The Plantation Supper Club, which burned to the ground last Thursday, Sept 12, originally opened in the hey days of gambling in the north.The grand opening ad in the Lakeland Times of 1 July 1938,proclaimed "For Fun -For Profit -Visit The Plantation." Slot machines lined the walls of the main dining room, crap tables and horse betting were in the rear.

   The Saturday, July 2, 1938 opening of the Plantation was short lived.Early in the morning of July 5, two gunmen shot and killed the night watchman, took eight slot machines believed to have been loaded with July 4th holiday play, and an undetermined amount of cash from the register.

    The incident closed the Plantation until July 1939, when a toned down ad in the Lakeland Times proclaimed the supper club as a "meeting place for you and your friends" with a cocktail lounge and the same "Golden Brown Fried Chicken". Continuous entertainment was still offered and the slot machines were still around.