Shuffleboard 1946
Florida State Archives/Florida Memory
Florida State Archives/Florida Memory
Stranahan Park
10 E. Broward Blvd.
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Shuffleboard, with roots traceable to 15th-century England, was big in Fort Lauderdale beginning in the 1930s, especially after Stranahan Park was carved out of land deeded to the city. It was the site of games hosted by the Fort Lauderdale Shuffleboard Club with members from more than 30 states. The park was reportedly built with dirt from Indian burial mounds. Stranahan Park was a "cypress swamp" deeded to the city by Frank Stranahan in the early 1900s.
In 1928, it was reported that construction of a "novel game" was to be completed at the park and expected to draw a large crowd of players because so many watched its installation. A croquet court was also to be opened. Stranahan Park was already a popular spot with its concerts, checkers and chess tables, and busy horseshoe courts to "make it one of the most beautiful and useful parks along the East coast."
Today, Stranahan Park remains downtown off Broward, but without shuffleboard.
See index or use search box for more posts on Frank Stranahan.
Today, the 1.6-acre park consists of a pavilion, benches and an open play area.
Sources:
Fort Lauderdale News Jan. 15, 1928
Miami News , March 10, 1934
City of Fort Lauderdale parks
Copyright © 2013, 2021 All rights reserved. Jane Feehan.
Tags: Fort Lauderdale shuffleboard club, Fort Lauderdale in the 1930s, Fort Lauderdale historian, Miami historian, Frank Stranahan
