Smith --- a man who could have been the inspiration for the quip, "Greatest thing since sliced bread."

A construction crew discovered the unusual machine while paving the vacant lot next door to the old Smith Arcade which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The venerable Spanish-style building has been restored beautifully by Peter Taylor.

Upon inspection, the artifact was found to be a bread-dough mixer -- and its burial site that of Smith's early bakery. The late Punta Gorda historian Byron Rhode, confirmed that he had operated the apparatus as a young employee of Smith.

Smith and Rhode's father, George, were friends on the Tampa police force. Both moved to Punta Gorda with their young families about 1907. George Rhode opened a grocery and later was appointed postmaster of Punta Gorda by President Woodrow Wilson.

Smith built a small white-brick bakery at what is now the Arcade parking lot. According to Byron Rhode in his delightful book "Punta Gorda Remembered," Smith baked bread for his friend and for other grocers. He hauled his loaves in a small hand-drawn wagon resembling a "goat cart." Before long, Smith's business grew to the point he had to get a horse-drawn wagon -- and then a couple of automobiles when they came along.

It was not by accident that he was widely known as "Baker" Smith. The dough mixer enabled Smith to mechanize what had been a tedious task of hand labor. His loaves were small by today's standard, but weighed a pound. People preferred solid bread in those days. Some baking trays were recovered with the mixer now displayed at the Arcade side entrance.

Smith's loaves sold for only 5 cents each from grocers' glass cases -- and that included the merchants' wrapping paper, string, labor and profit as well as a profit for Smith. He was the first baker in the area to install a machine that wrapped bread automatically in wax paper. He also was the first to add a bread slicer.

Smith bought flour in 98-pound sacks. People salvaged the sacks for garments.

"One Sunday a local church was having a baptism service down at the bay front," Rhode recalled. "The preacher took hold of a very large lady to push her under, and they both lost their balance. "The lady's dress floated up and exposed her panties. Across her bottom was printed: 98 Pounds of the VERY BEST Made Special for Smith Bakery."

Smith borrowed money in 1912 to build the Bay City grocery in front of his bakery. He sold canned staples, meat, stock feed and seeds as well as his popular bakery goods. Eight years later he built a handsome hotel alongside and over the grocery. He named it Bayview. It was located near the railroad depot, the tracks then running down the middle of King Street (Tamiami Trail) to the city dock.

The Bayview catered to "drummers" (traveling salesmen) who could not afford the luxurious Hotel Punta Gorda. Smith opened a cafeteria in his hotel but was ahead of his time with this innovation. Customers wanted to be served. Therefore, Smith converted the cafeteria to a conventional restaurant which did well.

In the meantime, George Rhode had become Punta Gorda postmaster. He encouraged his friend Smith to apply for the lease of a new post office authorized for the town. Smith borrowed money from Dr. Alfred Grunwell in 1926 to build the Arcade. This, again, was a new concept of marketing -- the forerunner of today's shopping malls.

A central "promenade" paved with Spanish tiles led to the post office in the rear part of the building. U. S. Cleveland was a postal clerk there in later years and then assistant postmaster.

"The post office was the center of social activity in those days before free delivery," says Cleveland. "I was in charge of the general-delivery window.

"The hall was always full of people coming in to get their mail, particularly in the winter season when the snowbirds came to the hotels and the city's trailer park across the street. I had difficulty sorting the mail because of the continuous inquiries.

"I remember one patron who was quite nasty if I did not have her mail ready, and she generally was one of the first persons to arrive. Her name was Mrs. Yantz, from Indiana. I dreaded her coming.

"One day the general delivery line stretched all the way down the promenade to the street. I could hear Mrs. Yantz complaining constantly as the line moved toward me. When her turn came I had to tell her there was no mail for her. "Mrs. Yantz said she knew there was a package for her because her sister had written a few days earlier that she was sending a box of cookies.

"I was fed up with her verbal abuse so, without thinking, I said, 'Oh, that box. Those cookies were delicious. I wish I had some more.' Mrs. Yantz hit the ceiling. She called me names I had never heard before. I started to laugh. Pretty soon she caught on and laughed too. After that we were the best of friends. The cookies arrived the next day."

Individual stores opened onto the promenade. Byron Rhode operated the Home Supply grocery in a front store. Mack (Roscoe) Maxwell had a drug store at the other front corner. Opening onto the promenade were various smaller stores and offices. The 1927 city directory lists Dr. Walter Clement, Harry Rich Radio, Cabin Kodak, Arcade Shoe Shop, Arcade Tackle, Arcade Beauty Shop, and Arcade Barber Shop.

On the street floor of the hotel there was the Rex Billiard Parlor, Master's Electric, All American Cafe and Bay City Grocery.

Smith was elected county commissioner. With the Arcade and hotel prospering, he gave up the bakery business. He tore down the bake shop in 1927. The dough mixer was tumbled into a hole in order to dispose of it. He sold the grocery to his sons Edwin and Earnest, but they sold the store soon after to Mayo Sturgeon.

Disaster struck in the early 30s with the Great Depression. Smith was unable to make payments on his mortgages and lost the Arcade to Dr. Grunwell. Smith died a poor man in 1943 at age 73. He is buried in Punta Gorda's Indian Springs Cemetery along with his wife and two sons.

The post office moved down Marion Street. Dr. Grunwell sold the Arcade to Fred King. He expanded his furniture store across the street to include the front stores of the Arcade. King built a large business selling on credit during those hard times. He also had stores in Arcadia, East Fort Myers and Lake Okeechobee. His slogan was, "We Feather Your Nest With a Little Down."

Fire in 1972 destroyed the Bayview Hotel. The Arcade survived inasmuch as it was constructed of masonry. King died two years later, and the Arcade became empty. He, too, is buried at Indian Springs.

The Arcade fell into disrepair and was condemned. Peter Taylor's decision to restore the building has preserved the memory of Baker Smith, a man ahead of his time.

By Lindsey Williams, columnist for Sun Coast Media Group newspapers

cutline -- truck and crew

Photo courtesy of Charlotte Harbor Area Historical Society.

Smith Bakery personnel pose at Bayview Hotel. They are (from left) Edwin Smith, Alma Howland Willis, Ed Cocram, Maude Dick Mauck, Owner Henry Smith, Ernest Smith, Frank Walden, and Otis Flowers.