Port Royal Naples FL History

John Glenn Sample, an influential figure in radio advertising from Chicago, purchased a large area of marshland in southern Naples, Florida. Located between 21st Avenue South and Gordon Pass, and bordered by the Gulf of Mexico and Naples Bay, this two square mile plot of land is ideal for enjoying all that Naples has to offer, including boating, fishing, kayaking, and strolling along the beautiful sandy beaches while taking in stunning views of the Gulf and its famous sunsets.

In the late 1940s, Mr. Sample expressed his aspiration to transform Port Royal into the most desirable place to live in the world. This vision led to the subsequent hiring of earth-moving and dredging equipment to convert the marshland into a series of man-made peninsulas, offering deep water access and luxurious residential building lots overlooking the waterways, coves, and Naples Bay. This ambitious engineering project, which spanned many years and cost $3.5 million, resulted in the development of 600 single-family lots and estate properties, many of which boasted views of the Gulf.

Looted Ships From The Caribbean

The name "Port Royal" was chosen as a tribute to the notorious 17th century Jamaican city, known as a haven for privateers and smugglers to hide their loot from looted ships in the Caribbean. Each street in Port Royal is named after this theme, with names like Gin Lane, Rum Row, Galleon Drive, and Buccaneers Roost.

Todays Prices Of Homes In Port Royal

The lots in Port Royal, which ranged in size from half an acre to larger, were initially sold for prices between $7500 to $12,000, while the spec homes developed by Sample sold for $22,000 to $25,000 – a significant amount of money at the time. Today, vacant lots in Port Royal can fetch around $4 million, with completed homes on the Gulf of Mexico valued as high as $30 million.

Luxury Florida Living And Lifestyle

Pristine tropical flora and fauna surround the grand beachfront mansions and waterfront estates, making Port Royal the epitome of luxury Florida living and lifestyle. The community was further enhanced in 1959 with the development of the well-known and exclusive Port Royal Club, offering its members access to gourmet dining, spa treatments, a fitness center with personal trainers and physical therapists, professional tennis facilities and lessons, and a beachfront swimming pool – all representing the epitome of luxurious Gulf Coast living and the Port Royal lifestyle.

Stacie Zinn

A 1997 article by Stacie Zinn in N Magazine beautifully captures the rich history of Port Royal and its visionary developer, John Glenn Sample, through accounts from his son, Joe Sample, and other long-time residents and business professionals of Naples.

The Place To Be In Florida

In the 1940s, as many prominent corporations and well-to-do individuals flocked to Palm Beach, Florida, developed by Henry Flagler and showcasing the renowned architecture of Addison Mizner, Mr. Sample chose to explore other options. It was on the recommendation of a friend that he first visited Naples, Florida, at the age of 46 in 1938. In contrast to bustling Palm Beach, Mr. Sample found a peaceful and serene atmosphere in Naples, situated along the tranquil shores of the Gulf of Mexico. Impressed by what he discovered, he quickly began acquiring property along the south end of Naples, which at the time consisted mostly of mangroves and swampland along Naples Bay and south to Gordon Pass, the only access from the Gulf of Mexico. And thus, the foundation for the development of Port Royal was laid.