Bahia Beach Yacht Club Yellow Flag

While Bahia Beach, a public beach on Tampa Bay, just north of Shell Point Road, in Ruskin, was opened in April, 1959 by Paul B. Dickman and his son Lyle C. Dickman, between the Ruskin Marina and Mangrove Point, the Bahia Beach Yacht Club became operational in either 1965 or early 1966. This was not a formal, members only yacht club. There were no annual dues and an honorary membership was given to anyone who tied up their boat at the boat docks at Bahia Beach. The first mention of the Yacht Club in Tampa papers was in June 1966 when the 800th honorary member, Captain Johnson of Bradenton and a fishing captain operating out of Cortez, was featured in the June 25, 1966 edition of the Tampa Bay Times.