Gilded Age Georgia and Florida: Part II
As I mentioned in Part I, my 2010 move south came with a pleasant surprise. It seems Florida isn’t all pink flamingos and Miami Vice. I’ve been thrilled to discover this place did not just rise out of the swamps in the 1950s with Disney World. No, here we have indigenous American cultures, early Spanish vs. English drama, the founding of St. Augustine, and Gilded Age glamor, all long before the appearance of the Mouse.
Before my arrival, I'd somehow never heard of Henry Flagler, the cofounder of Standard Oil, developer of the Florida East Coast Railway, and the “Father of Miami”.
When this businessman from Cleveland sought a healthier environment for his chronically ill first wife, Mary, he discovered Florida’s charms. Two years after wife #1 died, Flagler wed Mary’s caregiver, Ida.
In 1885, entranced with St. Augustine, but unimpressed with the accommodations, Flagler began construction of the 540-room Ponce de Leon Hotel (now Flagler College) to provide the appropriate level of comfort and flash to attract more of the northern moneyed crowd.
When that project could no longer hold the volume of guests and their activities, he added The Alcazar Hotel, (now the Lightner Museum) across the street. The Alcazar was a play palace, complete with casino, steam rooms, swimming pool, and bowling alley.
In 1896, Flagler’s doctor friend had Ida declared insane. Flagler then bribed the Florida legislature to legalize divorce on condition of insanity. That done, he married wife #3, Mary #2. Are you confused yet?
Oh, and that special divorce law? It was repealed in 1905 with only our Mr. Flagler ever having used it.
Flagler and Mary #2 stuck it out and established the Palm Beach season from their 60,000sf mansion, Whitehall (now the Flagler Museum).
With all this clamor to be seen in prime destinations, Florida became the it place for tourism.
By 1912, Flagler had extended his Overseas Railroad all the way to Key West, the state’s southernmost boom town.
Of course, there are many more scandals and stories here that beg telling—questionable business dealings, monopolies, more hotels, (including 534 rooms in The Breakers), philanthropy, and finally, a tumble down the grand staircase of Whitehall. At 83 years old, Flagler died of his injuries several months later.
Eventually, the forward momentum of railroads and robber barons drove right into the First World War and Flagler’s Key West railroad was destroyed in the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935.
So much untapped material here. Where would you start?
Meanwhile, I continue to navigate this pile of notes from my developmental editor for my WIP. And yes, progress I am making. But, oy, tricky stuff. Many days I think this project will never be done!
I wonder what Ida did that convinced him she was insane. 🫠
This was so intriguing and now I just want to know more!
Thanks for that delightful history lesson and the pretty photos 😍