Centennial Plaza
Celebrating a New Century
By Chatham Kennedy | Photos by Christy Ryan
After Hurricane Katrina, the citizens of Gulfport dug in to clean up and assess what was left of their town. So many lovely homes, churches and downtown buildings had been reduced to nothing more than a concrete slab. The future of other places, which were still standing but badly damaged by the storm, was uncertain. One such place is what is now called Centennial Plaza.
Centennial Plaza was created in 1914 to host a major international exhibition to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Mississippi’s statehood, reminiscent of the highly successful 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair. Gulfport was selected as the site of the exhibition because at the time it was rapidly becoming one of the largest timber shipping ports in the world. By early 1917 Congress had made a substantial appropriation toward the project, seven exhibition buildings had been completed and several states and foreign countries had committed to participate. The exhibition was scheduled to open in early autumn and culminate with the state’s official centennial celebration on December 10, 1917.
However, when the United States entered World War I on April 6, 1917, plans for Mississippi’s Centennial Exposition were abandoned and the 48 acres of beachfront exhibition grounds were converted to training grounds for the U.S. Navy. After the war, the federal agencies that eventually became the Veterans Administration purchased the property, demolished the exposition buildings and began construction of hospital facilities to meet the medical needs of the servicemen returning home from war.
The architectural theme chosen for the earliest hospital buildings was the Spanish Colonial Revival/Spanish Mission Style, which was very popular in the early 20th-century. The majority of the structures were built of terra-cotta-block and poured concrete wall construction, with stucco covering the exterior walls and terra cotta tile roofs. Currently, there are a total of ten historic buildings on the site, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated as a Mississippi Landmark.
Hurricane Katrina left her mark on every building. “It would not be an exaggeration to say it looked like a bomb had gone off,” says Brent Warr, former Gulfport Mayor, about the campus’s appearance after the storm surge swept through. All the buildings were badly battered and contained a nightmarish, water-soaked jumble of hospital equipment and foul debris. The extensive damage caused the Veterans Administration to relocate their medical facility, leaving the property to face a battle between preservation and demolition. Mayor Warr and Ken P’Pool, former Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer for the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, fought hard to save the historic complex, taking their case to the U.S. Congress.
Thanks to their determined efforts, the Congressional appropriation of more than $30 million dollars for the clean-up of the site was amended to allow for the rehabilitation of the historic buildings and the transfer of the property to the City of Gulfport. The Veteran’s Administration oversaw debris removal, repair to the stucco exteriors and the terra cotta tile roofs and replacement of windows with replicas of the original multi-light sash windows before turning the property over to the city. “Without Mayor Warr’s leadership and commitment to the effort, the project would likely have not been successful” said P’Pool.
Following Mayor Warr’s tenure, the City of Gulfport continued its efforts to bring the historic campus back to life. Mayors George Schloegel and Billy Hewes, Chief Administrator Dr. John Kelly, and the Gulfport Redevelopment Authority worked to plan for the next chapter in the history of the newly christened Centennial Plaza, which resulted in a partnership with developer Greg Stewart. Stewart’s vision of a luxury resort is now coming to fruition with the $85 million-dollar rehabilitation of the historic buildings to become a wedding chapel, two hotels and two restaurants, along with the addition of a lazy river playground and magical dancing fountain, which opened to the public in August of 2019. Future plans include retail stores and apartments. The beautiful property now hosts events large and small, from weddings and conventions to Cruisin’ the Coast, and proudly stands as a magnificent monument to the history of Gulfport and Mississippi.