Rolyat Hotel

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The Rolyat Hotel, now the Stetson University College of Law, is located in Gulfport, Florida in Pinellas County on the west coast of Florida.

In the early 1900s, Gulfport experienced its share of the Great Florida Land Boom, with the development of Pasadena-on-the-Gulf, now called Pasadena Estates. Pasadena Progress was the official newsletter published for the new Pasadena-on-the-Gulf community. This development was designed as a "residential paradise", and the Rolyat Hotel was the last phase of construction before the Great Depression hit.

Built in 1925,^[1] the Hotel Rolyat (Taylor spelled backwards) was named after I.M. Jack Taylor, its owner and the president of Pasadena Estates, also known as "Handsome Jack" Taylor. The architectural firm of Kiehnel & Elliott of Miami, Florida designed the Spanish-themed hotel under the direction of project architect Paul Reed. George A. Fuller Construction Company of New York City served as the general contractor and John Wanamaker supplied the furnishings and china.^[2] The Rolyat opened January 1, 1926 with celebrities in attendance and champagne flowing in the main fountain.