NAMES TO KNOW

NAMES TO KNOW Stately STATURE

Given the centuries of history that have shaped Palm Beach and coastal West Palm Beach, this area is sprinkled with statues— monuments to the movers, shakers, and pioneers who came before us. You’ve likely passed these immortalized figures countless times but never cast them more than a passing glance. Join PBI on a brief statue-spotting tour to consider who they are and the contributions that earned them abiding recognition.

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The Hiker by Theo Alice Ruggles Kitson Location: Howard Park This statue of a foot soldier in the Spanish-American War is one of about 50 such figures placed in parks throughout the country between 1906 and 1965. A plaque on the base declares that the monument serves “to commemorate the valor and patriotism of the men who served in the war with Spain, Philippine Insurrection, and China Relief Expedition 18981902.” There are 48 SpanishAmerican War veterans buried in nearby Woodlawn Cemetery. Elisha Newton “Cap” Dimick Statue Location: Royal Palm Way median Dimick, holding his ever-present cap, greets anyone driving to Palm Beach via Royal Palm Way—as he should, since he built the then-wooden Royal Park Bridge himself. He also opened the island’s first hotel in 1880, adding eight rooms to his home and calling it the Cocoanut Grove House; his nightly rate of $1.50 included all-you-can-eat fruit from trees on the property. He was among the group of landowners who signed the 1911 charter incorporating the Town of Palm Beach and became its first mayor. l

Girl with Shawl Location: Flamingo Park on S. Dixie The information is right there on the Florida Heritage Site sign, but few know this park’s somber past as a cemetery for African Americans from 1902 to 1913; at least 100 unmarked graves lie beneath the banyans. The Lakeside Cemetery Association donated the land to the city in the early 1920s; it became a public park known as Dixie Playground, later renamed Flamingo Park. Girl with Shawl honors those buried here, whose names have been lost to time.

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Henry J. Rolfs Statue Location: Okeechobee Boulevard median West Palm Beachers have Rolfs to thank for the vibrant community we enjoy today. In the 1980s, the city was besieged by crime. But Rolfs, a real estate tycoon and visionary, took a chance and invested $60 million of his own fortune into establishing a revitalized city center called Downtown/Uptown. The market fell and the project seemed a colossal failure at the time of Rolfs’ death in 1994; however, his vision paved the way for a now-thriving WPB. Golden Eagle Statue Location: Royal Poinciana Way median Citizens of Palm Beach installed this golden eagle statue and flagpole between Bradley Park and the Royal Poinciana Plaza on July 4, 1976, to commemorate the country’s bicentennial. l

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Henry Flagler Statue Location: Royal Poinciana Way median A tribute to Florida’s founding father, the statue of Henry Morrison Flagler honors the man who cultivated untamed jungle into Palm Beach as we know it. He built the Florida East Coast Railway and made our wild paradise one of the most desirable places to visit, beginning in the Gilded Age and enduring even today.