W. Fred Ferman began business in Tampa in 1895 with the Tampa Cycle and Sporting Goods Company at 908 Franklin Street. At a time when bicycles shared the streets with horse-drawn wagons, Ferman sold innovative products such as a bicycle delivery cart, advertising that it could "carry nearly a quarter of a ton at a speed fully as great as the fastest horse."

His fascination with automobiles began in 1899 when he built his own car, largely from bicycle parts. It could reach about 10 miles per hour but required two men pushing from either side to get it started. Although he initially hoped to manufacture automobiles, he soon realized it wasn't practical. Ever the entrepreneur, Ferman also sold typewriters and Kodak cameras before entering the automobile business in earnest. In 1902, he built an "automobile stable" behind his bicycle shop and began selling Oldsmobiles, including the Oldsmobile Light Touring Car for $950. A Cadillac franchise followed in 1903. By 1917, the business had become Ferman Motor Car Company, Inc., selling Cadillacs, Chevrolets, and Oldsmobiles.

In 1948, the company opened a modern Oldsmobile showroom at the corner of Florida Avenue and Washington Street. After Ferman relocated, the building was converted into a two-story parking garage, but remnants of the original showroom—including its mosaic tile floor—still survive. W. Fred Ferman died in 1949.

During the 1920s and 1930s, Ferman's sons, Fred Ferman Jr. and James L. Ferman Sr., joined the family business. The third generation followed in 1966 when James L. "Jim" Ferman Jr. came on board, continuing the family's multigenerational leadership.

In 1961, Ferman Oldsmobile moved to 1307 Grand Central Avenue (now Kennedy Boulevard), creating a much larger dealership. While many competitors relocated to Dale Mabry Highway during the 1970s, Ferman remained downtown, recognizing the value of serving Tampa's growing workforce. In 1979, the original dealership was demolished and replaced with a modern brick facility featuring a large covered outdoor showroom, an indoor showroom, and landscaped planters that gave the property a more upscale appearance.

The dealership closed in 2006, and by 2010, after Tampa General Hospital purchased the property, plans were underway for a rehabilitation hospital. More than a decade later, the 80-bed rehabilitation facility—a partnership between Tampa General Hospital and Kindred Rehabilitation Services—opened on the site where Ferman Oldsmobile had served customers for more than 40 years. In 2025, the brand-new TGH Behavioral Health Hospital, Florida’s first freestanding academic medical behavioral health hospital, opened.

The Ferman legacy continues today. What began as a small bicycle shop in 1895 has grown into one of the nation's oldest continuously operating automobile dealership groups, encompassing more than a dozen automobile and motorcycle dealerships. From selling bicycles on Franklin Street to becoming one of Tampa's most enduring family businesses, the Ferman name has remained part of the city's automotive history for well over a century.

© Chip Weiner. Old Tampa Photos