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Carrollwood's birthday bash

Staff photo by FRED BELLET

An article in the September 1959 edition of Better Homes and Gardens magazine featured this home in Carrollwood.

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By MICHELE SAGER

msager@tampatrib.com

Published: November 4, 2009

CARROLLWOOD - When Muriel and Harold Haviland decided to move to Florida 50 years ago from Long Island, New York, they were in search of a peaceful, safe place to raise a family.

Drawn to Tampa by the expansion of large companies and a housing boom, they began their hunt for a home. Their tour took them to a new neighborhood where roads wound through citrus groves and lots surrounded a pristine lake.

They had found Carrollwood and immediately fell in love. The Havilands bought the first home in the community in 1959 on Korina Lane, and that's where Muriel Haviland remains today.

"It was a strange experience when we first moved here because there was nothing around and it was so quiet," she said. "There were no shops or traffic. All you heard were the sounds of the peacocks."

The peacocks remain, but the silent rural surroundings have disappeared, swallowed by Tampa's growth during the past five decades.

This weekend residents of Original Carrollwood will gather to celebrate the community's 50th anniversary. The event promises something for everyone. There will be a carnival for children, sports tournaments for adults and a formal ceremony on Sunday to recognize the community's founding members.

Carrollwood was the vision of developer Matt Jetton, a South Tampa resident who had a plan to turn orange groves north of Tampa into a community with modern homes and the latest amenities.

He named it Carrollwood for Lake Carroll, the centerpiece to the 925-home community. It later would be known as Original Carrollwood.

Brochures advertising the new development boasted affordable housing, sidewalks and streetlights, and private amenities for residents. But Carrollwood's biggest boost might have come from the University of South Florida, which was under construction a few miles away.

USF's first president, John Allen, bought a home in Carrollwood as did nearly 100 other professors and university employees.

"People really believed in education because we had so many educators moving in," said Sue Phillips, who moved into her first Carrollwood home in 1960. "Families wanted that same education and upbringing for their children."

Phillips said she and her husband, Hugh, almost didn't choose Carrollwood. But a last-minute find while house hunting changed their minds.

"I can still remember that kitchen with the turquoise tile and turquoise oven door," she said. "It didn't have central heat or air but did have a screened porch. It was just perfect for us."

Carrollwood received national attention in the 1960s when a home on Carrollwood Drive was featured as the Better Homes and Gardens "Idea Home," touting the latest in modern design. Three other homes would be featured in following years.

Life Magazine named the community the best subdivision in the nation in 1961, and Carrollwood was mentioned in an exhibit at the 1964 World's Fair.

Phillips said the couple paid $14,500 for their first Carrollwood home and immediately became part of the neighborhood and its budding traditions. The community started events still celebrated today, such as the Halloween parade and Christmas Eve luminaries.

One problem was getting friends who lived elsewhere in the area to visit.

"No one wanted to come visit me from Tampa," Phillips said. "It was as if I lived in Brooksville."

Resident Theodore Chive agreed.

"My friends thought I Iived in some far off jungle," said Chive, who moved to Carrollwood in 1961. "Dale Mabry Highway was only two lanes, and they would run soap box derbies on the roads sometimes."

Residents didn't have many nearby shops or restaurants and would drive to downtown Tampa for groceries, furniture and clothing.

Eventually stores were built, as were schools and surrounding neighborhoods. Dale Mabry grew and so did the traffic congestion. But residents insist Original Carrollwood still holds the same appeal it did 50 years ago.

"There really is something for everyone," said Mark Snellgrove, president of the Carrollwood Civic Association. "We have this community jewel, a 200-acre ski lake. We have four parks and a private beach. We have homes for all income levels. And we have great residents."

Snellgrove said that's why new generations of families continue to choose Original Carrollwood.

"Even during these tough times, Original Carrollwood is faring better than some other communities," he said.

That's why Phillips said she is glad she chose to remain in Original Carrollwood when it was time to upgrade to a larger home. She didn't have to move far to find what she needed, just five homes away is where she lives today. She has no plans to go elsewhere.

"I love this place, and I hope I never have to go into some kind of old-age home," said the 79-year-old resident. "I want to spend my final days right here in the place that I love."

Reporter Michele Sager can be reached at (727) 451-2344.

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