Listen now | George Merrick hired the American Building Corporation to construct 1,000 residences over a ten years in 1925. As part of this contract, they were required to construct 16 theme villages.
Paul always leans on the end of the boom was the bad press Up North and rulings by various judges on the way you bought land (specifically in Miami during the Boom ..Binder Boys) combined with the Valedmar ruining use of the Turning Basin and then the Railroad Strike shutting down all building supplies in to the Miami area. He's even said often the Winter Season of 1926 (January/February) were awful compared to 1925 and a sign of what was to come ...even without the final nail of the Great Miami Hurricane.
While the Hurricane was the last straw, it was the last straw not the main thing that broke the boom that was already collapsing before the hurricane even rolled of of Africa as a Tropical Wave. I've done worth with Paul on this and as someone who researches hurricanes and lectured on hurricanes especially the 1926 Miami Hurricane I argued every argument he always said it was the last nail, final straw. It's a convenent myth that was pushed by Miami that the Boom ended suddenly because of the Hurricane vs the problems with Binder Boys, bad press across the country and actual rulings in court against how land was being sold in South Florida and other Boom Cities. Photos from after the Hurricane both in Miami and Miami Beach, show how well some of the homes, buildings and hotel were built even if they had a large ship sitting in front of the Roney Plaza.
It was convenient to blame the hurricane vs other things they did not want to blame. I really argued with him on this and it definitely was the last straw. Coral Gables homes were built better than most such as the ones in Fulford, Hialeah and Opa Locka and except for losing roof tiles from pines falling on them and French Doors being blown out the homes in Coral Gables built by Merrick were by far the homes that best made it through the Hurricane. Infact growth snapped back surprisingly fast. FPL had signs on trucks to "hop on and get a job" and many families that worked after the Hurricane went on to careers in FPL for decades. Money also came in later, as it always does, after a hurricane and many saw it as an opportunity to get good deals. In ways it sorted out the film flam sort of hucksters from the pioneers who were determined to rebuild vs getting on a train to take them back to where ever they came from in cities to the North.
Definitely tho hurricanes such as the 1921 in Tampa and 1926 in Miami and devastating 1928 in Palm Beach always puts a slow down on growth and money goes elsewhere until in this case the Depression closed down everything but the growth in the Art Deco district.
Thank you. Awesome episode on Coral Gables and I know Coral Gables well. Highlightig all the different villages that few hear about today and the care and vision George Merrick had is a beautiful story. Many Miami Beach homes made it though the Cane and I lived in one home that was built before the Cane in 1926. But Carl Fisher had mostly left Miami Beach and was busy in NY trying to get going in Montauk and he has people looking after his properties. Whereas George Merrick was intricately involved as you and Paul showed in the fantastic episode I hope many listen to .... Thank you!
Congregationalists. The Merrick's were Congregationalists not Presbyterians. The Rev. Merrick preached at Plymouth congregational church and later his son Mr. Merrick built the Coral Gables Congregational church in honor of his late father.
Paul always leans on the end of the boom was the bad press Up North and rulings by various judges on the way you bought land (specifically in Miami during the Boom ..Binder Boys) combined with the Valedmar ruining use of the Turning Basin and then the Railroad Strike shutting down all building supplies in to the Miami area. He's even said often the Winter Season of 1926 (January/February) were awful compared to 1925 and a sign of what was to come ...even without the final nail of the Great Miami Hurricane.
While the Hurricane was the last straw, it was the last straw not the main thing that broke the boom that was already collapsing before the hurricane even rolled of of Africa as a Tropical Wave. I've done worth with Paul on this and as someone who researches hurricanes and lectured on hurricanes especially the 1926 Miami Hurricane I argued every argument he always said it was the last nail, final straw. It's a convenent myth that was pushed by Miami that the Boom ended suddenly because of the Hurricane vs the problems with Binder Boys, bad press across the country and actual rulings in court against how land was being sold in South Florida and other Boom Cities. Photos from after the Hurricane both in Miami and Miami Beach, show how well some of the homes, buildings and hotel were built even if they had a large ship sitting in front of the Roney Plaza.
It was convenient to blame the hurricane vs other things they did not want to blame. I really argued with him on this and it definitely was the last straw. Coral Gables homes were built better than most such as the ones in Fulford, Hialeah and Opa Locka and except for losing roof tiles from pines falling on them and French Doors being blown out the homes in Coral Gables built by Merrick were by far the homes that best made it through the Hurricane. Infact growth snapped back surprisingly fast. FPL had signs on trucks to "hop on and get a job" and many families that worked after the Hurricane went on to careers in FPL for decades. Money also came in later, as it always does, after a hurricane and many saw it as an opportunity to get good deals. In ways it sorted out the film flam sort of hucksters from the pioneers who were determined to rebuild vs getting on a train to take them back to where ever they came from in cities to the North.
Definitely tho hurricanes such as the 1921 in Tampa and 1926 in Miami and devastating 1928 in Palm Beach always puts a slow down on growth and money goes elsewhere until in this case the Depression closed down everything but the growth in the Art Deco district.
Thank you. Awesome episode on Coral Gables and I know Coral Gables well. Highlightig all the different villages that few hear about today and the care and vision George Merrick had is a beautiful story. Many Miami Beach homes made it though the Cane and I lived in one home that was built before the Cane in 1926. But Carl Fisher had mostly left Miami Beach and was busy in NY trying to get going in Montauk and he has people looking after his properties. Whereas George Merrick was intricately involved as you and Paul showed in the fantastic episode I hope many listen to .... Thank you!
Congregationalists. The Merrick's were Congregationalists not Presbyterians. The Rev. Merrick preached at Plymouth congregational church and later his son Mr. Merrick built the Coral Gables Congregational church in honor of his late father.