Editing Bradenton, Florida (section)

==== First half of the 20th century ====
[[File:Main Street, Bradentown, FL.jpg|thumb|left|Old Main Street c. 1910]]
Railroad service was extended from Palmetto across the Manatee River to Bradenton in 1902.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Gibson|first=Pamela|date=February 1985|title=Speech by Pamela Gibson "Railroads of Manatee County"|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/7055|access-date=2020-09-26|website=Manatee County Public Library Digital Collection|language=en}}</ref> Bradenton was incorporated on May 19, 1903,<ref name=BradInco>{{Cite book|last=Hall|first=A. Sterling|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/6829|title=Speech by A. Sterling Hall "Bradenton Municipal Government"|year=1970|pages=2}}</ref> with 59 voting in favor of incorporating and 34 voting against it.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Parvin|first=Elizabeth|date=May 15, 1970|title=Early Cultural and Social Life of Manatee County|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/73|url-status=live|access-date=2021-05-17|website=Manatee County Public Library System: Digital Collection|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210517003348/https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/73 |archive-date=May 17, 2021 }}</ref> Shortly after incorporation, a local election was held to choose the city's first elected municipal officials. A.T Cornwell was elected as mayor, Robert H. Roesch as clerk and tax assessor, A.B. Murphy as treasurer and F. Dryman as tax collector along with seven city council members.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Thompson|first=Sharyn|date=October 24, 1983|title=1903 Banner Year for Bradentown|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/5484|url-status=live|access-date=2021-04-25|website=Manatee County Public Library System: Digital Collection|page=2|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210425171351/https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/5484 |archive-date=April 25, 2021 }}</ref> One of the earliest moves made by the municipal government was amending the name to "Bradentown".<ref>Porter, M. (2014). Manatee history matters. Bradenton Herald. Retrieved from https://www.bradenton.com/news/local/article34739931.html</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=4zogAAAAIBAJ&pg=5933%2C4186421 | title=The Legends Behind Manatee Names | work=Sarasota Herald-Tribune | date=November 23, 1979 | access-date=June 6, 2015 | author=Grimes, David | pages=1B | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150904105630/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=4zogAAAAIBAJ&sjid=s2cEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5933%2C4186421 | archive-date=September 4, 2015 | url-status=live | df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Poston|first=Wayne|date=January 15, 2003|title=Speech by Wayne Poston "Past and Future of Bradenton"|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/7628|access-date=2020-08-03|website=Manatee County Public Library System Digital Collection|language=en}}</ref> However the name change would not be reflected with the [[United States Postal Service|US Postal Service]] until 1905.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Thompson|first=Sharyn|date=October 24, 1983|title=1903 Banner Year for Bradentown|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/5483|url-status=live|access-date=2021-04-25|website=Manatee County Public Library System: Digital Collection|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210425171351/https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/5483 |archive-date=April 25, 2021 }}</ref> On December 29, a streetcar line began operation going from Bradenton to the neighboring city of Manatee and went west crossing [[Wares Creek]] to the nearby community of Fogartyville.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Slusser|first=Cathy|date=March 21, 2001|title=Speech by Cathy Slusser "Manatee County History"|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/5955|access-date=2020-08-03|website=Manatee County Public Library System Digital Collection|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Lambert|first=Joe|date=January 21, 1987|title=Speech by Joe Lambert "The Graham-Davis House"|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/5012|access-date=2020-08-16|website=Manatee County Public Library System Digital Collection|language=en}}</ref> The company operating the line had financial difficulties, likely due to a lack of ridership, and cancelled the line in 1906.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Poston|first=Wayne|date=January 15, 2003|title=Speech by Wayne Poston "Past and Future of Bradenton"|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/7628|access-date=2020-08-03|website=Manatee County Public Library System – Digital Collection|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=1900s|title=Manatee County Courthouse|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll1/id/6816|access-date=2020-08-03|website=Manatee County Public Library System – Digital Collection|language=en}}</ref> The Manavista Hotel was opened in January 1907 bordering the Manatee River on Main Street.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Russell|first=Cindy|date=November 18, 2014|title=Manatee History Matters: The Manavista Hotel was Bradenton's first 'sky scraper'|work=[[The Bradenton Herald]]|url=https://www.bradenton.com/news/local/article34750326.html|access-date=May 31, 2021}}</ref>

The Davis Bridge, the first general traffic bridge across the Manatee River was opened in June 1910. It was a wooden toll bridge built by C.H. Davis that had one lane and passing spots. The bridge went from present-day 9th Street East (located within then nearby Manatee) to near where the Atwood Grapefruit Groves were located at west of Ellenton.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web|year=1910|title=Davis Bridge over Manatee River|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll4/id/770|url-status=live|access-date=2021-05-27|website=Manatee County Digital Library System: Digital Collection|language=en|type=Postcard|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527020432/https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll4/id/770 |archive-date=May 27, 2021 }}</ref> In 1912, the first road, Range Road leading from present-day Bradenton (then, Manatee) to Sarasota was built.<ref name=":0" /> Also during that year, the original county courthouse was bought and moved to a new location becoming a grade school for black students in the area, Lincoln Academy Grammar School. A [[Manatee County Courthouse|new courthouse]] was built on the site of the old one which still stands today in the following year, 1913.<ref name=":1" /> The Victory Bridge was opened in August 1919 running from current 10th Street West in Bradenton to 8th Avenue in Palmetto. Funding for the bridge came from bond issues by both Bradenton and Palmetto. The bridge itself had two lanes and was made of wood. Its name came from the United States' recent victory in World War I against the Central Powers.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web|last=Gibson|first=Pamela|year=1985|title=Speech by Pamela Gibson "Some Early Bridges of Manatee County, North to South, East to West"|url=https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/5514|url-status=live|access-date=2021-05-27|website=Manatee County Public Library Collection: Digital Collection|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210527020432/https://cdm16681.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16681coll2/id/5514 |archive-date=May 27, 2021 }}</ref> With the Victory Bridge's construction, the municipal government of Manatee attempted to buy Davis Bridge and make it public as a way to compete with Bradenton's Victory Bridge but the deal however never went through.<ref name=":5" /> The rest of the bridge ended up being dismantled with the exception of its draw section which was sold to county government and put into use for the Snead Island's Cut off bridge in 1920.<ref name=":6" />