St. Armands Circle fulfilled John Ringling's dream of a premier shopping district after being conceived during Florida's real estate boom as part of the John Ringling Estates Development and the jewel of Ringling Isles, an ambitious venture of planned resorts, a casino, subdivisions, and a shopping area extending from Bird and Lido Keys to southern Longboat Key. Designed by architect John J. Watson of Ohio and Sarasota engineer Leon Pickett, the circle and surrounding development were made accessible by construction of Ringling Causeway in 1926. After its grand opening as the centerpiece of Ringling Isles, St. Armands Circle fell into neglect as a Depression-era victim of the 1920s Florida land boom, with sandspurs and weeds overrunning concrete curbs and sidewalks, imported statuary, and a bandstand. The key reverted nearly to its natural state, recalling when Charles A. St. Amand homesteaded there in 1885, built a home, cleared one acre, and claimed his 130-plus acres for $13, though his name was later misspelled in deeds and that fee would eventually buy less than one square foot of leased area on today's St. Armands Circle.