Length of Video: 21 minutes and 32 seconds
On Sunday, July 26, 1925, the Miami Daily News dedicated and moved into their new building at 600 Biscayne Boulevard in downtown Miami. The predecessor to the Daily News, the Metropolis, was the city’s oldest newspaper having published its first issue in May of 1896, two months prior to the municipality’s incorporation as a city. Founded by Walter S. Graham and Wesley Featherly, the printing company changed editors and management frequently during its first twenty-seven years.
In April of 1923, James Cox, who had just campaigned as the Democratic nominee for president three years earlier, purchased the Miami Daily Metropolis, as it was called then, and renamed it to the Miami Daily News and Metropolis a few months after taking control. In addition, the new owner purchased property at the corner of NE Sixth Street and Biscayne Boulevard, a plot of land that once hosted Miami’s first permanent train depot, with the intention of erecting an iconic building for his organization.
In early 1924, the Miami Daily News commissioned the architectural firm of Schultze and Weaver to design its new headquarters and hired the George A. Fuller Construction Company to build it. Ground was broken on June 11, 1924, and by the end of the year, construction was well underway. By early 1925, enough progress had been made for the Daily News to install new printing presses and begin publishing its five daily editions from the still-unfinished building.
The grand opening featured the usual pomp and circumstance of a new building dedication, but also included an open house where more than a thousand Miami residents and visitors toured the facility. Opening day also featured a 504-page record setting edition published that day.
The Miami News outgrew their building in 1957 and moved to a plant they constructed near the Miami River. The downtown tower was sold shortly after they moved to their new facility, but did not have a new purpose until it was reopened in 1962 as the Cuban Assistance Center. During this time, the structure was given a new name of Freedom Tower for the services provided for the Cuban refugees streaming in Miami from 1962 until 1974.
While the tower underwent several ownership changes through the years following the closing of Freedom Tower in 1974, it is now owned and managed by Miami-Dade College. It has spent the last couple of years under renovation and will soon reopen for the public to celebrate its beauty and role as both the Miami Daily News and Freedom Tower.
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