Friendship Fountain

When Friendship Fountain opened in St. Johns River Park in Jacksonville, Florida in 1965, it was the largest and tallest fountain in the world at the time. Originally called the “Fountain of Friendship in Dallas Thomas Park,” it was named by a Rotary Club member based off the club’s principle of friendship, with the park named after City Commissioner Dallas Thomas. The fountain was designed by Taylor Hardwick in 1963 at a cost of $1.7 million, with the land for the park and fountain donated by the Southside Business Men’s Club. To give Friendship Fountain its world-renowned title, three pumps sprayed 17,000 gallons of water per minute to a height of 120 feet, or 10 stories. The 200-foot-wide basin of the fountain was also extraordinary, holding 500,000 gallons of water to create a magnificent structure for people of the city to visit.

It was in 1968 that the “Fountain of Friendship in Dallas Park” was renamed to Friendship Fountain. Thomas was named by a grand jury on 37 counts charging larceny and six counts of acceptance of bribes, alleging he stole $23,766 from the city over a five-year span. Thomas, along with seven other former officials charged with similar crimes, gained widespread notoriety for their wrongdoing. Thomas’s July 17, 1967 trial had to be moved from Duval County to Orange County by Criminal Court Judge Warren Nelson, at the request of Thomas’s lawyer Chester Bedell, just for him to receive a fair trial from an impartial jury away from the publicity. Afterwards, the fountain and park were permanently renamed.

Originally, Friendship Fountain was located on 14 acres of land, but development gradually reduced the park’s size. The site was home to The Lobster House Restaurant, the location where parts from the Creature From the Black Lagoon movies were filmed. Sitting in between the John T. Alsop Jr. Bridge and once-railroad Acosta Bridge, the fountain and restaurant were busy to foot traffic, one of the aspects that made the grand structure such an iconic piece of the town’s history. In 1962, the restaurant was destroyed due to a fire, and the Diamondhead Restaurant opened adjacent to the site. Because it was in a busy location, the restaurant needed to expand, greatly reducing the size of the park. At one point, expansions in the city almost wiped the fountain out entirely.

Friendship Fountain fell into disrepair several times throughout its years. The first significant renovation project occurred in 1985. That project included the adjacent Southbank Riverwalk. For the next 15 years, the fountain was functional but by 2001 more work was needed. At this point, a $1.3 million rehabilitation included six light towers controlled by a computer system. Seven months later, a power outage damaged the computer and caused 40 of the lights to need repairs. The fountain needed repairs three years later as two out of three of the original pumps failed in 2005. Parts to restore the aging fountain were no longer available, requiring an entire replacement of the fountain’s water system.

It was in 2006 that the city began to make plans to completely remove the fountain, due to the extensive damage that had occurred the year prior. The mayor’s idea was to destroy the fountain to be replaced with an interactive kiddie pool, with the Kids Kampus site being moved to the location of the fountain. The plan would free up the existing Kids Kampus to be used as a “flex space” for concerts and other large events. However, the existing Kids Kampus was on 10 acres of land, and by that time, the Southbank area with the park was only on seven remaining acres. Additionally, Kids Kampus was only built five years prior at a cost of $4.7 million. The plan was met with harsh criticism from city residents, not only for flaws in logistics of the plan, but for the historical value and beauty the fountain brought to the city. Many considered it a landmark, writing letters of how they were proposed to there, or how their children grew up playing around the fountain, and making suggestions of how a better idea would be to renovate the surrounding area to its former glory, with more grass areas, trees, and benches, so the fountain could be enjoyed by more people and tourists. Because Friendship Fountain’s future was uncertain, the Jacksonville Historical Society included it on their list of Jacksonville’s Most Endangered Historic Buildings by 2009.

In 2010, rather than removing the fountain, the city opted for a $3.1 million renovation, which included an energy-efficient remodel. The 252 multicolored incandescent lights were replaced with 159 LED lights. A wind anemometer was also installed to measure wind speeds automatically, raising or lowering the fountain jets accordingly. The new operation saved 130,000 watts of energy, a huge win for the environment and the city.

In 2019, another multi-million renovation began, this time at a price of $6 million. It includes state-of-the-art water and sound shows in which lights in the fountain synch with music, as well as a maintenance budget, so in the case that the fountain has any issues again, it will not be costly to repair nor long-term. Planning for the upgrades began when Downtown Investment Authority CEO Lori Boyer was on the City Council, however, the finishing date is not set until 2021. With Fluidity acting as designer and Acore and Freeport Fountains as contractors, the design will also include a new wall design, pumps, lights, and seating. Another project also adds lights to the nearby Acosta Bridge, so the bridge can coordinate with the fountain for musical lightshows and other events. Upon its completion, Friendship Fountain will again be the site of events and celebrations.

1. About Friendship Fountain, City of Jacksonville. Accessed September 26th 2020. https://www.coj.net/departments/parks-and-recreation/recreation-and-community-programming/parks/friendship-fountain.
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3. Bortzfield, Bill. $6 million overhaul planned for Jacksonville’s Friendship Fountain, The Florida Times-Union. November 21st 2019. Accessed September 26th 2020. https://www.jacksonville.com/news/20191121/6-million-overhaul-planned-for-jacksonvilles-friendship-fountain.
4. Friendship Fountain: The Truth Beneath the Lies, Metro Jacksonville. September 11th 2006. Accessed September 26th 2020. https://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2006-sep-friendship-fountain-the-truth-beneath-the-lies.
5. Friendship Fountain, Delta Fountains. 2012. Accessed September 26th 2020. http://www.deltafountains.com/portfolio/friendship-fountain-jacksonville-fl/.
6. Marbut, Max. 50 Years Ago This Week: Indicted former official granted change of venue, Jacksonville Daily Record. July 10th 2017. Accessed September 26th 2020. https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/article/50-years-ago-this-week-indicted-former-official-granted-change-of-venue.
7. A renewed friendship, American City & County. July 2011. Accessed September 26th 2020. https://web-a-ebscohost-com.marshall.idm.oclc.org/ehost/detail/detail?vid=3&sid=e27d93a9-eae7-4952-8f3e-c49ca8d1a76d%40sessionmgr4008&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=70609139&db=aph.
8. Friendship Fountain, Wikipedia. Accessed September 26th 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friendship_Fountain.
9. Marbut, Max. 50 years ago: Dallas Thomas first city official to be indicted by grand jury, Jacksonville Daily Record. August 29th 2016. Accessed September 26th 2020. https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/article/50-years-ago-dallas-thomas-first-city-official-be-indicted-grand-jury.
10. Mulrain, Joanelle. Friendship Fountain – Now Celebrating 50 Years!, EU Jacksonville. June 4th 2015. Accessed September 26th 2020. https://eujacksonville.com/2015/06/04/friendship-fountain-now-celebrating-50-years/.