Image: 1955

Landmarks

• The "Blue Water Hotel" Signage: If you look very closely at the top of the central tower structure, you can see a skeletal metal rooftop sign that spells out "BLUE WATER HOTEL".
• The Original Hotel Layout: This photo shows the building before it closed down, stripped its signage, and reopened in July 1957 as the Fort Lauderdale Beach Hospital. Because the hotel sign is fully intact and the layout matches its prime mid-1950s resort phase, this specific aerial session captures the block right in 1955.

Postcard Composition Timeline

• The Photograph (1955): The image on the card was taken during a 1955 aerial photo shoot while the building was still operating as the Blue Water Hotel (evidenced by the rooftop sign).
• The Production Run (1963): Independent local publisher Tom Neal used the 1955 photograph plate to print this postcard run under his catalog listing 68325.
• Because postcards were frequently reissued and kept in print for years to meet tourist demand, Tom Neal produced this run in 1963 despite the building itself having already transitioned into a hospital in 1957.

Summary Timeline of Both Cards