Legendary Locals Of West Palm Beach

From West Palm Beach’s beginnings as service town to Palm Beach, Standard Oil tycoon Henry Morrison Flagler’s resort village, the city has evolved into a trendy art, cultural, and shopping mecca. Palm Beach County’s largest city serves as county seat and center of business, government, and commerce. Taming America’s last frontier saw the industriousness of pioneers and settlers such as Marion Gruber, the Potter brothers, George Lainhart, and Max Greenberg guide the “Cottage City” of yesteryear to today’s gleaming metropolis. Meet many of West Palm Beach’s pioneers, civic leaders, educators, business leaders, and entrepreneurs. Learn about the heroes, celebrities, philanthropists, and even the villains who have contributed to the mosaic of West Palm Beach.

Whether it was homesteaders and dragoons or cowboys and Indians, they all clashed in the "Wild East" of early Fort Pierce. A natural inlet through the barrier island into the Indian River Lagoon created the perfect location for two Seminole War forts: Pierce and Capron. After the Civil War, the Reuben Carlton family moved their cattle to the area's free range. Today, Alto "Bud" Adams Jr. runs the famous Adams Ranch from its Fort Pierce headquarters. Some time after the Carltons, Elizabeth and C.T. McCarty arrived, she to teach and he to plant pineapples and citrus. Growers like the Bernard Egan family continue to produce prize Indian River fruit. Generations of Summerlin fishermen made their living from the sea. The watered paradise still lures sport fishermen such as Terry Howard, ecotour operators like Lisa's Kayaks, and charter captains like Captain Mark. African Americans farmed, labored, and enriched the cultural environment, culminating in the success of artists such as Alfred Hair. In Legendary Locals of Fort Pierce, the town's diversity is illuminated through vignettes of its legends. Among these are Edwin Binney, the creator of Crayola crayons, and Edwin Link, the inventor of the Link flight simulator.

Guided by a visionary widow named Julia Tuttle, the city of Miami truly came into being in 1896 and has not stopped growing. Halfway through the last century, the apparent domination of land, population, and business by whites and--for decades--repressed African Americans became tested and balanced by the victims of the 1959 Cuban Revolution. Beyond that, hundreds of thousands of others from Spanish-speaking lands came to create what truly is an international metropolis. The chapters of Miami's existence are delineated by those legendary locals who came earliest; those who were the pioneers; those who established businesses that endured; those who were the builders and visionaries; those who served in politics; those who came from other places; those who created, built, and extended educational and arts opportunities; and those who embraced the placid environment and natural beauty of the "Magic City."

International hotelier, Worth Avenue Association Historian and Palm Beach aficionado Rick Rose releases the 2nd edition of his best-selling guide: Palm Beach: The Essential Guide to America’s Legendary Resort Town. The full-color illustrated guide to Palm Beach, published by Pineapple Press, an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield, is a rich and beautifully curated collection of destinations, must-sees, and restaurant and shopping recommendations in what has become known as “American’s First Resort Destination.” Leading 2,000 visitors a year on public and private tours of Worth Avenue and Palm Beach Island and hosting thousands of guests a year at his boutique inn and vacation homes, Rose was inspired to write a local guide to help visitors make the most of their visit to Palm Beach. The first edition was released in 2017 and quickly became the most widely distributed curated guide to The Palm Beaches. The completely revised and updated 2nd edition of Palm Beach: The Essential Guide to America’s Legendary Resort Town features a foreword from celebrated designer and author Steven Stolman, as well as new content, such as a scenic walking tour, information about private clubs, birding tips and new local attractions. The book offers insights on island-appropriate attire, tips on self-guided tours, recommended regional road trips, horse show 101, and so much more, providing a complete overview of everything Palm Beach. The guide is the ultimate resource for those who know the city intimately, wish to visit, or just have an appreciation for the cultural destination that is Palm Beach. Throughout the community, Rose’s expertise is wildly hailed. “This guide highlights all of those special places in Palm Beach for visitors and residents alike”, said Danielle Hickox Moore, Mayor of Palm Beach. “Rick Rose’s Palm Beach – The Essential Guide has become truly essential for anyone visiting or relocating to the Palm Beaches. His attention to historical facts and their influence on who we are today is outstanding” – Jorge Pesquera, President & CEO of Discover the Palm Beach.

From the first settlers, the Lewis family in the 1790s, to the New River Settlement led by William Cooley in the 1830s, to the arrival of Frank Stranahan in 1893, Fort Lauderdale is an "old" young town. Named for the Second Seminole War fort commanded by Major Lauderdale, the town incorporated in 1911. The land boom of the 1910s-1920s brought an influx of people including publicist Commodore Brook, architect Francis Abreu, developer Charles Rodes, and businessmen Moe and Mack Katz. Following the economic downturn after the 1926 hurricane, the postwar boom transformed the sleepy town into the tropical paradise and tourist destination that it is today. Hotelier Bob Gill, developer James Hunt, "Crazy Gregg" Newell, and entrepreneur Wayne Huizenga led that charge. Legendary Locals of Fort Lauderdale also tells the story of groundbreaking civil servants such as Easter Lily Gates and Andrew DeGraffenreidt, civil rights activists Eula Johnson and Dean Trantalis, educators Mae McMillan and Sister Marie Schramko, and sports stars Katherine Rawls, Chris Evert, and Ryan Hunter-Reay.

Palm Beach People is a dazzling portraitand insider's view of a fabled andexclusive resort community and itshigh-profile denizens, as seen throughthe lens of master photographer HarryBenson and the words of societycolumnist Hilary Geary Ross. Ross and Benson's critically acclaimedfirst project, the coffee-table book, NewYork, New York, provided readers with aninside look at the homes and portraitsof New York City's movers and shakers.In this beautiful, deluxe-size follow-up,Palm Beach People, Benson and Ross givethe reader a grand tour of America'smost glamorous watering hole. You'llmeet everyone from captains of industry,politicians, movie stars, artists, and bestsellingauthors to celebrated athletesand society doyenne, all photographedin their exquisite private oases, oftenarchitectural masterpieces, or in other oftheir favorite Palm Beach settings. Palm Beach People captures theessence of America's most exclusiveenclave, from the early 70s to today,in hundreds of color and black-and-whitephotographs complimented byrevealing captions. Subjects includethe Duke and Duchess of Marlborough;former Canadian Prime Minister BrianMulroney and his wife Mila; Marie-JoseeKravis; members of the Fanjul family;Judy and Alfred Taubman; GeorginaBloomberg; Pauline Pitt; Mrs. HenryFord; Leonard Lauder; Tommy LeeJones; David Koch; Arriana and DixonBoardman; Tatiana Smith; Mrs. WinstonChurchill; Brooke Shields; Anne Slater;and many, many more.

A vivid biography of the nineteenth-century society couple who helped turn a tropical wilderness into a Gilded Age paradise. Palm Beach’s sunny and idyllic shores had humble beginnings as a wilderness of sawgrass and swamps only braved by the hardiest of souls. Two such adventurers were Fred and Byrd “Birdie” Spilman Dewey, who pioneered in central Florida before discovering the tropical beauty of Palm Beach in 1887. Though their story was all but lost, this dynamic couple was vital in transforming the region from a rough backcountry into a paradise poised for progress. Authors Ginger Pedersen and Janet DeVries trace the remarkable history of the Deweys in South Florida from their beginnings on the isolated frontier to entertaining the likes of the Flaglers, Vanderbilts, Phippses, Cluetts, Clarkes, and other Palm Beach elite. Using Birdie’s autobiographical writings from her bestselling books to fill in the gaps, Pedersen and DeVries narrate a chapter in Florida’s history that has remained untold until now.

Geographic isolation, abundant natural resources, and the challenging climate of Washington's Long Beach Peninsula have shaped the strong character, individuality, and creativity of those who live there--from the First Peoples of the Chinook Nation to the eclectic, ever-growing population of the 21st century. Along the Columbia River, the salmon industry has spawned leaders such as P.J. McGowan, John Kola, and Jessie Marchand. On Willapa Bay, oyster workers and cranberry growers like Meinert Wachsmuth, Ira Murakami, Charles Nelson, Jim Crowley, and Malcolm McPhail have struggled to understand and protect their fragile environment. Entrepreneurs like John Morehead, Mary Lou Mandel, Keleigh Schwartz; legislator Sid Snyder; surf rescuer Doug Knutzen; and artist Eric Wiegardt have each played a role in shaping this unique area. Legendary Locals of the Long Beach Peninsula chronicles the generations of inhabitants who have celebrated the distinctiveness of their communities even as they have endeavored to cooperate in sculpting their future.