Anna Maria’s history is
mostly unwritten
The public archives hold only 3 old photos of Anna Maria. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗In 1893, George Emerson Bean built a home near the present day Rod & Reel Pier. Two years later in 1895, he filed a homesteaded claim of 160 acres (0.65 km2) on the north part of Anna Maria Island. Prior to Bean's homestead claim, Andrew Gowanlack would reside in the area where Bean would file his homestead at. However, Andrew never filed for a homestead claim but did receive three acres of land after Bean filed his homestead claim out of squatting rights. After George Bean's death in 1898, the land went to his son, George Wilhelm Bean, who partnered with Charles Roser, a wealthy real estate developer from St. Petersburg, to form the Anna Maria Beach Company to develop the area.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowStart Anna Maria’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Anna Maria’s history is told.
2 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District …, 1850: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Anna Maria, decade by decade
![Florida [Hamilton County - Sarasota County (part)]](https://images.towntapestry.org/story/2099/5d74676f87dd2bf61ac9-s.jpg)
1990s
CommonsClear blue water2020
CommonsAnnaMariaFL2018
CommonsAnna Maria,Florida,USA2015
CommonsAnna Maria,Florida,USA. - panoramio (4)2015
CommonsAnna Maria,Florida,USA. - panoramio (3)2015
CommonsAnna Maria,Florida,USA. - panoramio (2)2015
CommonsAnna Maria,Florida,USA. - panoramio (1)2015
CommonsJim Callahan June 20122012Then & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as 1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - Florida - Manatee County - ED 41-25, ED 41-26, ED 41-27, ED 41-28, ED 4… (1850) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (10) and the Library of Congress (1). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.