The Weird And Strange In St. Petersburg Highlighted In Book

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — An author's internet research journey about the weird and obscure in towns that began in Chicago turned into a guide that highlights strange things and attractions in St. Petersburg, like the friendly ghost who haunts the women's side of Comfort Station One.

Joshua Ginsberg's, 44, new book "Secret Tampa Bay: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful and Obscure" launches to the public on Tuesday.

The book includes attractions and history from all over Tampa Bay that Ginsberg said not even every Bay Area native might be aware of.

"I lived in Chicago for 10 years with my wife before we moved to the Tampa Bay area, and I thought I really knew the city very well," Ginsberg told Patch. "But it turned out I only knew about 20 blocks of it."

He and his wife made a commitment to get to know the parts of Chicago they were clueless about for the last six months of living there before moving to Florida.

Ginsberg said he wished he would have taken the time to explore more of Chicago prior to moving, so when they moved to Tampa Bay, he didn't delay with researching the weird and less known in the communities.

"I tried to keep the locations listed (in the book) within an hour of downtown Tampa so it would be easily accessible," said Ginsberg.

Four years ago, when the writer moved to the area, he noticed there wasn't a book about the less known Tampa Bay places published by Reedy Press that already had books published on other cities less known places. He pitched his idea of writing one that included Tampa Bay to the company, and they gave him the OK to write it.

Ginsberg said he has been to every place he includes in his book.

Ginsberg's book said the Comfort Station One in St. Petersburg was the city's first public restroom, and it was designed Henry L. Taylor, who also designed the Vinoy Hotel and St. Mary's Church. There is more history surrounding this restroom included in his book.

"For me, the weirdest and most fascinating thing I looked into is probably the strange case of Mary Reeser," said Ginsberg. "She was a resident of St. Pete in 1951 when she became an alleged victim of spontaneous human combustion. The case has been well documented and even today you can find a wide range of opinions about what actually happened. Detectives just settled on calling it an 'accidental death by fire of unknown origin.'"

For more details about Ginsberg's book or to order your copy, visit "Secret Tampa Bay: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful and Obscure."