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1905 Florida Hotel Letter – George Henry Frost (1838–1917), Publishing Magnate & Civil Engineer
Offered is an original 2-page autograph letter signed (ALS) by George Henry Frost, dated March 23, 1905, written on elegant Hotel Alcazar (St. Augustine, Florida) letterhead. Frost writes to a Mr. Sawyer regarding his southbound trip to Palm Beach’s Royal Poinciana Hotel, Henry Flagler’s most famous Gilded Age resort.
In the letter, Frost details his travel plans:
Holding tickets and a Pullman berth for the Sunday night 9:20 train.
Arrival at the Royal Poinciana Hotel at 7 a.m. Monday morning.
Wiring ahead to secure two rooms, ideally “facing garden,” though willing to “take the best I can get.”
Hoping to spend two full weeks at Palm Beach before traveling farther north.
Noting that the Florida weather was already warming, “but that is what we came here for.”
George Henry Frost (1838–1917)
Born in Ontario; McGill University graduate (1860).
Early career as land surveyor & railway engineer in Chicago.
In 1874 co-founded Engineering News, one of the era’s most influential professional journals.
By 1878 relocated to New York, becoming President of the Engineering News Publishing Co.
Leading member of the American Society of Civil Engineers and several state societies.
Resided at 745 Watchung Avenue, Plainfield, NJ, among the city’s finest addresses.
His wealth afforded extended foreign travel, one of Plainfield’s earliest luxury automobiles, and substantial real estate holdings.
Historical Importance
This 1905 letter is a vivid example of Gilded Age leisure travel, when America’s wealthy elite wintered in Florida at Henry Flagler’s luxury hotels. The Royal Poinciana, completed in 1894 and at the time the largest wooden hotel in the world, was a magnet for society figures like Frost. Letters of this type — blending travel logistics with the social rituals of high society resorts — are increasingly scarce.
Condition: 2pp, fine, on ornate Hotel Alcazar letterhead featuring a detailed vignette of the famous Moorish Revival hotel (now the Lightner Museum). Ink strong, writing clear and legible.
A fine artifact of Florida’s resort era, linking George H. Frost, a leading publisher and civil engineer, with Flagler’s Palm Beach empire at the height of its Gilded Age glamour.
Hotel Alcazar, St. Augustine, Fla.
March 23, 1905
My dear Mr. Sawyer,
I have my tickets and berths for Sunday night (9:20) train, arriving at Ponceana at 7 A.M. Monday. I have wired the hotel for two rooms for Monday morning. Will you please to mention this matter to the right man & drop me a line for Sunday morning.
I hope to be able to spend full two weeks at Palm Beach on my return, go farther north. The weather is warming up in St. Augustine, but that is what we came here for.
If I can get rooms (without bath) facing garden I will be satisfied, but will take the best I can get.
With kind regards to Miss Sawyer & hoping to see you on Monday morning,
I remain very truly,
Geo. H. Frost
