Living along Ware's Creek, circa 1915-1960s

As more people heard of the semi-tropical paradise south of Tampa, people of all walks of life migrated to Manatee County. The population of the Village of Manatee, near the present-day Manatee Avenue and Ninth Street East, grew and some of the newcomers began to settle west of the village along the banks of Ware's Creek. The photos below from the Bradenton Herald's and Manatee County Historical Society archives capture scenes along the creek from days past. To view more photos check out Photo Gallery | Living along Ware's Creek at Bradenton.com.

Most of the homes were built along the mouth of Ware's Creek, where it runs into the larger Manatee River. During low tides large sections of the creek would turn into mud flats, so docks were built to allow easier access to the middle of the creek for boats. This photo, taken about 1915, shows one of the more elaborate structures with a boathouse and deck, on the western bank of Ware's Creek, just north of the Manatee Avenue Bridge.

A young Korky Koker points at a large alligator that climbed onto the banks of Ware's Creek in the backyard of a home near Eighth Avenue West on Oct. 19, 1968. By the 1960s most of the Ballard Park subdivision was built out, and wildlife in the area was getting used to living with humans as their neighbors.

In this closer view of the alligator, which was between 8 and 10 feet long, notice the lush vegetation along Ware's Creek. Construction of homes and commercial buildings upstream from here was taking place in a rapid manner in the 1960s, creating more soil runoff into the creek. This led to the situation today when, during heavy rainstorms, many of the homes along Ware's Creek will flood. The Army Corps of Engineers plan to dredge the creek and widen its banks to help alleviate the flooding.

Palmetto Boys and Girls Club Milestones

Large demolition machinery began tearing down the Palmetto Branch building of the Boys and Girls Club of Manatee County last week, leaving mostly rubble as crews finished the work this week, as these photos show. Built in March 1971, the building has a long history of service and holds many memories to the youth who live north of the Manatee River. The photos below from the Bradenton Herald's archives show some of the events that led up to the opening of the facility.

 To see a retrospective of many of the activities kids

of the area enjoyed through the years, visit

Gallery | Boys and Girls Club at Bradenton.com.

Leaders of the fund drive for the new building bow their heads in prayer at the groundbreaking ceremonies for the Palmetto Boys and Girls Club facility Sept. 15, 1970.

The Palmettto Boys and Girls Club building begins to take shape, as shown in this photo from Oct. 24, 1970. The $130,000 building was ahead of schedule, according to general contractor Foster Pate. The 15,400-square-foot facility was designed to include recreation rooms, a full-size basketball court, snack bar, library and other activities areas.

The dedication ceremony of the Palmetto Boys Club brought out the movers and shakers of Manatee County on July 4, 1971. Paul Parrish, then-president of the Boys' Clubs of Manatee County and area banker, unveiled a plaque listing the names of all the people who helped make the dream a reality with then-mayor of Palmetto, J. Gordon Alderman, past-president of the organization.

Water and Manatee County: Historical connections

The history of Manatee County is closely tied to water. With the waters of the Gulf of Mexico lapping our western shores and the broad Manatee River dissecting this immense county, the people who settled this land had an intimate connection to the water. Even before the first settlers from the north arrived, the waters provided both commercial and recreational opportunities for those who chose this place for their home. These photos from the Manatee County Historical Society archives capture the importance water played in the county's growth and success. To see more photos of life on the waterways of Manatee County check out Gallery | Waterways at Bradenton.com

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This photograph, circa 1918, depicts a fleet of skipjack sailboats at the Cortez fishing village. The skipjack, a small boat used primarily for the gill netting of mullet, was powered only with two sails and steered with a tiller. Cortez remains a vibrant part of the area's economy today.

A woman and child wait on the Corwin Dock in the early 1920s for the steamer ship Favorite, maybe to greet a visiting relative or to board themselves for a trip to Tampa. Steamers, preceded by large sailing sloops, were docking at the Corwin Dock off Main Street in Bradenton, where the Municipal Pier now stands, carrying passengers and cargo for decades.

When the Municipal Pier was built in the mid-1920s, replacing the Corwin Dock, it quickly became a favorite place for tying up recreational boats, as shown in this postcard from the late 1920s.