Whitfield Estates was formerly a 682-acre (276 ha) wooded area that had been homesteaded by General John Riggin, aide-de-camp to Ulysses S. Grant.

The original plan for Whitfield Estates called for a housing development, an 18-hole golf course, hotel, yacht basin and man-made islands in the bay.

[8] Sometime during late 1925 or very early into 1926, L. B. Whitfield would leave the development and his interest was taken over by Adair realty.

One of the first signs of financial trouble came when a decision was made to open membership of the Whitfield Estates County Club for residents of Sarasota and Bradenton if they agreed to take over the operating expenses associated with it.

[7] With the 1929 stock market crash and the arrival of the Great Depression, the conditions further worsened for residents there.

[8] During World War II, the club would close because of gasoline rationing and not being able to get golf balls.

Whitfield is in southern Manatee County, on the northeast shore of Sarasota Bay.

It is bordered to the north by Bowlees Creek and the unincorporated community of Bayshore Gardens, and to the southeast by Sarasota–Bradenton International Airport.

It is 6 miles (10 km) north of the center of Sarasota and the same distance south of Bradenton, the Manatee county seat.