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MiamiNative1977
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| Location: | Tamarac, Florida USA |
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Posted: Sat Apr 28th, 2007 01:41 am |
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Hi all!
I was just reading an article in the latest AAA magazine about Snooty the Manatee. It says that he is currently living in the Parker Manatee Aquarium at the South Florida Museum in Bradenton, FL; however, he was born in 1948 in the old Miami Aquarium and Tackle Company.
Since I enjoy history, I thought I would try to Google the Miami Aquarium and Tackle Company. The only thing I could find was the reference to Snooty the Manatee now being housed in Bradenton. I don't remember this place and would love to know more about it, it's history, where it was located, etc. Do any of you know where I can find more info on the aquarium or do any of you have any info on it?
Thanks!
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HanSoloRRT
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Posted: Fri Aug 3rd, 2007 02:53 am |
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| I have never heard of it either. Something like that would have been around for quite sometime. I find the relationship of aquarium and tackle to be interesting. I have to wonder why they used both of the words in the name.
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Best Regards to All,
Louis
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bessnfloyd
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Posted: Fri Aug 3rd, 2007 05:36 am |
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http://www.marinemammalogy.org/sirenews/snews44.pdf
Not Many Know This About Snooty the Manatee's Birth. - The recent birthday celebration for our famous manatee, Snooty, marked his 57th year of life, and 56 of those have been spent right here in Manatee County. [ED. NOTE: Snooty is the longest-lived manatee in captivity anywhere in the world.] Each year, we hear that he was born at the Miami Aquarium, but how many of us knew that the aquarium was inside a ship? Carol Audette, curator of the Parker Manatee Aquarium at Bishop Planetarium and South Florida Museum, seems to be the only person with this knowledge, which is natural, based on her 21 years with this gentle mammal.
According to a recent article by Alice L. Luckhardt in Florida Monthly Magazine, the Prins Valdemar, a steel-hulled, square-rigged Danish barkentine with four masts, was sailed to Miami in 1925 with plans to convert her into a 100-room hotel and world-class restaurant. Plans went awry when the large ship sank, blocking the harbor and all incoming ship traffic, causing some developers to pull out of the city at the height of its land boom. After four weeks of frustration, the ship was righted and the harbor cleared. The steel and wood masts had been cut away and water pumped out. She went on to survive the 1926 hurricane with 125-130 mph winds that devastated nearly every building in Miami.
Now moored at Southeast First Street, the Prins was mostly forgotten until her owners, Richard Walters, Cliff Storm, and George Reiser, formed plans to convert her into a tourist attraction. After a permanent bulkhead was constructed around the ship, the interior was fitted with large tanks to hold fish and mammals. The city of Miami loaned tanks from the Miami Beach Aquarium, then closed, and a grand opening was held 1 May 1928.
Our Snooty, first called Little Snoots and later Baby Snoots, was born there 21 July 1948, and made his first appearance in Bradenton in conjunction with the DeSoto Celebration of 1949. The aquarium owners were beginning to experience lease and permitting problems with the city of Miami, opening the way for the young manatee to remain in Bradenton. Walters spent many months seeking homes for his remaining creatures, some 2,500 of them. Eventually, the few remaining were released into Biscayne Bay and the facility was closed.
For a time the Prins served as a civic center, but was soon declared unsafe and demolished. Some of its remains were discovered when a causeway was under construction in 1964, but the rest is buried beneath the American Airlines Arena, built in 1998. But Snooty had found a real home in Manatee County, first in a much-too-small pool at the South Florida Museum's original home at the end of the Memorial Pier. When the first permanent museum building was built years later, Snooty's pool, somewhat larger, was declared adequate.
Now, however, he cavorts, much as a senior citizen manatee might cavort, in a lavish facility known as the Parker Manatee Aquarium. He is, from time to time, accompanied by younger manatees brought to the local facility to recuperate from wounds received in the wild. - Bubbles Greer (Source: Sarasota Herald-Tribune [Florida], 3 August 2005)
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Bess W.
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MiamiNative1977
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Posted: Fri Aug 3rd, 2007 01:05 pm |
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Thanks Bess!!!! I appreciate the info! 
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Stuartgal
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Posted: Fri Aug 31st, 2007 10:18 pm |
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Hi everyone,
I am Alice L. Luckhardt, who wrote the article for FLORIDA MONTHLY MAGAZINE (Jan. 2005 issue) about the Miami Aquarium (originally the sailing ship "Prins Valdemar"). It was along Biscayne Bay, near the Bayfront Park. The very spot where the present AAA for the 'Miami Heat' is located is where the Aquarium was located for decades. In March 2006, I gave a visual and verbal presentation at the Historical Museum of Southern Florida about the ship and Aquarium. Given to the Museum were several family artifacts and a DVD presentation I created to illustrate about the Aquarium, including about the first manatee born in captivity. If you get a chance to view the DVD and artifacts at the Museum, do so, they are very interesting.
Note, I mentioned 'family artifacts'. My godmother, family cousin and namesake, is Alice L. Walters Wallace -- daughter of Capt. Richard J. Walters who owned the ship / aquarium, was also present at the Museum for the presentation. Alice's mother was Mae M. Walters - principal of West Hialeah Elem. School, for which the school was later renamed in her honor.
The Miami Seaquarium opened up in 1955 with the advice and assistance from Capt. Walters.
If anyone is interested in viewing photos of the Aquarium, send your email address and I will attach some images.
I am presently publishing a book on Alice Walters Wallace and her growing up in Miami during the 1920s - 1940s and then an adult during the 1950s - 2000, along with the accomplishments of her family. It will be out in a couple months.
If anyone has additional questions on the ship / aquarium or 'Snooty', let me know.
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paulettecarr
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Posted: Sat Mar 1st, 2008 03:33 am |
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With regard to Snooty’s Origins and the Miami Aquarium Tackle Company:
Hi, I am thrilled to join this discussion.
I am Paulette Carr, the granddaughter of Samuel Stout, the owner and operator of the Miami Aquarium Tackle Company in the late 1940’s, and the man who gave Snooty to the City of Bradenton. The posts and articles on this forum are in conflict with the documentation that I have.
My grandfather's business was the Miami Aquarium Tackle Company (as his company letterhead reads) that was based on the Prins Valdemar. In July of 1948 my grandfather discovered that Lady, the female manatee he had earlier captured with the permission from the Florida Department of Conservation, had given birth to a calf (Snooty) in captivity. Samuel Stout gifted Snooty to the City of Bradenton and Manatee County in June of 1949.
I have extensive documentation, showing that in the late 1940's Samuel Stout owned the Miami Aquarium Tackle Company, Lady and “Baby” (Snooty), and gave Snooty to the City of Bradenton and Manatee County . The name Walters is not mentioned in any of these papers. The Miami Aquarium Tackle Company preceded the Miami Seaquarium. I just recently cataloged and scanned these documents, and gave them to Bob Bonde and Cathy Beck of the U.S. Geological Survey - Sirenia Project, and to the Parker Manatee Aquarium at the South Florida Museum where Snooty lives. All of these documents can be found in public records. I will be happy to answer any questions in the interest of accurate history.
To Alice Luckhardt: Since our stories are different, I would like to talk with you in the hopes of clearing up the discrepancies, and forging an accurate historical picture.
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Stuartgal
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Posted: Sat Mar 1st, 2008 02:24 pm |
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Please contact me at: allgel @ bellsouth.net
~~ Alice L.
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Stuartgal
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Posted: Tue Mar 4th, 2008 10:02 pm |
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Capt. Richard J. Walters owned the "Prins Valdemar" for decades.
He did start and run for years the Miami Aquarium which was converted from the hull of the ship.
Over the later years he did have different partners / managers help run the aquarium.
Samuel Stout (originally from NY) ran / owned the Aquarium (Miami Aquarium and Tackle Co) in its final years, approxiately 1947 - 1950.
It was during that time that a manatee named "Lady" was rescued from Biscayne Bay by Samuel Stout and she later gave birth to 'Baby Snoots' aka Snooty at the Aquarium.
When the aquarium was forced to close down, Samuel saw to it that the baby manatee had a permanent home in Bradenton.
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paulettecarr
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Posted: Thu Mar 6th, 2008 04:21 am |
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Alice Luckhardt and I have been working together to iron out the differences and inconsistencies in our stories and it has been a pleasure to work with her! We are sharing information that clarifies and enriches both our histories.
Since much of the story has been lost to the public, I would like to tell the story of the Miami Aquarium Tackle Company and Snooty. Though it is my family's story, my corroborating sources are as follows: several articles from the Miami Herald, particularly, "Sea Cows Were His Good Friends" Jan. 26, 1955, an article from the Bradenton Herald, "Live Manatee Drops Into Lap of Bradenton", April 1, 1949, and documents and letters from the archived files of Walter Hardin, the Head of the DeSoto Celebration Commission in 1948-1949. I hope that this answers some of the questions posed earlier.
The Miami Aquarium was a long-standing attraction located on the landlocked ship, the Prins Valdemar on the Miami city property of Bayfront Park. Around 1947, Samuel Stout assumed ownership of the business, and renamed it the Miami Aquarium Tackle Company. Yes, he did provide and sell tackle. In early 1948 he obtained a permit to capture and exhibit one manatee from the Florida Department of Conservation. He did capture an adult female manatee that he called Lady. On July 21, 1948, this female gave birth in her tank to a young calf, with Stout acting as the midwife. At first the calf was believed to be female, but much later was determined to be a male. When he saw that Lady was not caring for the young calf, he built a special tank for the infant manatee that he called “Baby” (first named “Baby Snooks”, now called Snooty), and fed him bottled milk, and installed a cot so that he could care for “Baby” around the clock. He did not show him until he could eat lettuce, and always hand-fed “Baby”.
There was some controversy in March of 1949, when an agent for the Florida Board of Conservation insinuated (reported in the Miami Herald) that “Baby” had been captured without a permit. Stout testified before the Dade County Commission, insisting that the calf was Lady’s baby.
At the very same time, Manatee County was preparing for their DeSoto Celebration. The Hon. Walter Hardin headed the DeSoto Celebration Association in 1948-1949. Verified by documents that appear to be from the files of Hardin, the DeSoto Celebration wanted to capture and exhibit a manatee during their celebration, specifically because their county had been named for this animal, and not many people had ever seen one. He made arrangements for permits to capture a manatee in both 1948 and 1949, but it appears that he was unable to do so.
In the interest of making a lively and compelling story about Manatee capture, the Publicity Chairman of the DeSoto Celebration, Mr. T. L. Chryst concocted a tale of capture by harpooning. He knew, and apparently had spoken with Samuel Stout who had successfully captured a manatee off of Dade County in 1948, and was aware that this was not the technique used for capture. Unfortunately, the Humane Society of Miami, and the Audubon Society seized upon the capture misinformation and held public press conferences implying that Samuel Stout had used harpooning to capture the adult female manatee. This was in addition to being falsely accused of capturing two manatees.
Although the DeSoto Celebration was fast approaching, Hardin was still unable to capture a manatee. He wrote to Bunn Guatier (an attorney and State Senator from Miami) enlisting his help in getting Dade County Commissioners to allow Sam Stout to capture a manatee for them. This was agreed to, reluctantly, because, based on hearsay, the conservation officers believed that Stout used tactics that were inhumane. In no way was Sam Stout a party to capture by harpooning, or any other inhumane practice. Letters from Walter Hardin and T. L. Chryst vindicated him, and these letters were submitted to the State Conservation Department, under a Mr. George Vathis, in an attempt of clear up the situation. There was only a week to affect the manatee capture for Hardin. It is not certain whether Stout was unsuccessful in finding and capturing another manatee, or the capture attempt was blocked. He decided, however, to bring “Baby to Bradenton for the DeSoto Celebration.
Just as the very successful DeSoto Celebration was ending, and Stout returned with “Baby” to Miami, he was hit with more bad news. The city of Miami had been planning for a new aquarium attraction since 1941 (Miami Seaquarium website), and decided that the time was right to close the aquarium on the Prins Valdemar. They had long considered it an “eyesore.” The Miami Herald reported on March 24th, 1949, that the City Commission requested that the owner of the boat, R.J. Walters, remove the vessel when the lease expired on June 10, 1949.
George Vathis, the Department of Conservation supervisor revoked Stout's original capture and exhibit permit, ordering Sam Stout to release both manatees. Stout argued that if “Baby” were released into the bay, he would never be able to survive, and the citizens of Miami agreed that it would be cruel to release “Baby”, because he wouldn’t know how to feed himself. Stout requested that he be permitted to give Baby (now called Snooty) to Bradenton, and was allowed to contact Hardin with the offer.
Hardin, on behalf of the City of Bradenton, Manatee County Commissioners, Manatee County Fish and Game Association, Bradenton Chamber of Commerce, and the South Florida Museum, accepted. On June 14, 1949, a letter to Hardin from Sam Stout heralded the arrival of Baby in Bradenton on the 20th of June 1949 – at which time he was just a month and a few days shy of 1 year in age. For this, Samuel Stout only accepted $75.00 to cover the cost of transporting Baby to his new home. He also requested that Baby live in salt water.
By February 9, 1950, the Miami Herald reported that the city took possession of the ship in a trade with R. J. Walters for the $7,500 bond he had posted in 1946. On February 21, 1950, city orders to empty and demolish the ship were carried out. Without the boat, there could be no aquarium. The Miami Herald reported that a sad Sam Stout watched as his tanks were torn up and the adult female manatee, Lady, along with many of Samuel Stout’s fish, were released into the bay or ocean to fend for themselves.
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