History of the Town of Palm Beach
In 1893 millionaire Henry M. Flagler (the founder of Standard Oil along with John D. Rockefeller and Samuel Adams) and his second wife honeymooned in St. Augustine. Impressed with the beauty and history of the area, he envisioned an "American Riviera". Having invested large sums in several hotels in the St. Augustine area, Flagler extended his holdings southward. He bought and improved existing railways anticipating the tremendous potential for South Florida. His railway was named the Florida East Coast Railway.
Flagler's agents soon were buying acres of land on the island of Palm Beach. Many early homesteaders found themselves very wealthy, as orders had been given to buy "at any price". Ground was broken May 1, 1893 and on February 11, 1894, the Royal Poinciana Hotel, the largest wood structure in the world, opened in Palm Beach, welcoming 17 guests. A month after the opening, the first train pulled from the station at Loftin Street (later used as an office and warehouse by the Town of Palm Beach) in West Palm Beach on the newly built bridge across Lake Worth to deliver vacationers, some in their own private railway cars, to the new hotel. Henry Flagler built his own house, Whitehall, in 1902 as a wedding present for his third wife, Mary Lily Kenan. Whitehall is now the Henry Morrison Flagler Museum which attracts visitors from around the world.
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Flagler continued to develop the Royal Poinciana Hotel property and built a second hotel, the Palm Beach Inn, on the beachfront portion of the Royal Poinciana's property. When the Palm Beach Inn burned in 1903, the first Breakers Hotel was built. Destroyed by a fire in 1925, it was rebuilt as the splendid hotel it is today. The Breakers is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
On April 17, 1911, a meeting of the town's thirty-five registered and qualified voters was held at the Palm Beach Hotel for the purpose of incorporating the Town of Palm Beach.
In 1918, before the end of World War I, Addison Mizner, an established New York architect who was born in California and studied in Spain, accepted an invitation from Paris Singer to recuperate from a leg injury in Palm Beach. As Mizner's health improved his boredom turned into creativity, and he transformed Singer's bungalow into a Chinese villa. The conversion was a success, but Singer looked forward to a large project. Having established two hospitals in France, Paris Singer decided to build a convalescent home in Palm Beach for servicemen returning from the war. The buildings were completed, but before the opening of the club house in January 1919, the "Touchstone Convalescent Club" had been transformed into the Everglades Club on Worth Avenue where it remains today. Mizner's era had begun and was to continue along the southeast coast of Florida through the 1920's. The Town of Palm Beach soon began long range plans to develop and protect this island paradise, and the beauty which Town residents now enjoy is due to the efforts of several generations of planning activity. In 1929, the Garden Club of Palm Beach joined the Town and formally sponsored the preparation of a Town Plan.
The overall goal of the 1929 Plan stated the following:
"One attractive and well managed public bath and beach, the concentration of general traffic upon a limited number of streets, beautification without especial reference to main arteries of travel, and a system of leisurely and convenient byways free from automobiles, punctuated with gardens; this is a plan which will localize recreation seeking crowds, discourage trespassing, and provide safety and quiet for residents of Palm Beach."
Also included in the plan was the following statement:
"There are many communities which can be said to be beautiful. The places in which charm is the additional attribute are very few. The element of charm is the thing which lifts a community out of the ordinary and makes it distinctive. The attribute of charm may be produced by an intelligent development of physical advantages in an unusual way."
Today the Town of Palm Beach has 8,210 registered voters with approximately 10,500 full time residents. The population swells to 40,000+ during the "season" which is from November through April. Residents and visitors enjoy the very best in dining, shopping, and luxurious surroundings. World famous Worth Avenue shops attract visitors worldwide. New mansions continue to be built in Palm Beach adding to the charm and ambience of the landmarked Fatio, Mizner, and Wyeth designed structures. Palm Beach continues into the 21st century as an oasis of beauty and elegance.