Last Train to Paradise: Henry Flagler and the Spectacular Rise and Fall of the Railroad that Crossed an Ocean

Flagler attributed much of the government’s animosity to a personal vendetta being carried out against him by President Theodore Roosevelt, whom he had once supported in a bid for the governorship of New York. Once elected to that post, however, Roosevelt had moved quickly to pass legislation taxing corporate franchises, an act that Flagler deemed

The response to the Ponce de Leon was so enthusiastic, however, that Flagler was soon at work on a companion hotel nearby, the Alcazar, where he intended that guests of more modest means could experience something of the sybarite’s lifestyle. Flagler and his new wife took a suite at the Ponce de Leon, meanwhile, and announced that Florida was now t

Among the various guests on board with Flagler on the morning of January 22 was Assistant Secretary of War Robert Shaw Oliver, the personal representative of President Taft, sharing a ride that was so sought after that it took a last-minute call from William Krome to Flagler direct to get himself on board.

Given a bit of time to reflect on the events of the past few days, Flagler sat down on January 27 to compose a letter to Joseph Parrott, one that gives some insight into his state of mind: The last few days have been full of happiness to me, made so by the expression of appreciation of the people for the work I have done in Florida. A large part of

One of the last of the gargantuan tasks involved in the completion of the route was the building of a bridge across the Bahia Honda Channel, connecting Bahia Honda, at MM 37, and the Spanish Harbor Keys. Though the distance was not nearly so great as some of the other spans that had been crossed—a little more than a mile, including approaches—the w

Construction of the sixty-six-mile extension south from West Palm Beach was aided by a sizable contingent of convict labor leased to the Florida East Coast Railway at the rate of $2.50 a month. The company had to feed and house the men, but it was still an attractive deal when private labor might approach two dollars or more per day. The process to

Despite the heady move, Flagler was not keen to join the New York City social swirl. Even in Cleveland, he had virtually no social life. His wife had been plagued by a lifetime of chronic bronchitis, and when Flagler was not at his office, he was with her. The move to New York did little for Mary’s health, and when her doctors changed their diagnos

Shortly after the viaduct was completed, Flagler had his palm-studded work camp on Long Key converted to a fishing camp, and built a terminal at which guests could depart the main line and ride a half-mile, narrow-gauge spur through a tunnel beneath the tracks and out to those inviting accommodations on the sandy beaches. He also had a proper hotel

The enactment of tough new trade tariffs would greatly reduce the imports of Cuban tobacco, sugar, and pineapples. New taxes levied on the FEC drove up prices, sending business to competitors sailing from New Orleans and elsewhere.