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A brief history of Henry Flagler and his East Coast Railroad
It is difficult to imagine today, but a little more than a century ago the state of Florida was nothing more than a vast
peninsula of uninhabited frontier. One man with a great deal of foresight and perseverance would change that and in
the process the course of Florida history. This man was Henry Flagler, oil tycoon, robber baron, and developer.
Flagler first came to Florida in 1878 and realized there were few truly adequate hotel facilities and no easy transportation
system. Flagler understood the great potential for Florida and returned in 1885 to begin constructing the grand Hotel
Ponce de Leon in St. Augustine. At the same time he knew transportation was key to the success of his hotels and the
state so he purchased the Jacksonville, St. Augustine, and Halifax Railroad. Also, Flagler purchased several railroads and
by 1889 his railroad system reached from Jacksonville down to Daytona. To accommodate travelers he continued
building hotels along the coast and the Florida's immense tourism industry was born.
In 1892 Flagler began a new venture, constructing railroad tracks not just linking other existing railroads. By 1894 this
new railroad reached West Palm Beach, a town on the western side of Lake Worth that was built for the laborers of the
railroad. At the same time the piece of land located between the eastern side of Lake Worth and the Atlantic Ocean
known as Palm Beach was being developed with the sole purpose of becoming the winter playground for the wealthy.
Flagler built two hotels, the Royal Poinciana overlooking Lake Worth and the Breakers overlooking the Atlantic. Palm
Beach has remained the heralded winter residence of America's wealthiest families.
During the winter of 1894-95 a severe freeze struck Florida, including Palm Beach. Mary Tuttle, a resident of the village
of Miami sent Mr. Flagler an orange that was not frozen. With land incentives to be given to Flagler by the state if he
continued extending his railroad south, Flagler did continue to build tracks to Miami. The railroad reached Biscayne Bay,
"the largest and most accessible harbor on Florida's east coast" in 1896. In Miami, like many of the other cities his
railroad roared through, Flagler not only built hotels but also schools, churches, streets and city's first water and power
systems. Miami was transformed from a trading post to a modern city almost overnight. The population of Dade
Country in 1880 was 256 people (that included what would become Palm Beach County too.) By 1910 the population of
Dade County was 11, 933 people without Palm Beach County.
Key West was 128 miles beyond the Florida mainland and was the largest city in Florida at the time with 20,000 residents.
It was also one of the richest in the United States and super close to the Panama Canal that was being built. So, Flagler
decided to build the overseas railroad to reach the city. After seven years of construction and several hurricanes the
railroad was completed in 1912. Triumph was short-lived though, Flagler died in 1913 after he fell at his Palm Beach
mansion, Whitehall. The magnificent engineering feat that was the overseas railroad was partially destroyed in the Labor
Day Hurricane of 1935 but much of the infrastructure of the railroad was used by the State of Florida to complete the
Overseas Highway, aka US 1, the only road into Key West today.
peninsula of uninhabited frontier. One man with a great deal of foresight and perseverance would change that and in
the process the course of Florida history. This man was Henry Flagler, oil tycoon, robber baron, and developer.
Flagler first came to Florida in 1878 and realized there were few truly adequate hotel facilities and no easy transportation
system. Flagler understood the great potential for Florida and returned in 1885 to begin constructing the grand Hotel
Ponce de Leon in St. Augustine. At the same time he knew transportation was key to the success of his hotels and the
state so he purchased the Jacksonville, St. Augustine, and Halifax Railroad. Also, Flagler purchased several railroads and
by 1889 his railroad system reached from Jacksonville down to Daytona. To accommodate travelers he continued
building hotels along the coast and the Florida's immense tourism industry was born.
In 1892 Flagler began a new venture, constructing railroad tracks not just linking other existing railroads. By 1894 this
new railroad reached West Palm Beach, a town on the western side of Lake Worth that was built for the laborers of the
railroad. At the same time the piece of land located between the eastern side of Lake Worth and the Atlantic Ocean
known as Palm Beach was being developed with the sole purpose of becoming the winter playground for the wealthy.
Flagler built two hotels, the Royal Poinciana overlooking Lake Worth and the Breakers overlooking the Atlantic. Palm
Beach has remained the heralded winter residence of America's wealthiest families.
During the winter of 1894-95 a severe freeze struck Florida, including Palm Beach. Mary Tuttle, a resident of the village
of Miami sent Mr. Flagler an orange that was not frozen. With land incentives to be given to Flagler by the state if he
continued extending his railroad south, Flagler did continue to build tracks to Miami. The railroad reached Biscayne Bay,
"the largest and most accessible harbor on Florida's east coast" in 1896. In Miami, like many of the other cities his
railroad roared through, Flagler not only built hotels but also schools, churches, streets and city's first water and power
systems. Miami was transformed from a trading post to a modern city almost overnight. The population of Dade
Country in 1880 was 256 people (that included what would become Palm Beach County too.) By 1910 the population of
Dade County was 11, 933 people without Palm Beach County.
Key West was 128 miles beyond the Florida mainland and was the largest city in Florida at the time with 20,000 residents.
It was also one of the richest in the United States and super close to the Panama Canal that was being built. So, Flagler
decided to build the overseas railroad to reach the city. After seven years of construction and several hurricanes the
railroad was completed in 1912. Triumph was short-lived though, Flagler died in 1913 after he fell at his Palm Beach
mansion, Whitehall. The magnificent engineering feat that was the overseas railroad was partially destroyed in the Labor
Day Hurricane of 1935 but much of the infrastructure of the railroad was used by the State of Florida to complete the
Overseas Highway, aka US 1, the only road into Key West today.
The Florida East Coast Railroad traveling on the Overseas Highway
Henri Flagler and his third wife Mary Lily Kenan Flagler
| For more information please visit: www.flaglermuseum.us |