Tustenegee Vol. 10 No. 2 by Historical Society of Palm Beach County

Published by the Historical Society of Palm Beach County

Vol. 10 No. 2 FALL 2019

Becoming West Palm Beach: Celebrating 125 years

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From the Editor Dear Reader, This November we began our celebration of West Palm Beachâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 125th birthday. The city has truly stood the test of time. We celebrated with the opening of this season's special exhibit, Becoming West Palm Beach: Celebrating 125 years! This exhibit examines the history of West Palm Beach as it has grown from a small town into a bustling city that continues to expand and flourish. Becoming West Palm Beach is on display through July 3, 2020.

Tustenegee is a journal about Palm Beach County and Florida history and is published online twice a year by the Historical Society of Palm Beach County.

The celebration continues with two articles in this issue focused on the storied history of West Palm Beach and an oral history of Henry Burkhardt, a pioneer whose memories of the area bring it to life. Step back to the 1800s as you read about the significant events that transformed West Palm Beach.

The Historical Society of Palm Beach County is a non-profit organization whose mission is to collect, preserve, and share the rich history and cultural heritage of Palm Beach County.

Happy birthday, West Palm Beach! We will preserve and share its history as part of Palm Beach County for generations to come.

Historical Society of Palm Beach County 300 North Dixie Highway, West Palm Beach, FL 33401 Phone: (561) 832-4164 www.hspbc.org & www.pbchistoryonline.org

As always, we welcome article submissions that recall, retell, and explore Florida in historic and adventurous ways.

Mailing Address: Historical Society of Palm Beach County PO Box 4364 West Palm Beach, FL 33402-4364

Sincerely,

The contents of Tustenegee are copyrighted by the Historical Society of Palm Beach County. All rights are reserved. Reprint of material is encouraged; however, written permission from the Historical Society is required. The Historical Society disclaims any responsibility for errors in factual material or statements of opinion expressed by contributors. The contents and opinions do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the editors, board, or staff of the Historical Society of Palm Beach County.

On the cover: West Palm Beach as it looked in 1895, from the Royal Poinciana Hotel.

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Rose Guerrero

Editor-in-Chief: Debi Murray Editor: Rose E. Guerrero Copy Editor: Lise M. Steinhauer Graphics and Layout: Rose E. Guerrero Printing: Kustom Print Design

Table of Contents

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36 Become a Part of History 4

Historic Preservation in West Palm Beach By Friederike H. Mittner, AICP

Become a Member

West Palm Beach: Celebrating 125 Years of Life in Paradise By Jennifer Noel

Corporate Membership

Henry J. Burkhardt An Oral History

Photographic Collection

Have an abstract or an idea for an article? Send us your ideas: rguerrero@hspbc.org

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Historic Preservation in West Palm Beach By Friederike H. Mittner, AICP City Historic Preservation Planner

hat a journey itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been!

have happened in the last 125 years of the city. But itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s good to know that not everything has changed.

When Standard Oil magnate Henry Morrison Flagler first visited Lake Worth in 1892, he was so struck

While showcasing the modern high-rise condominiums

by the beauty of the area that he proceeded to turn

in this dynamic metropolis, West Palm Beach can also

unincorporated Palm Beach into a resort destination

proudly point to a rich collection of revitalized historic

for the railroad he was expanding southward. While

neighborhoods. Finding a balance of the demands and

building the Royal Poinciana Hotel, Flagler purchased

aesthetics in the past, present, and future is not always

land across the lake for a commercial and residential

easy, but the historic resources of the community are

settlement that became West Palm Beach. The first

links to our past. They make our community unique

Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) train pulled into

and give it a sense of place. One of the great success

town in 1894, and things have been full steam ahead

stories in West Palm Beach is the preservation and

ever since.

revitalization of its historic neighborhoods, thanks to dedicated property owners coupled with a successful

The wonderful exhibit on display this season at the

historic preservation program at the municipal level.

Richard and Pat Johnson Palm Beach County History Museum, Becoming West Palm Beach: Celebrating

Although the National Historic Preservation Act was

125 Years, highlights many of the amazing things that

enacted in 1966, an interest in historic preservation

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was slow to take hold in West Palm Beach. Finally,

of Historical Resources.

with grant funding from the state, from 1989-1990 the city embarked on a historic sites survey that identified

West Palm Beach now boasts 17 historic districts,

more than 5,200 buildings that were then at least fifty

eleven of which are also on the National Register

years old. The survey laid the groundwork for adoption

of Historic Places, plus 46 individually designated

of the city’s first preservation ordinance in 1990. This

properties. Listing on the National Register of Historic

ordinance set the standards for designation, protection,

Places is an honor and can lead to federal incentives;

and regulation of the city’s historic resources. The

however, the strength of all preservation programs lies

building analysis was the basis for the first designation

at the local level, with the ability to save buildings from

of historic districts and individual sites to the West

demolition and indistinguishable alterations. Often it

Palm Beach Register of Historic Places. In 1992, the

is the loss of one significant building that spurs the

city became Florida’s eighteenth designated Certified

protection of others, such as the razing of the elegant,

Local Government, which provides both greater

eight-story Pennsylvania Hotel on Flagler Drive, built

autonomy as well as support from the state’s Division

in 1926. Many residents can recall a lost building

The Richard and Pat Johnson Palm Beach County History Museum celebrates the 125th anniversary of the incorporation of West Palm Beach with a new exhibit, Becoming West Palm Beach. Now on exhibit through July 2020. Courtesy Capehart Photography.

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Florida East Coast Railway, 1901. Courtesy HSPBC. that they miss and the nostalgic feeling that place

Department at City Hall. The primary tasks of staff

evoked. The goal of the city’s Historic Preservation

implementing the code include: advising the historic

Ordinance, which can be found codified as part of the

preservation board on applications, evaluating and

Zoning and Land Development Regulations (ZLDR),

recommending sites for designation, advising on

is to “identify, protect, restore and encourage reuse

Section 106 reviews for federally funded projects,

of resources, all of which are essential to the city’s

reviewing all demolition permits within the city,

health, safety, morals, and its economical, educational,

and administering the Ad Valorem Tax Exemption

cultural and general welfare.”

Program and historic preservation grants. Often the Historical Society of Palm Beach County and city

The

city’s

Historic Preservation staff are interchanged in public

implemented through professional city staff and

minds and, of course, we gladly support each other,

a citizen volunteer board.

Historic Preservation

but each group has a mission distinct from the other.

staff work alongside those in the Planning and

We both happily direct the customer to the correct

Zoning Division within the Development Services

source.

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Historic

Preservation

Program

Skyline view of Hotel Pennsylvania on Lake Worth ca. 1950s. Courtesy HSPBC. The Historic Preservation Division of West Palm Beach actively aids efforts to preserve the unique

The West Palm Beach Historic Preservation

ambiance of its neighborhoods, making sure

Board was established by the Historic Preservation

that properties are rehabilitated using the latest

Ordinance. It consists of seven members and two

preservation technology and ensuring that alterations

alternates, appointed by the Mayor. Board members

and additions are in keeping with the character

serve three-year terms and must either be residents

of a historic property. The purpose of historic

of the city or have a principal place of business

preservation is not to halt growth or change, because

here. The board meets once a month and has the

it is recognized that both are needed to keep a

authority to review any exterior improvements to

community viable. Instead, the goal is to integrate

locally designated properties located within Historic

the past with the present and the future through the

Districts as well as demolition requests and those for

reuse of existing buildings with modern conveniences

new construction within a district. The Ordinance

while retaining character-defining features, materials,

also empowers the board to recommend to the City

and craftsmanship.

Commission sites and districts worthy of listing in the

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The Sunset Cocktail Lounge is part of the city of West Palm Beach's redevelopment plan to balance historic preservation while revitalizing and investing in communities. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC.

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West Palm Beach Register of Historic Places.

and usually higher than those in comparable nondesignated areas. The Ad Valorem Tax Exemption

Both staff and board members are guided by several Program allows exemption of up to 100 percent documents, including the Comprehensive Plan, of the assessed value of all improvements (interior Zoning and Land Development Regulations, the city’s

and exterior) to historic properties resulting from

published design guidelines, and the Secretary of the restoration or rehabilitation, and even related on-site Interior’s Standards. The National Park Service, part new construction and additions of such properties. To of the Department of the Interior, has established ten qualify, the property must be designated as an individual Standards for Rehabilitation with guidelines on how site or as a contributing property within a historic district to achieve a successful rehabilitation project while on the local or National Register of Historic Places. protecting and maintaining historic building materials Of course, other economic benefits of preservation and character-defining features.

The city’s Design have also been documented, such as tourism dollars,

Guidelines, available at wpb.org, further illustrate lower foreclosure rates, and a reinvestment in the local appropriate treatments for historic buildings utilizing economy using skilled labor to rehabilitate versus new text and graphics specific to the community.

construction where a significant portion is spent on new materials from outside the local area. Owners

West Palm Beach has been innovative in its incentives of historically designated properties may also benefit to balance historic preservation with the upfront from exemptions of or flexibility with certain building financial investment often required. In the Downtown code requirements. Master Plan area, sites have been identified that can participate in the Transfer of Development Program. Rehabilitating or reusing buildings is one of the This encourages owners of historic sites to become best forms of recycling. Most historic buildings are officially designated and allows them to send or transfer inherently sustainable, given the building materials and unused development rights to another appropriate siting on a property to maximize the breeze and shade receiving site. We even have a unique tiered level of from the sun. The sustainability aspect of preservation designation with the Landmark classification, modeled is appealing to many. Recognizing important places in on the federal program. Since 1994, an Ad Valorem our city’s history is a great way to not just reflect on our Tax Exemption Program has been administered by the architectural heritage but also our cultural diversity. Historic Preservation Division. This exemption from city and county property taxes is a financial incentive So, how would one know if their path has brought to encourage restoration and rehabilitation of historic them into one of our city’s great districts? properties and to stabilize and improve city property values. A plethora of studies have demonstrated how West Palm Beach has a street signage program for property values in historic districts are at least even districts that are listed in the local Register of Historic

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Welcome sign to West Palm Beach. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC. Places.

Street signs with a blue background are

link to the past, and a sense of place. Isn't that why

installed, rather than the typical green background

you travel anywhere? To experience the unique

signs, to inform the public that they are in a historic

vernacular of a place influenced by the climate,

district. The city also coordinates with property owners

building materials, and styles special to that location.

and a foundry for the purchase of plaques indicating

The same natural beauty that drew Henry Flagler

historic sites and structures within historic districts.

here continues to attract new residents daily to enjoy,

These bronze plaques include the structureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s date of

among many things, the architectural gems we have to

construction. Some districts or sites also have large,

offer in paradise.

freestanding state markers that provide additional information about the area.

The 125th anniversary of the City of West Palm Beach is an ideal time to reflect on the many places

We encourage the public to continue to support

and people that have ensured this preservation of the

preservation for many good reasons, including

past. Let the journey continue.

sustainability, the intrinsic value as art, the tangible

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Â´

Northwood Harbor \

West Northwood \

Northwood Hills \

Northboro Park \

Old Northwood \

Northwood Road \

Intracoastal Waterway

Northwest

Lake Mangonia

St Anns Clematis St \

Clear Lake Palm Beach \

Mango Promenade \

\ \

Grandview Heights \

Flamingo Park \

El Cid \

Prospect/ Southland Park

Central Park \

\ \

Vedado-Hillcrest

Belair \

0.5

1 Miles

West Palm Beach's historic neighborhoods. Courtesy City of West Palm Beach.

The Data is provided "as is" without warranty or any representation of accuracy, timeliness or completeness. The burden for determining accuracy, completeness, timeliness, merchantability and fitness for or the appropriateness for use rests solely on the requester. The City of WPB & Palm Beach County make no warranties, express or implied, as to the use of the licensed Data. There are no implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. The requester acknowledges and accepts the limitations of the Data, including the fact that the Data is

About the Author Friederike Mittner, AICP, is the City Historic Preservation Planner and Certified Local Government coordinator for the City of West Palm Beach and is a Certified Planner. She is credited with attaining designation of the city as a Preserve America Community. A member of the Palm Beach County Historic Resources Review Board, she is past president of the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation, and a trainer with the National Alliance of Preservation Commissions. Mittner holds an M.S. in Architectural Studies from the University of Florida with a historic preservation track.

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West Palm Beach: Celebrating 125 Years of Life in Paradise By Jennifer Noel

The Lainhart, Potter, Hammon, and Lanehart pioneer families inspect land believed to be located between Lake Worth and Clear Lake, 1885. Courtesy HSPBC

Greeting troop trains passing through West Palm Beach, 1945. Courtesy HSPBC.

A picture of the West Palm Beach Marina, 1964. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC.

West Palm Beach at night. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC.

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rom its earliest days, the land of West Palm Beach held beauty and promise that attracted newcomers enthralled with its endless sunshine, lush scenery, and enchanting waterfront. Thanks to its determined pioneers and the visionaries who followed them, our city’s history and vibrant lifestyle today is as rich and diverse as the people who have called it home for well over a century. A world-class destination to live, work, and play that has retained its small-town charm, West Palm Beach is poised to usher in the next 125 years and continue welcoming newcomers to discover this special place. Perhaps pioneer Marion Geer said it best in her 1896 memoir, where she quoted a visitor seeing West Palm Beach for the first time: “Truly this is a paradise, you have made the wilderness to blossom.”

a town that technically didn’t even exist yet – and jail. The new town’s name, in some places, was recorded as Westpalmbeach, all one word. When and how the name was separated into three words is debated, but one possibility is superstition of those 13 letters altogether. Although not selected as the fledgling town’s namesake, Henry Flagler greatly influenced the inception of West Palm Beach. The Standard Oil magnate’s purchase of land in Palm Beach and his Florida East Coast Railroad spurred development of West Palm Beach. Flagler also provided infrastructure for facilities necessary for the new town, including the Flagler Alerts volunteer fire department. The land boom Flagler started would continue into the 1920s. Flagler (and other Palm Beach hoteliers) contributed to the growing population by employing workers to build hotels to house tourists and the railroad to transport them there. As early as 1894, multiple property owners moved some of the tenants to West Palm Beach, more in 1906, and the rest in 1912 so they could develop the land. Families relocated to the new Pleasant City and Northwest neighborhoods in West Palm. The Northwest neighborhood is one of eleven in the city recognized in the National Register of Historic Places; six additional sections are now designated as historic districts and were home to the city’s earliest neighborhoods.

"The Calaboose," first West Palm Beach city hall and jail. Courtesy HSPBC.

The Beginning: 78 citizens ‘atop the calaboose’ On November 5, 1894, West Palm Beach was incorporated as a city, as the story goes, “atop the calaboose.” But what is a calaboose? It’s a jail! The meeting of 78 citizens was held at the town hall – for

The 20th Century: West Palm Beach Stretches Out The 20th century saw West Palm Beach grow by leaps and bounds. There were just 564 residents here in 1900, and more than 85,000 at the turn of the millennium. Square mileage increased as well, as more western swamps were filled to create buildable

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The Central Market on Clematis Street collapsed in West Palm Beach during the 1928 Hurricane. The Harvey Building is in the background. Courtesy HSPBC. land. The early part of the century was not without its downturns, of course. The Great Depression arrived in South Florida a bit earlier than the rest of the country due to falling land prices in 1926, failing banks in 1928, and devastating hurricanes in both of those years as well. The land boom was over. Financial woes continued through the 1930s for many residents, but the war years of the early 1940s proved particularly trying as German U-Boats sank many Allied ships off the Florida coast, including 24 in 1942 alone. Hundreds of men lost their lives and many more were treated at local hospitals. Local hotels and businesses were converted for military uses, and nightly blackouts to hinder the U-boats became routine. But the end of the war led to many former military personnel settling in West Palm Beach and more migration from the north as soldiers returned home and sought comfortable places to raise young families. Through the ‘50s, West Palm Beachers experienced life as many Americans did, enjoying the calm and prosperous post-war years at favorite hangouts like

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The Armory building under construction in October 1939. Courtesy HSPBC. The Hut, the Palms Theatre, the Sunset Cocktail Lounge, the Carefree Theatre, and Dreher Park Zoo, among many other attractions. Water, a critical need for the city since its pioneer days, once again became a key matter for city leadership, leading to the city’s issuance of an $18 million bond to buy Flagler’s original water plant, upgrade sewer systems, and buy nearly 22 square miles that would eventually become home to more suburban expansion projects such as the Palm Beach Mall, the Villages and Land of the Presidents. As focus moved outward from downtown, its retail shops fought to stay relevant. Interstate 95 opened in West Palm Beach in 1976, increasing residents’ ability to move about Palm Beach County. While the city population continued to grow, that growth stalled out in the 1970s with an increase of only 2.1% over the 1960s. The population started slowly increasing again in the 1980s and ‘90s. 1990s to Today: Downtown Rising In the 1990s, West Palm Beach began to experience

Aerial of West Palm Beach Auditorium. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC.

Children from Berkshire Elementary School listen to West Palm Beach Park Director Paul Dreher. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC.

I-95 looking south in the area of the 45th Street exit. Courtesy HSPBC.

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major changes, as talk of bringing attention back to an ignored downtown turned into action. A new form of government took hold in 1991, and Nancy Graham became the first elected mayor since 1916 with the institution of a “strong mayor” system. Graham is credited with starting the downtown revitalization movement. Under her administration, a new master plan was created to make West Palm Beach’s beautiful waterfront even more of a focal point. Dilapidated buildings came down, and the Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts and CityPlace ( now Rosemary Square) went up. New shops and restaurants took over vacant storefronts on the commerce hub of Clematis Street and in Himmel Theater (tower and clock) in Rosemary Square. Courtesy HSPBC. other parts of downtown, catering to an influx of new residents and workers. With greater attention placed on environmentalism, Loxahatchee Preserve Nature Downtown revitalization continued under Mayors Center (now Grassy Waters Preserve) opened in 1995 Joel Daves, Lois Frankel, and Jeri Muoio into the in the city’s 18-square-mile water catchment area to 21st century. Most notable were the opening of the the northwest. Water, sewer, road, and bridge projects Palm Beach County Convention Center (2004); City Center, a new Library and City Hall complex (2009); moved into high gear to upgrade aging infrastructure. and the Brightline high-speed rail line in 2018, connecting West Palm Beach to Fort Lauderdale and Miami, with plans to expand to Orlando. New hotel, condominium, and office building projects – quiet during the recession of the mid-2000s – began to take shape, again bringing new growth to the heart of downtown and providing more opportunities for new residents, businesses, and tourism. Our Heritage: A Wonderful Place to Live, Work, and Play

Grassy Waters Preserve. Courtesy HSPBC.

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West Palm Beach has always been a place where residents and visitors alike have found endless opportunities to enjoy our wonderful year-round climate and bountiful amenities.

Originally known as Municipal Athletic Field, then Wright Field, the West Palm Beach baseball stadium was eventually named after famous baseball pitcher and team owner Connie Mack. Courtesy HSPBC. Baseball, America’s favorite pastime, has been a part of our city’s heritage since the beginning, when local businessmen competed during lunchtime in the city’s earliest years. Where the Kravis Center stands today, West Palm Beachers heard exclamations of “Home run!” starting in 1924 with the ballpark known as the Municipal Athletic Field, then Wright Field, and finally Connie Mack Field through 1962, excepting the war years. Jackie Robinson, having broken the color barrier two years prior, played an exhibition game there in 1947 for the Brooklyn Dodgers against the Philadelphia Athletics. The Negro League’s two West Palm Beach teams, the Giants and Yankees, played at Lincoln Park (now Coleman Park). Another local ballfield, the West Palm Beach Municipal Stadium, hosted spring training for multiple Major League teams intermittently

from 1963 to 1997. Today the Houston Astros and Washington Nationals hold spring training at the brand new FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. The Seminole Sun Dance from 1916 to 1950 included parades, Seminole tribe members performing sunworshipping ceremonies, cute-baby contests, and other festivities. Eventually it led to SunFest, a long weekend of music each May that now draws nearly 300,000 people annually. Other major annual events held downtown, such as the Palm Beach International Boat Show and the Marathon of the Palm Beaches, have nurtured the city’s reputation as an active and vibrant host to some of Florida’s favorite outdoor activities. And the ways to enjoy West Palm Beach continue to grow

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The Kravis Center joins the city skyline, 1992. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC. and become more dynamic. Cultural enhancements – such as the Kravis Center’s $40 million “Kravis 2020” expansion of its footprint and services and the Norton Museum of Art’s recent $60 million expansion – not only broaden our residents’ quality of life but make West Palm Beach a premier tourism destination for visitors from around the world.

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We have come far since the days of pioneers’ thatched cottages amid a sandy scrub, yet we hold fast to our forebears’ sense of community spirit and their determination to make West Palm Beach the blossoming paradise it was destined to be. Here’s to the next 125 years!

Judge James R. Knott Award Established in 1989, this annual award recognizes the achievements of an individual or organization that has contributed to the preservation, promotion, or enrichment of Palm Beach County history. The award honors and is named for the late Honorable Judge James R. Knott, who served as president of HSPBC from 1957 to 1969. Judge Knott is fondly remembered as a dedicated historian and frequent author of the "Brown Wrapper" newspaper series, from which articles were compiled into three books on the history of our area. Among his numerous accomplishments, Judge Knott spearheaded the effort to restore the historic name of Cape Canaveral and helped establish the Landmarks Preservation Commission and the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach. Judge Knott was instrumental in obtaining much of the Historical Society’s treasured archive. We are proud to honor him.

The Fannie James Award Established in 2003, this annual award recognizes the achievements of individuals or organizations that have significantly contributed to preserving and sharing the history of Palm Beach County’s pioneering days. The award is named for the late Fannie James, an African American who served as the first postmistress of the Jewell Post Office (now Lake Worth), which was open from 1889 until 1903. The inaugural Fannie James Award was presented to Laurita Collie Sharpp, daughter of West Palm Beach’s first African American dentist and renowned community leader, Dr. Warren Hale Collie.

Please send nominations to info@hspbc.org or call 561-832-4164 for more information.

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Henry John Burkhardt (1889-1976) An Oral History

Edited by Lise M. Steinhauer

From left to right, the Burkhardt family: L.W., Louis, Eva, Ralph George, Henry J., and Maude. Courtesy Burkhardt Collection, HSPBC.

Note: Oral history cannot be depended on for complete accuracy, based as it is on complex human memory and communication of that memory, which varies due to factors such as genetics, social culture, gender, and education. Nonetheless, oral history is a valuable tool in historical study. The HSPBC has noted any known inaccuracies in footnotes.

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Henry John Burkhardt was one of 33 local residents interviewed by former radio announcer Rush Hughes for the Historical Society of Palm Beach County in 1962, the start of its ongoing Oral History Project. Eighty percent of these narrators were born in the 1800s and recalled Palm Beach County’s pioneer era. The HSPBC updated the recordings in 2006 from reel-to-reel tape to compact disc (CD) and hired Lise Steinhauer to transcribe them. Her endnotes follow the interview. This branch of the Burkhardt family began in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, when German immigrants Wilhelm Gottlieb Burkhardt (1831-1903) and Christiana Elisabetha Rosina Daubman (1834-1875) met and married. Two of their four children became pioneers in the South Florida wilderness: Louis William Burkhart (1855-1941) and Henry John Burkhardt (1862-1940) referred to here as“Henry.” Louis names one of his sons after his brother, and it is this second Henry John Burkhardt (1889- 1976), referred to here as "Henry J," whose oral history follows.

THE INTERVIEW Hughes: We are in the home of Mr. Henry Burkhardt, 5802 North Poinsettia in West Palm Beach, and the day and date are Tuesday the 27th of February 1962. It is ten o’clock in the morning. Mr. Burkhardt, you are indeed one of the pioneers here. When did your family come here?

having preceded him down here in this part of Florida due to the warm climate.2 My mother was on the sickly list, as we say, and the doctor had informed my father from the letters that he had from his brother here in Florida, it would be an ideal place to take my mother if he wanted to have her another year.

Burkhardt: They come here in January 1893, from Camden, New Jersey.

Hughes: Your uncle had already preceded him?

Hughes: Your father and mother? Burkhardt: The whole family come in 1893. Hughes: And how many of you were there? Burkhardt: There was my mother and father and four youngsters. I had two brothers and one sister.1 Hughes: Now, when you came here in 1893, you were just a shaver, weren’t you? Burkhardt: I was nothin, I was just a little bit o’ boy. Hughes: Now let’s go back to the early reminiscences of your father. I think you have the benefit of some of his reminiscences, haven’t you? Burkhardt: I have. In the early days, my dad was a cabinetmaker in Philadelphia, his brother [Henry]

Burkhardt: Oh yes, he had this land at Lantana. My uncle had bought property for my father in 1892 so we had a place to squat, in other words.3 Hughes: Your mother was brought here, then, in order to recuperate. Burkhardt: That’s right. After a couple of years here, my grandmother [Harriet Hill] come down to visit. She was so much surprised that my mother was out in the yard chopping wood. So those early days of cooking out, under an umbrella at times—had no stove, of course—that helped to bring back her health. Hughes: They just cooked with wood fires? Burkhardt: Just wood fires in the early days until we was able to get a stove later, cause everything was so primitive down here that you couldn’t buy what you wanted. It wasn’t a question of whether you had the

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money, you just couldn’t buy. Hughes: Where did they get the wood, just cut it off the land? Burkhardt: No, this wood happened to be from the Lyman Company in Lantana, who had a store. [My father] bought enough flooring from him to make a floor for a 20 x 30 shack. The three sides of it was canvas, and the top was a thatched roof of palmettos, and that’s what we lived in for about a year before coming up to the lake. Hughes: Where did your family learn to thatch a roof, from the Indians? Were there Indians here? Burkhardt: They learned from my uncle and the Indians.

Burkhardt: Well, I don’t know, I think [Henry] Flagler was one of the instigators of getting it there, because at that time we didn’t have a canal between here and Jupiter. So, they had to haul [everything] over either by oxcart or by whatever conveyance they had. And of course, he built that for to get his lumber for the building of the [Royal] Poinciana [Hotel]. Hughes: That was put into effect so that he could have the hotel, eh? And this was before his railroad came all the way down. Burkhardt: Before his railroad come down. His railroad didn’t get into West Palm Beach until '94. Hughes: Now, what were the other stops on that line? There was Jupiter and Juno.

Hughes: Before you landed in this wood-floored tent, how did the family get down here? Burkhardt: The transportation coming down from Philadelphia, which was the starting point, was by train to Titusville, from Titusville to Jupiter, from Jupiter over the Celestial Railroad to Juno. Then the family stopped for a couple of days at the place here, which is—I believe Oak Lawn [Riviera Beach]. And then my uncle, who had a sharpie type of boat, hauled us all down to Lantana. Hughes: You could get down as far as Juno in those days by rail—this is 1893. Burkhardt: No, you had to come by boat to Jupiter. Hughes: Oh. Well, where did the Celestial Railroad [ Jupiter and Lake Worth Railroad] come into it? Burkhardt: From Jupiter to Juno. Hughes: Oh, I see, Titusville to Jupiter by boat, and then the Celestial Railroad. How in the world did that thing ever come into being?

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The Celestial Railroad. Courtesy HSPBC. Burkhardt: If I can remember right, there’s Jupiter, Juno, Venus, and Mars. I believe that’s right. Hughes: Was this also in the days of the Barefoot Mailman? Burkhardt: Oh yes, I believe the mailman quit in '93, if I’m not mistaken. And incidentally, my uncle

Lyman Store in Lantana, ca. 1890s. Courtesy Genealogical Society of Palm Beach County. whom I’m named after was one of the last to walk the beach.4 They skirted the water a good bit and, of course, they walked barefoot, but their feet was toughened too. In the early days, a lot of people did go barefoot on account of saving shoes for Sunday best or something. [The mailmen] built up a gait that they could walk for hours that way and never get tired because they was accustomed to it. So therefore, if an individual wanted to go to Miami with 'em—or Lemon City, I believe it was—they could go, but he’d charge em a fee for goin with him, cause he’d have to stop and wait for 'em. They couldn’t keep up, even with his slow, steady gait.

Hughes: Crossing those inlets must have been a problem with a guest.

Hughes: Well, did he sometimes escort people down?

Burkhardt: Sharks more than alligators because of the saltwater. Alligators may go in, but they don’t live in saltwater. They’re mostly a freshwater animal, for brackish water.

Burkhardt: Yes, there was no heavy load, there was mostly mail matters that went down. They didn’t seem to get newspapers like we do today.

Burkhardt: They had their boat down at Little River, and of course that was public property, and when he tied up from one trip, it’d better be there when he gets back for the next trip. That was his boat, and nobody was to touch it, although once in a while he did have to swim when somebody used the boat without permission. Hughes: I suppose sharks and alligators sometimes accompanied them.

Hughes: Which came first, Palm Beach or West

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Palm Beach? Burkhardt: Well as far as the settlement was concerned, West Palm Beach is behind Palm Beach, because the settlement was everything on the east side of the lake. Hughes: Oh, originally it was all on the east shore then? Burkhardt: Yes, and [across the lake from] where we are sitting now at the 5800 [in West Palm Beach], along up in [t]here was known as the Lake Worth Post Office.5 And then later on, they had another little post office which Mr. Brelsford, I believe—they called it at that time “Palm City.” And then they finally come up, when he was makin' an arrangement with the government for establishment, they found out there was another Palm City, so they changed it to “Palm Beach.” Hughes: I see. Now is it true that the palms on Palm Beach were planted as the result of a shipwreck? Burkhardt: Well, I don’t know. It just makes a good story.

an eating place over on the point where Mr. Flagler’s museum or historical organization is now located. He had an eating place there. Of course, we were all right for food, cause there was Hendrickson’s and other boats would bring things in. We had plenty of food, we didn’t have to worry, and of course we had lots of vegetables. Hughes: How did they get their supplies for the grocery store? Burkhardt: In by boat. Of course, by '94 the train was in, so it made it a little easier. Hughes: Did the trade boats come down this far in those days? Burkhardt: No, they cut off at Jupiter. And what boats did come in was our little shallow inlet that they dug from time to time, and on very high tide these scooters could come in with a load of material, which Mr. [U. D.] Hendrickson and Mr. [Will] Moore and several others [did] who had boats that went to Jacksonville for supplies. Hughes: The inlet was manmade?

Hughes: It makes a dandy. And of course, it’s quite coincidental that the people who planted them knew exactly where [Royal] Palm Way [and] all of the rest of the streets were going to be [said with sarcasm].

Burkhardt: It was manmade, yes.

Burkhardt: Mr. Hammon and Mr. Lanehart—Will Lanehart—is responsible for a lot of the coconut trees in the early days, because they were down between the present Palm Beach area and the Croker place [“Wigwam”]. And they had homesteads, of course, of several hundred acres of stuff and was regular beachcombers.

Burkhardt: All along the coast. Originally, as I understand it, this water out here was a brackish freshwater lake, and it didn’t have salt in it. Although there was enough brackish in it, it wasn’t salty.

Hughes: Back to the Burkhardt family in Lantana. What kind of food did your mother cook for you?

Burkhardt: We had ice boxes. [The ice] would come by train from Jacksonville in sawdust and, I believe, some of it would come from Titusville. That meat also come in that way and that was fresh meat, of course, lots of times butchered right here.

Burkhardt: Well, my dad in the early days—I said he was a cabinetmaker, but he and his brother opened

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Hughes: All along this coast, it seems, they had to make their own inlets.

Hughes: In '93 and '94 you didn’t have any refrigeration, did you?

George Potter's drawing of the shipwreck of a Spanish brig. Courtesy George Potter Collection, HSPBC.

L.W. and H.J. Burkhardt Brothers Restaurant, first erected in 1893 on present site of the H.M. Flagler Museum, or Whitehall. Courtesy Burkhardt Collection, HSPBC.

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Hughes: Were people standing in line to take fresh meat home? Burkhardt: Not necessarily. Mr. Will Whidden, an early settler here, he had a butcher shop. And of course, there have been several other butcher shops in the meantime. Hughes: Do you recall what the price of things was in those days? For example, a pound of steak? Burkhardt: Well, I imagine a pound of steak in those days was about twenty cents. Practically any [part] of it, figure so much a cow and butcher it up, I think.

Burkhardt: Not necessarily, although in the store we did—there was quite a demand for guava jelly, and she used to make hundreds of jars of guava jelly during the season. It’s like the English with their marmalade. Oh incidentally, talkin about homemade bread, I said I was raised in a grocery store and when they went in service, the first thing I know, I was put in the bakery department. Hughes: Did people buy staples in large quantities, barrels of flour and such? Burkhardt: Yes, what was known as half barrels. And sugar, of course, was twenty pounds for a dollar,

Hughes: Divided it by pieces, huh? Burkhardt: Not as much as by weight as they do now. Everything is weight. I know we sold fruit and that stuff by the dozen or by the peck, whichever it happened to be the quantity of. Potatoes was sold by the peck, although we knew a peck was fourteen pounds. But we never sold them by the pound. Hughes: And the fruit was all grown here, yes? Burkhardt: Mostly, yes, oranges and grapefruit and vegetables of all kinds. Even early strawberries. Hughes: I suppose the women folk did a lot of Clematis Street with both automobile and bicycle parking in the center of the street, ca. 1915. canning. Courtesy HSPBC. Burkhardt: Well, yes and no. They didn’t—the trouble is, so many of these folks, they wasn’t farmers. They were just people who was getting out and exploring. And of course, the farmer doesn’t usually do that, he stays on his farm and handles his crop. So, these people were mostly depending on other people, although they did do their own baking and everything like that, and did do some canning, but not extensively. Hughes: Did your mother make a whole raft of bread at a time?

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and grits was three or four cents a pound. Bacon— white bacon known as sour belly—that was twelve and ten cents a pound. Hughes: Sour belly was suet, wasn’t it? Burkhardt: Of course, hams—I forget what the price of hams were by the pound, but you’d buy a ham for around a dollar, dollar and a half, somethin' like that.

Hughes: What was the favorite dish your mother made for you? Burkhardt: Well, being the family fare was a grocery store, it was kinda hard to say. You could get anything you wanted, so there wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t any particular thing, although I do miss some of the cooking. Hughes: Do you think the cooking was better than now? Burkhardt: Not necessarily, but I enjoyed it. Like everything else, things change. The taste is the same thing. In other words, they may not taste the same as back then I think they did. They still had wood stoves in those days. Of course, with the exception of having to stoke it with wood all the time to keep it hot, electric stove resembles the wood stove because you didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to have air for the wood oven. It was closed heat and you got really nice cooking out of the oven. Hughes: At what age did you get a bicycle?

Burkhardt: Oh, I guess I was about twelve. There were wooden sidewalks [in West Palm Beach]. We rode on those and lots of places we had no business riding. We had bicycle trails. Down the lakefront up to Mangonia, they had a bicycle trail and down the south end, they had bicycle trails. See, the original West Palm Beach ran from Althea Street, which is now Second Street, down to Fern Street. That was the original town width, north and south. And from there on, they had bicycle trails down to the lakefront. Hughes: What about transportation other than bicycles? Were there horses and automobiles and buggies? Burkhardt: Horses and buggies. Even the undertaker, when he had a body to take to the cemetery, he had to hire a dray to take it. Hughes: Where was the cemetery located? Burkhardt: The first cemetery was on the corner of Clematis and Dixie on the southwest corner. And of

Entry arch to Woodlawn Cemetery, West Palm Beach, December 1920. Courtesy HSPBC.

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course, that was mostly done by boat. They’d take you down there, they had a long dock out the lake, and it was a good half-day or more to bury a body. Afterwards, [it was] where the schoolhouse was built, and later it became the county courthouse. Hughes: What happened when this area was taken over by the schoolhouse and courthouse? What happened to the bodies that were buried there? Were they exhumed?6 Burkhardt: Then it was moved down to where Norton Gallery is. That was all done by boat. Of course, in all cemeteries there are some bodies that they didn’t get up. And as kids going to school there, we wouldn’t drink the water because it was pump water and it was a cemetery. Hughes: Did you whistle going by the cemetery? Burkhardt: Not very much. Hughes: Must’ve been quite a ceremony. Did everybody follow along in boats of their own? Burkhardt: Well, they had their sailboats and rowboats, it wasn’t very far. Of course, it might’ve seemed far, but it wasn’t very far.

Hughes: What was church life like in those days? Burkhardt: They had the Congregational Church [the first church in West Palm Beach]. Also, they had a church over in Palm Beach. [The Little Church, now Royal Poinciana Chapel, has been moved twice]. And they had it nondenominational. Mr. Flagler put that up for his guests so they could have a church to go to. Although we had Bethesda, which is up here on the lake, and we did go there. Hughes: How far do you go back in your memory of this area? Burkhardt: Well, I go back to a memory of living at Lantana, which was our first home. I fell off a dock and was on the verge of drowning when I was rescued by our neighbor Tom Earnest. Hughes: Swimming was a big thing in those days, eh? Burkhardt: Oh yes. Hughes: What about fishing? What did you use for a pole and bait? Burkhardt: In those days, we used mostly hand lines or bamboo poles. Hughes: You had no fishing license to worry about, did you? Burkhardt: No fishing license. You’d fish anyway. Only thing is, you had to fish. Hughes: Was the fishing good in those days? Burkhardt: Very good. It was common to row out in a boat and come home with two or three pompanos or other fish that might jump in.

First Congregational Church in West Palm Beach, on the northwest corner of Datura and Olive ca. 1920. Courtesy HSPBC.

28 | TUSTENEGEE

Hughes: Well, Mr. Burkhardt, everywhere I go, I try to verify this story. I have been told time and time again, in this area, in the early days, that it was

possible to just bang on the side of a boat and fish would jump in. Is that true? Burkhardt: Well, I hardly think that’s quite true. Although at night, if you towed a boat with a lantern in it, pompano would jump in the boat. Hughes: Pompano would jump, eh? But not if you just banged it on the side.

ask the questions and so forth. Hughes: Did you ever trade with them? Burkhardt: Oh yeah, traded with them all the time. Bowlegs III used to come in our place of business and trade. They’d bring venison mostly. Hughes: Where did clothes come from?

Burkhardt: Not necessarily. That’s only maybe when the fishermen are casting their nets around them and bang on the side to scare em' into the net. They might jump anywhere. Hughes: Did you get lots of wild fowl? Burkhardt: Plenty of fowl anywhere you wanted to go hunting. It wasn’t a question of finding them, just shootin em'. Hughes: What other animals were around? Burkhardt: Well, mostly deer, panthers, wildcats. Of course, rabbits, squirrels, most all the regular run of—and I guess if you was an ardent hunter, you’d find lots more if you went out in the woods. Hughes: I suppose a boy in those days was practically born with a gun in his hands, wasn’t he? Burkhardt: Well, that’s about the way it had to be. Mostly we had little .22s. Hughes: Regular, short ammunition or long? Burkhardt: One shot at a time. I think they were made by Smith & Wesson. Mighta been Colts, I don’t know. Incidentally, when we first established our house down at Lantana, our nearest neighbors was a tent with some Indians in it, must be forty or fifty Indians, and they used to come over and bother us. Not savage or anything but wanted to know this and that and the other. The women folks never bothered but the men folks were the ones that would

Pioneer Grocery truck ca. 1916. Courtesy Burkhardt Collection, HSPBC. Burkhardt: Well, clothes was mostly made, and in [18]94, ’95, ’96, we had stores in here, so we had Acme’s and Schrebnick’s and—oh, several of them. I should be able to name them, but I don’t. Hughes: Well, the women who made clothes, did they make them by hand or was the Singer sewing machine in existence? Burkhardt: Yes, they had sewing machines. Hughes: Hand operated? Burkhardt: Well, some of them were. Mostly treadle, yes.

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Burkhardt Grocery store, February 15, 1917, with Henry behind the counter. Courtesy Burkhardt Collection, HSPBC.

30 | TUSTENEGEE

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Hughes: So, the Singer’s always been with us.

Burkhardt: Well, the only shoes we had, it wasn’t a question of wearin em out, we didn’t want em in Burkhardt: Singer’s an old, old hand. In fact, I had the summertime cause our feet was tough anyway. one. Not long ago, I got rid of one that my mother So, the only time we wore em for things was in the had. wintertime. And usually by the time, if this winter we had a pair of shoes, by next winter they was too little. Hughes: Do you think the cloth that clothes were made of then was better than we get now? Hughes: Where did you first go to school down here? Burkhardt: Well, of course, it was mostly cotton and Burkhardt: We went to school at [the] corner of was very tough and was made for service. Dixie and Poinsettia [Clematis and Poinsettia (now Dixie Highway)]. See, we was only down there a year Hughes: And were clothes handed down from child in Lantana and then they had a house up here [in to child? West Palm Beach], and we moved up here in '94. Burkhardt: In some instances, yes. Mostly the girls, Hughes: How’d you get to school? because mostly the boys were such roughnecks, they’d use em up before they had a chance to hand Burkhardt: We did like anybody else, we walked. em down. And in our case, we was close enough to school, we’d come home for lunch. Hughes: And I presume they didn’t put shoes on the boys because they wore out too fast. Hughes: Do you remember the name of your first

Eva Jane Hill Burkhardt, Henry J. Burkhardt's mother, crocheting at Pioneer Grocery. Courtesy Burkhardt Collection, HSPBC.

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First schoolhouse in West Palm Beach at southwest Dixie Highway and Clematis Avenue/ Street. Courtesy HSPBC.

teacher? Burkhardt: I’m not sure, but I believe it was Mrs. George Lyman. Hughes: Did you go through all the grades of that school? Burkhardt: No, I missed it. Folks being in business in the early days didn’t think it was particularly necessary for me to keep going on with school. Making money was more interesting than goin to school. Hughes: What was your first job? Burkhardt: In the grocery store as a clerk. I was there until after the First World War, which I am a veteran of [Corporal, US Army]. And then when I come back, I went into an electrical trade, and that’s what I’ve been in ever since. 7 See Endnotes, page 34.

Daisy Lyman arrived in 1895 and became the third teacher in Lantana. Also pictured, hersons, Clarence, left, and Ralph, right. Courtesy Genealogical Society of Palm Beach County.

About the Editor Lise M. Steinhauer joined the staff of the Historical Society of Palm Beach County in 2015 as Membership Coordinator, and has since added Grant Writer and Museum Store Manager to her roles. Under her company History Speaks, she has conducted oral histories for the HSPBC since 2004, provided the original content for Palm Beach County History Online (www.pbchistoryonline.com), and created the Docent Manual for the Richard and Pat Johnson Palm Beach County History Museum, among many projects. Among her published works are Alexander W. Dreyfoos: Passion & Purpose and A Photographic Odyssey: Around the World with Alexander W. Dreyfoos. Lise Steinhauer holds a Master of Arts degree in Liberal Arts.

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Endnotes 1. Henry J’s parents were Eva Jane Hill (1863-1939) and Louis William Burkhart (1855-1941); and his siblings were Louis Hill Burkhardt (1884-1942), Maude Stuart Burkhardt (1885-1956), and Ralph George Burkhardt (18911958). 2. As a young man, Henry, the uncle, traveled the world with the U.S. Navy where he worked as a chef. After his discharge in 1886, he traveled south in search of a mild climate like that he had enjoyed in Italy. Henry and a fellow sailor, Charles Ihle, ended up at Biscayne Bay, where Henry homesteaded 160 acres. On a visit to Juno (a town then at the head of Lake Worth), Henry bought a small vessel. Over several months he got to know the area while ferrying people around Lake Worth. 3. In Louis’s name, Henry purchased five acres on the east shore of Lake Worth, on the north side of Lantana Point (the original name for Lantana), at 50 cents per acre. 4. Henry was one of the several men who walked the Barefoot Mailman route (1889-1893). The job was replaced by wagon, when the road was completed from Lantana to Lemon City (Miami). 5. Across Lake Worth from Burkhardt’s, on the north end of Palm Beach, Valorus O. Spencer established the Lake Worth Post Office in 1880. 6. The pioneers’ cemetery and its bodies were moved south of town to create Lakeside Cemetery east of present Dixie Highway. In 1921 the Lakeside Cemetery Association (related to Lake Worth Pioneers’ Association) deeded its site to the city for Pioneer Memorial Park. When Ralph and Elizabeth Norton wanted it for an art center, the pioneers agreed, with some requirements, and most of the bodies were again moved, this time to the south end of Woodlawn Cemetery. 7. Henry J married Susan Cordelia Pope in 1921; they had no children. Sue wrote features as The Palm Beach Post’s first female reporter before and after her marriage, in part recording her new family’s history. After his uncle sold his half of the grocery property for $500, HenryJ turned it into Burkhardt’s Electric Shop and Construction Business. When he retired, Louis’s son Ralph George Burkhardt took over the business. Under Ralph’s son Vincent Louis Burkhardt (1916-1988), it became Arrow Electric. The family still owns the building. When Henry John Burkhardt died in 1976 and his wife, Sue, a year later, they joined many friends and family in Woodlawn Cemetery.

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List of Barefoot Mailmen Compiled by Marty Baum

Compiled by Marty Baum from the microfilmed logbooks of the Orange Grove House of Refuge. Only the date of the mailmanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first voyage is recorded here except for the very last trip by Edward Pent in January 22, 1893. Mr. Chas "Charley" Coman December 18, 1884

Mr. E. Pent December 29, 1887

Mr. Dennis Stafford August 28, 1891

Mr. E. Bradley July 17, 1885

Mr. Parker April 19, 1888

Mr. W. Hargroves October 1, 1891

Mr. L. Bradley August 21, 1885

Mr. Garnett [A.W.] July 12, 1888

Mr. J. Holahan February 15, 1892

Mr. G. Charter November 16, 1886

Mr. Chas. "Charlie" Pierce September 4, 1888

Mr. Dan Kelly [or Kelley] April 18, 1892

Mr. G. Bradley March 3, 1887

Mr. W.H. Wade October 29, 1888

Mr. T.H. Davis October 2, 1892

Mr. Hamilton July 11, 1887

Mr. C.C. Todd April 1, 1889

Mr. T. Wilkins October 16, 1892

Mr. E. Brown October 312, 1887

Mr. H. J. Burkhardt September 30, 1890

Mr. Edward Pent passed the Orange Grove House of Refuge with the last delivery on January 22, 1893.

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Historical Society of Palm Beach County 2019-2020 Off icers Board Chair Thomas M. Kirchhoff First Vice Chair Ross W. W. Meltzer Second Vice Chair Mark Stevens Secretary Richard S. Johnson Jr. Treasurer Thomas Burns, CPA Member at Large Joseph Chase Past Chair J. Grier Pressly III Member Emeritus Robert W. Ganger Board of Governors Jeffrey Alderton Christian Angle John Archer M. Cheryl Burkhardt Sharon Daley Graham G. Davidson George L. Ford III Mary Freitas The Honorable Bradley G. Harper Russell P. Kelley George Mavlios Sharon Merchant Peter Nicoletti Lisa McDermott Perez Karen Swanson Keith Williams Vernique Williams Ex-Off icio Board Members Debra Robinson School Board of Palm Beach County Danielle Hickox Moore Town of Palm Beach Council Member Mack Bernard Palm Beach County Commissioner

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HSPBC Membership as of January 1, 2020

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Mr. Thomas Anderson and Mr. Marc Schappell Mr. and Mrs. Christopher B. Cowie Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey H. Fisher Mr. and Mrs. Robert W. Ganger Mr. and Mrs. Malcolm W. Hall Mr. and Mrs. Jeremiah Lambert Mr. and Mrs. Charles M. Royce Mr. and Mrs. Mark Stevens

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38 | TUSTENEGEE

Mr. and Mrs. Gordon Pollock Mr. and Mrs. J. Cater Randolph II Mr. Tanner Rose Mr. and Mrs. E. Burke Ross Jr. Mr. Kenneth L. Wyse

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Ms. Sonia Cooper and Ms. Marilyn Willison Mr. and Mrs. John Critchett Mr. Joseph Cronk Mr. and Mrs. James L. Debay Ms. Maria Diz and Ms. Siena Defazio Mr. and Mrs. Gary Drucker Ms. Courtney Evans Mr. William P. Feldkamp and Mr. Terry L. Bowie Ms. Valerie M. Fennon and Ms. Gail L. Mills Dr. and Mrs. Robert A. Flucke Mr. and Mrs. Len Gray Mr. George M. Greider and Ms. Gayle Kranz Mr. and Mrs. Robert Hazard Mr. and Mrs. Alec Hicks Mrs. Beryl Holland and Mr. Mark Holland Mr. John Hynes and Ms. Lisa Caniff Mr. and Mrs. Eric Jensen Mr. John Johnson Mr. David Kamp and Mr. Michael Rubin Mr. Chris Kellogg Mr. David E. Kern and Ms. Susan K. Gauvey Mr. and Mrs. Donald L. Kiselewski Mr. and Mrs. Todd Lawson Ms. Linda Liberi Mrs. Polly Mounts Ms. Sarah Mueller Ms. Regina M. Mullen Mr. and Mrs. Raymond F. Murphy Mr. Jeffrey Nowak and Ms. Francy Urbina Mr. and Mrs. Ken O'Herron Mr. and Mrs. Ward C. Parker Sr. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Parsons Ms. Amanda Penza and Ms. Kristen Lucov Mr. Roger Pisaneschi Mr. and Mrs. John J. Rybovich Mr. and Mrs. Henry Setliff Mr. Thorpe Shuttleworth and Ms. Inna Babaeva Mr. and Mrs. John Sites Mr. and Mrs. Jeffery W. Smith Mr. and Mrs. Perry J. Spencer

Mr. and Mrs. David Stone Mr. Edward Sumpter Mr. and Mrs. Stuart Wanuck Ms. Tracy White and Mr. Charles F. Carbone Mr. Allen Zeller Individual ($75) Ms. Margaret Acton Mr. Jay Adler Mr. Rainier Altiere Mr. Kevin Asbacher Ms. Judy Ballard Mr. Michael Bass Mr. Mark B. Beatty Mr. Frank E. Booker III Mr. Kevan Boyles Ms. Margaret Brady Ms. Catherine Ford Brister Ms. Patricia Brother Ms. Susan Bryant Mrs. Lois E. Burns Ms. Suzanne Busch Ms. Candice Carter Ms. Sally Channon Mr. George Charnes Mr. Vincent Cloud Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Coldwell Dr. Linnie Sue Comerford Mr. Anthony Comorat Mr. Donald H. Conkling III Mrs. Linda G. Cullen Mr. Bill Cunningham Ms. Denise Dawson Ms. Deby Eisenberg Mrs. Kathleen Emrich Mrs. Jan Feinglass Mrs. Roberta Feldgoise Ms. Donna Finegold The Hon. Joel Flores Ms. Sharon Friedheim Mr. Jonathan Frost Ms. Rosalyn Gladwin Ms. Julia Hansen Mr. David A. K. Harland Ms. Lori Hedtler Dr. Terry Hickey Ms. Nancy Z. Holland Mr. John E. Howell Ms. Deborah Hudzik Ms. Susan E. Jones Ms. Isabel Kammerer Mrs. Lewis Kapner Ms. Mary Kastner

Ms. Josephine E. Kennedy Mr. John J. Kenney Ms. Gurunam K. Khalsa Mr. Eliot Kleinberg Mr. John M. Kleinman Mr. Christopher Knowlton Mrs. James W. Koontz II Ms. Sharon Koskoff Ms. Margaret Anne Krasnicki Mrs. Nellie Kreis Ms. Mary Laronge Ms. Eleanor Laudicina Ms. Judith E. Logsdon Ms. Katherine Lowry Ms. Renelda Mack Ms. Maria E. Mamlouk Mr. Steven A. Manalan Mr. Carlo Manganillo Mr. Michael McKeich Ms. Brianna McKnight Ms. Nicole Mestanas Dr. Edward Minchin Ms. Vicky Moon Ms. Marguerite Morris Mr. Frank Moulds Mr. Richard Moyroud Ms. Mara New Mr. Jonathan Nicholas Ms. Matina A. Nimphie Ms. Sally O’Connor Mrs. Judy O’Malley Ms. Zoe Panarites Mrs. Patricia Panetta Mrs. Diana Patrick Mr. Stuart Patt Mrs. Lois G. Phillips Ms. Sandra Pike Ms. Renee Plevy Mr. Eugene Porter Mr. Rick Prudden Mr. Peter E. Rains Mr. Walter Rakowski Mr. Ronald D. Risner Ms. Roxine Roberts Ms. Arneatha J. Roberts Mr. Stephen M. Rochford Mr. Joseph Roskowski Ms. Mary Anne Rozo Ms. Marina Rymar Mrs. Elaine A. Saugstad Dr. John A. Schaefer Mrs. Darlene Schmidt Ms. Leslie Schmidt Mr. H. Bryant Sims

Mr. Richard Stanish Ms. Nancy Stone Ms. Pamela Strassner Ms. Susan Sullivan Ms. Kristina Thomsen Ms. Sandra Thurlow Mr. James Toomey Mrs. Deane O. Ugalde Ms. Laura Wagner Mr. Kenneth Walker Mr. Edward Ward Ms. Mary Weiss Mr. John Wienke Mr. Jimmy Williams Ms. Linda Wilson Ms. Christine Wolf Mrs. Mary Woodland Ms. Patricia H. Yost

Life Members Mr. and Mrs. John W. Annan Mr. and Mrs. Keith C. Austin Jr. Mrs. Maria Bacinich Mr. and Mrs. David H. Bludworth Mr. Richard R. Brown III Mr. and Mrs. Frank E. Callander Mrs. Linda Cothes Mr. William R. Cummings Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Dellaquila Mr. and Mrs. Willis H. du Pont Mr. and Mrs. Robert T. Eigelberger Mr. and Mrs. J. Pepe Fanjul Sr. Mr. and Mrs. John E. Flagg III Mr. Rodger S. Fowler Mr. and Mrs. Gordon D. Gaster Ms. Rhonda Gordon Ms. Judy Hatfield Mr. and Mrs. Scott Johnson Mr. and Mrs. Richard S. Johnson Jr. Mr. Donald C. Lainhart Mrs. Elise MacIntosh Mr. George Matsoukas Mrs. Mary Alice Pugh Mr. and Mrs. William Sned Jr. Mr. and Mrs. John Tamsberg Mr. John K. Volk

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CORPORATE MEMBERSHIP

HONORING

Jim

Ponce

The Historical Society of Palm Beach County has established The James Augustine Ponce Endowment for Exhibition Development at the Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties, in honor of the late James Augustine Ponce, Palm Beach's " two-legged, historical landmark." Through the Community Foundation’s Forever Nonprofit Endowment Challenge, HSPBC was selected to receive a $25,000 matching grant for setting up the permanent endowment. The growth from this investment will support the annual special exhibitions in the Richard and Pat Johnson Palm Beach County History Museum. Please contact us to learn how your investment can provide an opportunity to link our shared past to future generations at 561.832.4164 ext. 100 or info@hspbc.org.

Corporate Membership with the HSPBC offers benefits for your employees and clients to fully experience and enjoy the Johnson History Museum and other Society programs year-round.

Benefits to all Corporate Members:

Admission to all lectures Professionally supported access to the archives and research library; amount varies by level Invitations by mail to all special events 20% discount for all employees in our Museum Store Opportunity to hold an event at the 1916 Historic Court House Listing in the Tustenegee journal; access by mail and electronically 10% discount on all use fees in the Research Department

Trailblazer $5,000

Opportunity to hold a corporate event at the Museum with no administrative honorarium Exclusive, curator-led private tour of the Museum’s exhibitions and collections for up to 12 guests Complimentary admission to VIP events for six guests Up to two hours consultation with curator on how to set up archives. (4) 16” x 20” prints of a historical photograph(s) from the HSPBC Archives. Restrictions apply. Linked logo on the Historical Society’s website www.hspbc.org

Frontier $2,500

Opportunity to host a corporate event at the Museum with 50% discount on administrative honorarium Private docent-led tour of the Museum’s exhibitions for up to 30 guests Complimentary admission to VIP events for four guests Up to two hours consultation with curator on how to set up archives. (3) 16” x 20” prints of a historical photograph(s) from the HSPBC Archives. Restrictions apply. Linked logo on the Historical Society website www.hspbc.org

Providencia $1,000

Complimentary admission to VIP events for two guests (2) 16” x 20” prints of a historical photograph(s) from the HSPBC Archives. Restrictions apply. Linked logo on the Historical Society website www.hspbc.org

Homestead $500

(1) 16” x 20” print of a historical photograph from the HSPBC Archives. Restrictions apply. Two professionally supported research in the HSPBC Archives /Library, by appointment Company name and logo at www.hspbc.org

Everglades $250

1 hour professionally supported research in the HSPBC Archives /Library by appointment Company name and logo at www.hspbc.org

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offers special thanks to our Corporate Members & Partners

Corporate Members Corporate Frontier ($2,500) Christian Angle Real Estate Nievera Williams Design Sciame Homes Window & Door Design Center

Corporate Providencia ($1,000) Dailey Janssen Architects Flagler Realty & Development FPL Hedrick Brothers Construction Kirchhoff & Associates Architects Leeds Custom Design, Ltd. The Nicoletti Financial Group of Stifel

Corporate Homestead ($500) Palm Beach Yacht Club The Epic West Palm Beach

Foundation Partners

Addison Hines Charitable Trust Cathleen McFarlane Foundation Goldhammer Family Foundation JM Rubin Foundation Lambrecht Family Foundation Marshall E. Rinker, Sr. Foundation Palm Beach Country Club Foundation Pat Moran Family Foundation Scaife Family Foundation The Audrey and Martin Gruss Foundation The Loreen Beiswenger Farish Charitable Foundation The Mary Alice Fortin Foundation The William H. Pitt Foundation

Sponsors and other Partners Blue Ocean Capital Botanica Brickhouse Public Relations Brown Distributing Burkhardt Land Trust Capehart Photography Chamber of Commerce of the Palm Beaches City of West Palm Beach Community Foundation of Palm Beach and Martin Counties Corporate Property Services Discover the Palm Beaches Eau Resort and Spa Edward Jones Investment | James Smeenge Fernando Wong Outdoor Design Flagler Realty & Development Florida Crystals Florida Sugar Cane League Garden of Life Garrison Brothers Distillery General Society of Colonial Wars Gunster Haifa Limestone Hedrick Brothers Construction Island Company Rum John C. Cassidy Air Conditioning Keller Williams | Rachel Tessoff Kirchhoff & Associates Architects Lake Worth Drainage District Leeds Custom Design, Ltd. Lesser, Lesser, Landy & Smith Marine Industries Association of Palm Beach County McMow Art Glass Murray & Guari Trial Attorneys Nievera Williams Design Okeechobee Steak House Palm Beach County Bar Association Palm Beach County Board of Commissioners Palm Beach Kennel Club Palm Beach Media Group Pioneer Linens Pratt & Whitney Prime Golf Cars

Publix Publix REG Architects Related Company/CityPlace Sciame Homes Sean Rush Atelier Searcy Denney Sloan's Ice Cream Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Florida Southern Glazers State of Florida Division of Cultural Affairs Sunshine Towers Sysco Table 26 The Law Offices of Abigail Beebe, P.A. The Palm Event The Royal (Poinciana Plaza) The Skier Law Firm, P.A. Tito's Homemade Vodka TMK Farms U.S. Sugar Corporation Very Important Paws Wayne Boynton Wells Fargo Bank West Palm Beach Antique Row Art & Design District West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority Whitley's Auctioneers Whole Foods Window Gang of Palm Beach

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From the Archives All photos courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC.

by Rose Guerrero

Last summer we received the exciting news that we would be taking over curatorial responsibilities of the Palm Beach Post and Palm Beach Daily News photographic archives. These extensive collections portray the history of Palm Beach County over the last half of the 20th century. The new addition to our archives means further work will be needed to continue to preserve and protect the countyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s history. As we rehouse and inventory this collection, we will share treasures in future publications.

An excited child watches the Montreal Expos at Municipal Stadium ca. 1970s. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC.

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Six-year-old Carlene Grisby works attentively among her 1st-grade classmates at Rolling Green Elementary School, 1986. Photographer Sherman Zent. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC.

Students boarding a Palm Beach County School District bus, ca. 1970s. Photographer Ken Steinhoff. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC.

Ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Palm Beach PostTimes newspaper, 1960. Photographer Bill Allison. Courtesy Palm Beach Post Collection, HSPBC.

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Historical Society of Palm Beach County 300 North Dixie Highway, West Palm Beach, FL 33401

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P.O. Box 4364, West Palm Beach, FL 33402 Phone: (561) 832-4164 | Fax: (561) 832-7965 www.hspbc.org | www.pbchistoryonline.org