The 150-room Hotel Punta Gorda, later called Hotel Charlotte Harbor and the Charlotte Harbor Spa, opened for the winter season of 1886-1887. The cupola atop the ballroom is pictured here amid the flames that destroyed the venerable resort hotel on August 14, 1959.

This photo shows the Hotel Charlotte Harbor (also called the Charlotte Harbor Spa) engulfed in flames. The 150-room winter resort opened in 1887 as the Hotel Punta Gorda. The cupola atop the ballroom is silhouetted here amid the blaze that destroyed the Punta Gorda landmark on August 14, 1959.