"Suitcase Full of Blues" to Perform at Burns Court Street Party!

Jimmie Fadden of Nitty Gritty Dirt Band fame and Al Fuller will be performing sensational acoustic blues as the Suitcase Full of Blues Band at the Owen Burns Celebration Street Party Sunday Nov. 14, 2010.  Come enjoy the sounds by these talented performers beginning at 5 pm.

Jimmie has graciously agreed to fly back from touring with the NGD Band just to do this gig for Sarasota. The band is currently on a major, cross-country tour as their most recent album Speed of Life climbs the charts to #10.

The Burns Court Street Party will run from 3 to 7pm with food from Owens Fish Camp, Nancy's Bar-B-Q and Hukilau Hut Shaved Ice. Featuring antiques, vintage cars and photographs, a special tribute to Mr. Burns and reading of the Official City of Sarasota Proclamation by Special Guests Mayor Kelly Kirschner and Burns family members.

Owen Burns in Rosemary Cemetery

Owen Burns died Aug. 28,1937 and was buried in Rosemary Cemetery.  The two acre cemetery, platted in 1886 was donated to the town of Sarasota by the Florida Mortgage and Investment Company in 1903. The cemetery is located on Central Avenue between 8th and 9th Streets and is the resting place for nearly all of Sarasota's pioneers. The cemetery is both a National Register and locally designated historic site. 

Owen Burns Kick-off Reception and Book Signing at Mattison's City Grille

Just Announced! On Monday, November 8th the Owen Burns Celebration will have an opening reception and book release party at Mattison's City Grille in downtown Sarasota, Florida.

Owen Burns stepped off the train in this very location 100 years ago, catching the first glimpse of the town he would make his home. Join us as we kick-off the week of events in his honor and celebrate the release of Jeff LaHurd's new book, “Owen Burns, The Man Who Bought and Built Sarasota”. Free Event. Cash Bar.

November 8, 2010
4:30 - 6:30pm
Mattison's City Grille
1 N. Lemon Avenue 
Host: Chef Paul Mattison, Mattison's™ Restaurants & Catering

The El Vernona Hotel: Spanish Architecture at its Finest

The building of the El Vernona Hotel in1925 brought national fame for Owen Burns. The fanciful, six-story, 150 room hotel was touted as the purest example of Spanish architecture in Florida. It was designed to look as if it had been standing for centuries and the details were exquisite: the rough honey brown stucco walls showed snatches of brick; antique barrel roof tiles were imported from Seville; and colorful, hand-painted tiles from Europe decorated stair risers, walls, fountains and footpaths.

The El Vernona Hotel on Sarasota Bay