after railroad magnate Henry B. Plant built a sprawling Victorian resort hotel named Belleview Biltmore just south of Clearwater in 1897. By the early 1900s, Clearwater's population had grown to around 400, ballooning to nearly 1,000 in the winter. Clearwater's oldest existing newspaper, the Clearwater Sun, was first published on March 14, 1914. Clearwater was reincorporated, this time as a city, on May 27, 1915, and was designated the county seat for Pinellas County, which broke from Hillsborough County in 1912. In 1915, a bridge was built across Clearwater Harbor, joining the city with Clearwater Beach to the west. Clearwater Beach, although located on a separate barrier island, belongs to the city of Clearwater and fronts the Gulf of Mexico. A new, much higher bridge now arcs over the bay, replacing the former drawbridge; the connecting road is part of State Road 60 and is called Clearwater Memorial Causeway. During World War II, Clearwater became a major training base for US troops destined for Europe and the Pacific. Virtually every hotel in the area, including the Belleview Biltmore and the Fort Harrison Hotel, was used as a barracks for new recruits. Vehicle traffic was regularly stopped for companies of soldiers marching through downtown, and nighttime blackouts to confuse potential enemy bombers were common practice. The remote and isolated Dan's Island, now the highrise-dominated Sand Key, was used as a target by U.S. Army Air Corps fighter-bombers for strafing and bombing practice. Timeline 1888 Settlement of Clear Water Harbor founded. "Narrow-gauge railroad" begins operating. 1891 Town of Clear Water Harbor incorporated. 1894 – Orange Belt Railroad begins operating. 1897 – Belleview Hotel in business in nearby Belleair. 1900 – Population: 343. 1905 – Population: 610. 1906 – Clear Water Harbor renamed "Clearwater". 1911 – Clearwater Yacht Club formed. 1912 – Clearwater designated seat of newly created Pinellas County. 1914 Clearwater Evening Sun newspaper begins publication. Tampa and Gulf Coast Railroad begins operating. 1915 – City of Clearwater incorporated. 1916 – Public library and bridge to Clearwater Beach built. 1918 – Pinellas County Courthouse built. 1920 – Population: 2,427. 1921 – Capitol Theatre in business. 1923 – Peace Memorial Church built. 1926 – Fort Harrison Hotel rebuilt. 1930 – Population: 7,607. 1948 – WTAN radio begins broadcasting. 1950 – Population: 15,581. 1953 – Palm Drive-In cinema in business. 1959 – WAZE radio begins broadcasting. 1970 – Population: 52,074. 1972 – Marine Science