A Brief History of Laguna Beach, Florida and the Swords Beach House
In The Beginning
Named Pascua by Ponce DeLeon, the Sunshine State did not enter the Union until March 3, 1845. Balmy winters began attracting snowbirds to the state in the late 19th century and continues to this day. Neither Panama City nor Bay Country existed until the early 1900s. Once a wilderness inhabited only by the Creek Indians, Panama City did not emerge as a community until the late 1800s. The State legislature carved Bay County from portions of Washington and Calhoun Counties on April 24, 1913. Well into the 1900s, most of the activity in the area was in Panama City, located on the east side of St. Andrews Bay.
Development in the area that would become Panama City Beach began in St. Andrews, which early-on became a port for explorers, traders, and settlers. Panama City was growing, but the beaches could only be reached by ferry. The original St. Andrews Bay Bridge was built in 1929, and the popularity of the Bay County Beaches grew.
The St. Andrews Bay Bridge was soon renamed the Hathaway Bridge after Franz Hathaway, chairman of Florida’s State Road Department. The bridge was replaced in 1959 and again in 2003.
Laguna Beach is Established
Laguna Beach was established and named in 1935. The earliest commercial development on the West End occurred around this time. The first significant commercial development was the construction of the Seabreeze Hotel near what today is “The Y,” where Florida Highway 79 meets State Road 30 (more popularly known as Front Beach Road). In 2023, the Y was converted into a roundabout intersection.
The Holloway family purchased an eight-acre plot of land to build a hotel for $2000. Opened in 1937, the Seabreeze boasted the only hot and cold running water on the beach. Additional development on the West End was sparked by the completion of the Coastal Highway, eventually known as U. S. 98 and today Back Beach Road. Until then, the highway was only a dirt and gravel pathway through the sand dunes.
Joseph Broderick Lahan, a businessman from Birmingham, Alabama, is credited with the first commercial development at Laguna Beach. He purchased more than half of the land all the way west to what today is Santa Monica Beach. Some land (Santa Monica) he eventually sold. Lahan named Laguna Beach after the more famous California community. He filed a plat for the lands that he purchased in August of 1936, including the land on the south side of the old Coastal Highway. Shortly thereafter, a building boom occurred at Laguna.
Lahan’s desire was to build a well-developed, viable community so that his friends and family in Birmingham could share in the beach lifestyle in a designated area.
Original Laguna Beach Plot Plan
Around 1938, Lahan set up a real estate office and visitors center. A windmill and water tower served as the basic infrastructure. A building on the south side of the highway, in front of what eventually became the Seahorse Motel, was established for Sunday School and worship. Lahan built the Seahorse in 1940, and it immediately became a popular travel destination.
A café and snack bar came shortly thereafter. It served breakfast beginning at 7 a.m. and offered take out dishes for those on the go. The café became a popular spot with the younger crowd.
In 1967, his son Charlie opened Charlie Lahan’s Carousel Supermarket, a grocery store that offered meats, drinks, and other grocery items, as well as a gift and souvenir shop. They say you can’t be all things to all people, but the Carousel comes close. The Carousel Supermarket remains open today and is just a 10-to-12-minute walk east of The Swords Beach House.
The Beach Reserved
When Lahan filed his original plat plan for Laguna Beach in 1936, he told the new residents that the beach front south of Front Beach Road would not be sold but would instead be reserved for the enjoyment of the Laguna Beach property owners. On the plat plan the words “Beach Reserved” was evidence of his intent to leave the property undeveloped. But after Mr. Lahan’s death as property values rose, the desire of the Lahan family to keep the beach undeveloped waned.
After the close of World War II, property values soared, and lots were selling like hot cakes. Laguna Beach property owners became concerned that their grand views of, and access to, the beaches and the Gulf of Mexico would be destroyed forever if structures were built on the south side beach front. This beach front land, which the Lahan family still owned, was prime real estate for development, and the Lahan family began selling beach front property that had been marked “Beach Reserved.”
Led by W. J. Boothby, Robert E. Taylor, A. Y. Malone, and Grier C. Barnhart, the Laguna Beach property owners banded together as a community action group around 1946. They developed a strategy to prevent beach development, so that their views and access to the pristine beaches would not be impaired. In 1947, the group sought an injunction against Lahan and his company, Gulf Properties of Alabama, Inc, in the 14th Judicial Court of Bay County. They sought to reserve the beaches and to stop development on the south side of U. S. 98. Initially, the court ruled as follows:
[It is ordered] that the words ‘beach reserved’ appearing on the plats of Laguna Beach filed by the defendant…are hereby declared to mean that the land to which said words apply were kept back and withheld from dedication by defendant (Lahan/Gulf Properties) … and the plaintiffs (Boothby et al.) have no rights therein .…[T]he prayer of plaintiffs for an injunction be and is hereby denied.
The ruling by the Bay County court was a victory for Lahan and Gulf Properties. The property owners, however, persevered. They appealed the decision of the Bay County court to the Florida Supreme Court and won. The Supreme Court ordered the lower court to revisit its l947 decision and to issue a decree that would favor the plaintiffs’ request to reserve the beach.
The Bay County court redefined what the words “Beach Reserved” meant in a 1949 decision, which became known as the Boothby Decree. It read in part:
[It is ordered:] That the meaning of the words ‘beach reserved’ on the plats of Laguna Beach, a subdivision in Section 11, Township 3, South, Range 17 West in Bay County, Florida, which plats were made by the defendant, Gulf Properties of Alabama, Inc., and dated January l, 1937, and April 26, 1941, are on file in the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court of said County, and that the area designated by said words ‘beach reserved’ is reserved as a beach for the use of the owners of lots in said subdivision for recreational and bathing purposes without interference or hindrance by the defendant, and without any buildings or structures being built or created thereon.
That the said area designated as ‘beach reserved’ is not reserved for the private use of the defendant and said area shall be kept open and no building or structure of any kind shall be built or erected thereon.
That the defendant, Gulf Properties of Alabama, Inc., a corporation and its servants, agents and employees, and each of them, be, and each of them are (sic), hereby perpetually enjoined and restrained from erecting or building, or causing to be erected or built, any structure or building on said area, and from using said area for any purpose other than recreation and bathing for the benefit of the owners of the lots in said subdivision.
A final consent decree reinforcing the 1949 decision was issued September 26, 1951, after Lahan and Gulf Properties had made one final plea by way of a complaint to regain all exclusive rights to the south side property. The court, however, ruled in favor the defendants, I. R. Jenkins, Rufus M. Lackey, Lucylle F. Brown, G. C. Barnhart, and D.G. McQuagg, as Tax Assessor of Bay County.
The 7/10 of a mile, 4,000 linear feet section at Laguna Beach that is undeveloped on the south side of U. S. 98 would remain “Beach Reserved” forever. Years later, the Bay County Zoning Commission added even more punch to the 1951 order by designating the property a conservation and recreation zone. The pristine dunes and beaches were forever protected from any development, though the Lahan family and their Gulf Properties still owned the property. This final consent decree made a major part of Laguna Beach one of only four along the Panama City Beaches that would forever provide an open view of the dunes, beaches, and Gulf of Mexico. (The others are Sunnyside, Santa Monica, and Bid-a-Wee Beaches. The owners in these latter three subdivisions actually own the property on the south side, whereas property owners on the north side of the highway at Laguna Beach retained only the pre-described rights contained in Boothby Decree.)
It is most significant to note that the four beaches mentioned above are the only areas of the Panama City Beach, from Thomas Drive and the Hathaway Bridge to Phillip’s Inlet, where development will never be allowed on the south side of Highway 30 (Front Beach Rd.).
The matter was believed to be forever settled. Unfortunately, such was not the case. Since 1951, there have been four attempts by Gulf Properties to build on the beach, including nonpayment of property taxes with the hope of purchasing the property from the county without deed restrictions and petitioning the state to move Front Beach Road north to allow the construction of a hotel complex on land owned by Gulf Properties. (The goal was to move the road from the front of the property to the back of the property, thus removing the road between the hotel complex and the water.) All these efforts were fought through the courts. Today, the Laguna Beach Property Owners Association collects dues and holds a war chest of funds designed to fight attempts to build on the beach. Mr. Swords serves on the board of this organization.
The Swords Beach House
In 1973, William Swords and his father, Ray Swords, purchased one of the few remaining unsold lots from Gulf Properties—127 Malaga Place—for $1,800. The property sloped down toward a lake behind the lot. At the time of purchase, the lake water came within four feet of the property line. Around 1998, Gulf Properties used pylons to create a wall 150 feet behind the Malaga Place property and filled in the adjoining lake with dirt and sand, thereby creating approximately 1.5 +/- acres of land. Because filling in wetlands is prohibited, no building permits have been issued on the “new land” to date.
The Swords family placed a mobile home on the southwest corner of the lot in 1975.
The Swords family and friends used this mobile home for many years. This was a time when going to the beach meant leaving television and telephones behind.
On New Year’s Day, 1980 the Dothan Eagle newspaper ran an advertisement for plans for a “Modest Home Suitable for any Purpose.” With property values increasing and interest rates soaring, the Swords family decided to build a permanent structure basically following that floor plan. The house was finished in July of 1983. A 1500 square foot, three bedrooms, two bath house that could sleep eight (but was better suited for six) was ready for use. The house was built on pylons to provide safety against rising waters associated with hurricanes. A year later, a one-bedroom apartment was built under the house among the pylons. To this day, the one-bedroom is rented on an annual basis and the upstairs three-bedroom part is rented by the week during the high season. The family enjoys the house in the off season.
Pictures taken before the completion of the downstairs apartment
The house was completely renovated in 2014. All windows, doors, siding, and the deck were replaced, and the kitchen was enlarged and opened to create a more enjoyable living space. The pool, fencing, and pool deck area were added in 2022. Today, the Swords Beach house retains some of the appeal of Old Florida Beach property of days gone by along with all the advantages of a newer property.
Just steps from the “Beach Reserved” or a short golf cart ride to the sun and fun, the property is ideally located. The Carousal Supermarket, Thomas Donuts, and Mike’s Cafe are all part of the history of Laguna Beach and are conveniently located. If you are interested in an old beach bar, well, it is located on the lake just behind the property on Front Beach Road. Beer on ice, how good does it get?
The heated pool with tanning shelf is quite refreshing. Many enjoy the beach in the morning and the pool in the afternoon, or vice versa. The outside shower is great for removing sand and lotion. With hot and cold running water in the outside shower, my grandchildren refuse to take a shower inside the house: “You can’t see the clouds and the stars in the house shower granddaddy.”
