Bentley-Gray building at 602 Tampa Street
Bentley-Gray building at 602 Tampa Street, four story brick front and side facades. 1929. Burgert Brothers. Courtesy, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System
GTE Financial Building, 601 Ashley Street, 2021 © Chip Weiner
When this photo was taken in 1923, the dry goods company Bentley-Gray was prospering. They employed ten traveling salesmen to sell their wares across Florida and added a mail-order department that year. The company started in the 1890s and built this structure in 1909. They moved to 700 Zack Street in 1926 and remained there until 1931, when Celo Company purchased the building. They then moved to 916 Twiggs Street and remained in business until 1990.
In 1924, the Tampa Tribune Building was constructed after the building had been demolished. It housed the printing plant in the 4-story front building, and 12 floors of store space and offices were built here for $750,000. It was financed by a bond issue guaranteed by Col. W.F. Stovall, President and editor of the Tampa Tribune. In 1926, the name of the building was changed to the Wallace S. Building, named after Stovall. In a quirky deal, he sold the Tampa Tribune in 1925 for $ 1.2 million. The building was sold in foreclosure in 1945. The tower portion of the building still exists as the GTE Financial Credit Union and was sold in April 2021 for $ 20 million to the TLR Group. Plans are being made to demolish the building and construct a 43-story tower with 480 residential units.
© Chip Weiner. All rights reserved
From Burgert Brothers: Look Again, Vol. 1