William Wrigley, Jr. (1861-1932), chewing gum industrialist and founder of the William Wrigley Jr. Company, played an instrumental role in the history of Catalina Island. He bought the island from Joseph and Hancock Banning in 1919, and improved it with public utilities, new steamships, a hotel, the Casino building, and extensive planting of trees, shrubs, and flowers. Wrigley was the owner of the Chicago Cubs baseball team, which held its annual spring training on the island. In 1920, William Wrigley Jr. and David M. Renton had a small casino built to serve as an entertainment and gathering place for Catalina Island's visitors. In a short period of time though, this establishment - the Sugarloaf Casino, proved to be too small to accommodate the growing number of guests, and in February 1928 it was demolished to make room for a much larger building. The Catalina Casino Ballroom, also known as Avalon Ballroom, was built on the same spot - adjacent to Sugarloaf Rock by architects Sumner A. Spaulding and William Webber. Sugarloaf Rock was eventually blasted away in order to enhance the view from the Casino. Wrigley's budget for the design and construction of the Catalina Casino was $600,000, but when all was said and done, he ended up spending $2 million. Today, the famous twelve-story art deco landmark hosts most of Catalina's major indoor events, including the annual New Year's Eve Celebration, and the Catalina Island Jazz Festival. William Wrigley's beautiful two-story, L-shaped home rests atop a grassy hill, overlooking Avalon and beyond. The sprawling residence boasts of numerous windows, each facing magnificent views of the island, several dormers, a number of balconies, and lush landscape. An American flag waves majestically at the top of the stairs.
Type
image
Format
1 photographic print :b&w ;21 x 26 cm. Photographic prints
Architecture, Domestic--California--Santa Catalina Island Dwellings--California--Santa Catalina Island Islands--California--Santa Catalina Island Wrigley, William,1861-1932 Renton, David M Santa Catalina Island (Calif.) Avalon (Calif.)
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