1983 Preservation Today

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PRESERVATION TODAY Volume 1, Number l/Spring 1983

Editor

CONTENTS

Becky Roper Markov

Aro und the Town . .. . ...... . . .. . . . . . . . .. . .. ........ 5

Assistant Editors

Political Updat e .... .... .. . . .. . .... . . . .... .. .. . .... 7

by D o n Sl esni ck

Beth Ann Clark Advertising Madie Kinsey Circulation

Miami's O ldest Ho u se ... .. . ... . ... . . .. .... ... .. .. . . 8

by Margo t A m mid own The Wagner H o mestead l ives o n i n Lum mus Park.

Marty Lee Stofik Features

The Wo rking Ri ver . .. .. . . . . . .... .. . .. . . . . ... . .. . . . 10

by Mar ty L ee Stofik New deve lopm ent is fast changing th e M iami Ri ver.

Art and Production

To mmy's Boat Yard .... . . ..... . ... . .. . . . ....... . . . 15

by B ogu e Wa llin The old marine railway sti ll work s b est fo r To mm y's.

Paul E. Thompson Board of Trustees

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Timothy Carl Blake President Juliane Bishop Vice-President GordonPimm Secretary Margaret K. Wood Treasurer Les Beilinson Allen Caldwell John Ward Clark SallyeJude Dermis G. King Becky Roper Markov Richard G. Miller Donald D. Slesnick, II Marty Lee Stofik Board of Advisors

Jeanne Bellamy Dolly MacIntyre Arva Moore Parks Dan Paul Executive Director

Paul E. Thompson

Cover photo by Phil Brodatz .

Miami's Newest Hist o ric Site . .... . .. .. . . . ... . ... . .. 16

by Arva Moore Park s The Jam es L. Kn ight Inter nat io nal Co nven ti o n Center is b uilt o n Miami 's past.

The Young M an and the Ri ver .. . . .. . . ... . .. . . . . . . ... 19

by Ro b ert S. Carr An archaeo logist reca lls g rowing up o n the Miami Ri ver.

Preser vati o n at Wo rk: T h e O r ange Bowl Corpo r ati o n . .. 22

by B ecky Rop er Ma tkov Co mbi n ing o ld ho uses and m o der n add iti o ns m akes lif e at the office m o re interesting.

Per sonality Profile: Bess Burdine Read .. . .. . . .. . . . . . . 25

By Grace Wing B ohne The o nly daughter o f pio neer store owner Wi lliam Burd ine rem ember s Mi am i 's past and enjoys its prese n t.

The Vizcaya Gat e Lo dge ... . .. .. .. . . . . ... . . . .. . .. . . 27

by Ca r l]. Weinh ardt,Jr. Th is h istoric, architectu rally appea l ing b u ild ing wi ll soon b eco m e o ffices fo r the Vi zcayans.

19 On the Cover: Sitting forlornly in the still-to-be develo ped Fort Dallas Park is dle last remaining physical link to Henry Flagler, the man who brought his railroad to Miami in 1896 and changed the course of histoq : This two-story wooden home, which in rece nt years was known as the Butler building, was one of a row of "company" ho uses that Flagler built for his workmen in 1897. It was moved to Fo rt Dallas Park from its original site on SE 2nd Street and awaits restoratio n.

Dade Her itage Tr u,t is a pr ivate, non-profit Florida co rp()r:uioll dedi c~ ted [() the p resen-ali on of Dade CouJUy's historic arc hitecture. neighborhoods and arc haeologica l sites. Its headquarte rs are located <ll 190 SE 12th Terrace, ylia mi. FL 33131. Phone (305) 3';8-95'72. Š Co pyr ight 19!13. Dade Herit:lgeTrusl, Inc.

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The Editor's Corner

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ELCOME to th e pages of Preservation Today, a quarterly magazine on historic preservation published by Dade Heritage Trust. In this o ur prem ier issue, we have spotlighted the Miami River, the source of Miami's ea rl iest civilization and a reawakening center of development. Barely noticed by thousands of commuters each day, and adm itted ly at its best when seen by boat, the Miami River has a fascinating sto r y to te ll.

Preservation Today w ill feature stories on interestin g neighborhoods and historic structures in all of Dade County, from the Art Deco of Miami Beach to the Mediterranean of Cora l Gables and the ea rl y ve rn acular of the Red lands, from the kingly Villa Vizcaya to the auste re Wagner Homestead.

We will profile groups and individuals who have played a part in the history of Miam i or who p laya part in the shaping of her future. We w ill update you on politica l activity affecting histor ic preservation and keep you informed on the latest econo mic incentives for restoration work.

We'll highlight case studies of successfu l rehabilitation projects, and we'll give yo u practical adv ice o n how to renovate a bUild i ng yourse lf.

Dade Heritage Trust be l ieves that saving the best of the past, inco rpOl·ating archi tectu ra l remnants of eras gone by into o ur modern env ironment, en hances o ur prese nt and enriches our future. A sense of p lace, of root ,gives a city an identity. By encouraging historic preservation and an appreciation of Dade County :~ her itage, Preservation Today hopes to be a so urce of info rmation and inspiration and a force for commun ity cohesiveness.

Becky Roper Matkov

Art Deco Weekend on O ld Miami Beach drew tt·e· mendous crowds.

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AROUND THE

TOWN WITH PRESERVATIONISTS

Left: The glamor and excitement of DHT's Tenth Anniversary Event in the Orange Bowl was personified

by Myriam Rovirosa and patron chairman Bruni Pie lago. Top right: Trustee john and Beth Ann Clark enjoyed the festivities.

Right: Antique show chairman Doll y MacIntyre chats with co-chairman juliane and husband, Dr. Frank Bishop.

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Left: Miami Mayor Maurice Ferre at the Orange Bowl.

Right: Author Mary Emmerling lectured on American Country prior to DHT's Antique Show at Dinner Key.

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Susan Heatley and chairman Susan jones supervise a workman restoring the Vizcaya Gate LOdgefor thejunior League of Miami Designer's Show House.

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UNEXCELLED DETAIL, ACCURACY, DOCUMENTATION, REPRODUCTION On-Site Interior/ Exterior Photography Left : Brodatz' photodrawings of the Oade County Courthouse saved 1,500 hours preparation time prior to restoration.

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POLITICAl ADE HERlTI\GE TRUST CONDUCTS ELECTION POll ... In a serio us effort to emerge as a p o litically effective o rgani za ti o n , Dade Heritage Trust conducted its fi rst pre-election survey of local candidates in order to asce rtain their positions regarding historic preservatio n. A five-part questio nnaire was designed to test the candidate's preservatio n "I.Q." and his/he r co mmitme nt to pro-preservation legislation.

Three key issues highlighted were ad valorem tax abate ments, a state histo ric preservatio n co uncil and the establishment of a grant-in-aid and funding program. The survey was circulated to candidates p articipating in the Nove mbe r ge ne ral election, and despite its being DHTS first such effort, an impressive resp onse was received.

An overwhelming majority of the respo nde nts indicated their support for the historic preservation cause and the tax legislatio n vital to its ultimate success.

Amo ng those who returned the questionnaire were Secretary of State Geo rge Firesto ne; Senators Roberta Fox and Joe Gerste n; and Representatives Roberto Casas, Hal Spaet, Mike

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Abrams, John Cosgrove, Tim Murphy, and Ar t Simon. Inte restingly, two of Dade County's Congressional delegation took the time to reply with personal lette rs.

Congressman Larry Smith summed up his philosophy with the statement: "I have always worked and supported historic preservatio n matters:' An equally strong co mmitment was offered by Congressman Dante Fascell: "I am writing this letter to reite rate my lo ng-standing suppo rt for effo rts at the federal level to conserve impo rtant physical aspects of our nations heritage. I will continue to suppo rt federal p rograms to achieve the o bjectives embodied he re in Dade County by yo ur effective o rganizatio n:' DADE HERITAGE TR UST HAS I PUT TO LOCAL BOARDS ... As the numbe r and impo rtance of local histo ric preservatio n boards grow, Dade He ritage Trust continues to be well re p rese nted in the ir me mbership.

Many of those persons w ho have been appo inted to serve are lo ng-time me mbers of the Trust, and several are curre nt tr ustees. Recent appOintme nts include Marty Stofik (Miami

by Don Slesnick Sh o res); Le s Beil e nso n ( Mi ami Beach); John Clark (Miami); and Don Slesnick (Metro-Dade). Everyo ne is enco uraged to keep track of the activities of these boards and, whe never possible, to attend their public hearings and workshops.

FIRST ANNUAL PRE SERVATIO DAY PLANNED ... Plans are now underway fo r Florida's first Annual Preservation Day celebration, to be held in Tallahassee on Wednesday, May 11.

The baSic idea is to gather preservatio nists fro m all over the state at the capitol to impress the legislature with the movement's size and strength. Activities will include cocktail receptio ns, briefings by the secretary of state, meetings with the cabinet, lunch in the o ld capitol, and ple nty of lobbying with hometown representatives and senators. DHT will soon be announcing specific details fo r you who wish to participate in this most important political activity. See you in Tallahassee!

Attorney Don Slesnick writes for the Miami Review and is a member of the Metro-Dade Historic Preservation Board.

Cauley Square's Span ish-style, flat-iron buildi ng with its coral rock and Dade County pine w as constructed by millionaire tomato farmer, William H . Cauley.

The I ittle houses that lie in its shadow have been restored and tu rned into antique, boutique and craftsman shops, a charming garden tea room and a nostalgic w alking village.

Cauley Square cheri shes history, creating a mood of less hectic yea rs.

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Open Monday- Saturday,

JULY 25 FAL L FESTIVAL NOVEMBER 5

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Phone (305) 258-3543

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Miatni's Oldest House: THE WAGNER HOMESTEAD MILE and a half up the Miami River, in Lummus Park, sits a wood-frame structure that looks incongruous in its curre nt city setting. Over a hundred years ago, this ho use stood just a sho rt distance fro m its present site in a startlingly differe nt e nvironment. There, off a branch of the Miami River known as Wagne r Creek, in a wilderness unknown to most of the country, William Wagner built his ho me between 1855 and 1858.

William Wagners daughter sold the ho mestead to a real estate company in t h e ea rl y 1900s an d m ove d to downtown Miami with her family Over the next decade Wagne r's land was transfo rmed into the suburban Highland Park. The Wagner Ho use was moved squarely o nto a reside ntial lot, and its identity was soon subm erge d int o a middl e -cl ass ne ighbo rhood streetscape of neat, nicely painted bungalows.

Ma ny o ld-tim e reside nts we re aware of the histo ry of the ho use at 1145 NW 8th Avenue, so knowledge of its pio neer o rigin was never compl e te ly los t. It s e xi s te n ce was threate ned , howeve r. The plan for the no rthward extension of Dade County's Metro rail system cut right th rough Highl and Park and mea nt th at if Miami was going to retain its oldest kn ow n private reS ide nce , ac ti o n wo uld have to be taken. Dade Heritage Trust acted. In 1979, members acqui red funds fro m the City of Miami 's Co mmunity Developme nt Block Grant Program and made plans fo r the relocation and resto ration of the Wagne r Ho use.

Lummus Park was selected as the re locatio n s ite for a n um be r of reasons. It was not far fro m the original site. Like the wagner ho mestead, it was close to the Mian1i River. And the park co ntain ed ano ther structu re fro m the mid-nineteenth century, the Fort Dallas barracks, also known as the William English slave quarters.

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The Wagner ho use was moved to the park and stabilized, and wo rk was begun on its resto ratio n and partial reconstructio n. That process is still underway, but the ho use is now beginning to look like its forme r self.

The restoratio n will be completed whe n perio d furni shings are collected and othe r displays are asse mbled. Eve ntually the Wagner ho use will be open to the public as the only example of a pioneer ho use fro m Miami 's ho mesteadin g era, w he n So uth Flo rida was a remote frontie r.

ILLIAM Wagner was an integral figure in that period in Dade Co un ty's past. The Wagner family were plain fo lk. William came to Miami in 1855, following his fo rm e r milita r y unit, whi ch reopened Fort Dallas during the last Semino le War. He was a vete ran of the Mexican War, fighting under Gene ral Winfie ld Scott until he was wounded in the battle of Cerro Go rdo. He met and married his wife Eveline in Charlesto n, South Carolina, where he was se nt to recover. The for mer Eveline DeBau (or Aimar, as she was

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by Margot Ammidown also known) was a French Creole whose life in Charlesto n befo re William is a fascinating sto ry o n its own.

William Wagner left most of his family in South Carolina whe n he first came to Miami. He established a sutlers sto re at the fo rt fo r the soldiers in reS ide nce, and up river, o n land that later became his ho mestead, he built a coontie mill and ho use. Wagne rs fa mil y joined him three years later.

The Wagners soon became popular figures in the small river community They were honest, hard working, and hospitable by all acco un ts. They were pillars of a setdeme nt d1at was populated largely by transie nts, scound re ls or settlers who eventually gave up u-ying to eke out a living from the sandy pine flats and moved o n.

Pio neer life in Miami was laced wid1 many obstacles. Food, com panio nship, shelter - nothing came easily Hostile Indians were anod1er worry The Wagners were amo ng the first settlers to make frie nds with members of the Seminole tribe who, during the mi d -1 800s, we re hunted ruthlessly by a military seeking d1eir

The Wagner Homestead, being restored by Dade Heritage Trust, recalls the p ion eer era ofMiami's past.

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e>..1:ermination in Florida. Indian reprisals o n settlers, a lth o ugh infrequent, were the topic of incessant rumors. The Wagners were friendly, however, and apparently not given to alarmism. Over the years they entertained in their ho me some of the legendary Seminole fighters of the Indian wars.

They also e ntertained at various ti mes most of the significan t figures of Miami's pio nee r histo r y. Besides settlers and members o f the military community, the Wagners were visited by contingents of both Unio n and Confederate soldiers during the Civil War. Oth e r g uests were Miami's no torio us carpetbaggers, William Gleason and William Hunt, the willi a m Bri ckell s, Julia Tuttle, VicePres ident of the United States Schuyle r Colfax, and two U.S. senato rs who stopped by on their way to a sightseeing trip of the Everglades.

If the heavy, hand-hew n beams and joists of the Wagner house could tell the story of what they had wiUlessed, the details of the histo ry of Miami would be very much enriched. Fortun atel y, Ro se Wagner Rich a rd s, William's and Evelines daughter, did record some of her me mo ries in a series of articles in 1903 for the Miami Daily News, o ne of the few firsthand accounts local historians have of the period. Additional information used in reconstructing the Wagners' life on the Miami River was supplied by o ne of Roses daughters, Maude Black, befo re her death a few years ago, and by a son, Charles Richards, who was bo rn o n his gra ndfather's ho mestead in 1887 and died o nly this year.

William and Eveline Wagner spe nt the rest of thei.r lives on the Miami ho mestead. Mrs. Wagner was buried on the property near a small church the family erected , the first church in Dade County William Wagner died in 1901 of o ld age and medical complications caused by his Mexican War injuries. He was buried in the Miami City Cemetery. Wagner had lived long enough to see the arrival of the railroad and the incorporatio n of the City of Miami. It was also long e no ugh to see that Dade Countys ho mesteading era had come to an e nd , and that pre-

Archaeologists excavate the original site of the Wagner Homestead aftet路 it was removed to Lummus Park.

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Sitting close to the Wagner House are the former William English slave quarters, built in 1849 and later used by the military at Fort Dallas. The Daughters of the American Revolution relocated the building to Lummus Park in 1925.

railroad pioneers were already something of an anachronism who had littie influe nce in the development of Henry Flaglers city ODAY, it is difficult to imagine tile Miami Rive r as an isolated, lawless, subtropical wilderness with o nly a few scatte red inhabitants.

Lummus Park is a relatively small g ree n tri a ng le wedged between apa rtm e nt buildings, maritim e businesses, and the Scottish Rite Te mpie. The Wagner ho use is now mo re than 120 years old, and one might wo nder what relevance this small rustic home has to its curre nt highly urbanized surroundings. After all, we live in an area where all the major histo rical figures - Julia Tuttle, Henry Flagler, Carl Fisher, George Merrick were land developers, not politicians, theologian , or frontiersmen.

AltIlough William Wagner personally knew orne of Miamis early developers, he had very little in com-

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mon with them . He and his family bear a different relevance to Dade Countys histo ry in both deed and symbolism. The Wagners came to Miami when o thers were not interested and forged a life for tIlemselves in a place many thought inhospitable. They were active in local politics and community affairs, and the ir loyalty to their home and neighbors was not ba ed on potential profit, but in a genuine affection that evolved over tIleir years of hard work and dedicatio n. Few people today are aware that settlers like Eveline and William Wagner even existed in tIlis area's past.

It is time the people of Dade County had a monument to their lesse r known, but eq u all y imp ortant , forebear.

--------------Margot Ammidown, an historical reo search consultant, is co-author (with Ivan Rodriguez) of a book on the historical architecture of Dade County, From Wilderness to Metropolis.

THE

by Marty Lee Stofik

M

lAMl was bustling with activ-

ity whe n Max Swartz first arrived at the City Curb Market in 1918. Residents of the rapidly growing city came daily to the banks o f the Miam i Rive r to buy fresh fruit, vegetables and seafood. Max sold oy ters.

By 1933, with the nation in the throes of economic depressio n, Max was able to buy a seven-year-old b uilding by the river at the foot of Flagler Street. The re he opened his seafood restaurant and fish marke t.

Fishe rme n coming from Biscayne Bay to his East Coast Fishe ries would pass the Dallas Park and Julia Tuttle Hote ls. The ope n-air market, at SW 2nd Ave. and orth River Drive, was gone, replaced by the graceful Rya n Motors building.

Twenty-five years passed. MaJ(s son, Dav id , was learning the fish business fro m his fathe r. The Miami wate rs we re yielding fifteen millio n po unds of fi h a year. TheJulia Tuttle Hotel had become ho me to the YWCA. The Dallas Park was closed.

Ano th e r twe nt y- fi ve yea r s has passed. The Dallas Park is gone, rep laced by the angular Hyatt Regency.

The Julia Tuttle fell in 1974 to make room fo r a new YWCA, now being conve rted into the ultra- lu xurio us River Parc Hotel. The catch is o nly a million po unds of fish in a good year.

David Swartz still is selling seafood in the o ld b uilding on SW orth River Drive.

LEFT: An aerial view shows the Miami River as it flows by Metrorail construction, the old Florida East Coast Railway Freight House and past the Knight Con vention Center into Biscay ne Bay.

Today's Miami Rive r is a paradox.

Old bu ildings are being de molished to make way fo r new buildings, and othe r old buildings are being moved in as their ne ighbo rs. The 1902 Butle r Insurance Bui lding has been relo cated to Fo rt Dallas Park as the centerpiece of an urban plaza. Between it and the sunrise is the raw concre te hulk of the James L. Knight Conventi o n Ce nte r. In Lummus Park, the pre-1858 Wagne r Ho use is be ing re novated in the shadow of the new Governme nt Ce nte r and tlle hubbub of 1-95.

Towering hotels, office buildings and co ndo miniums are be ing e ncouraged by high-de nsity zoning on both sides o f the river. At the same time, a river walk and improved public parks are being developed to bring people back to the river's edge.

All of this wi ll come as a shock to te ns of tho usands of Dade reSidents w h o a re o n ly vag ue ly awa re o f downtown Miami, much less that a busy river runs thro ugh it.

Admittedly, it's not much of a river anymore, compared to the Ohio or mighty Mississippi. North o f 36th Street it has been reduced to no mo re than a canal. The rapids at 27tllAve nue we re conque red by dynamite. It gets only an occasional swig of fresh wate r w he n the fl ood-co nt ro l gates are opened.

A working rive r. That's what it's called by the cargo shippe rs, boat builde rs and scrap me tal dealers who p o pul a t e it s b a nk s b eyo nd downtown. People in the condos, restaurants and hotel roo ms gawk as huge ship fill ed with fo reign sounds

squeeze th ro ugh the o ld bridges, shiny sa ilb oats and an occas io nal pelican in their wakes. They call it picturesque. Enviro nme ntal gro up call it a disaste r.

In spite of its history, the riverfront has been surprisingly unde r-utilized by today's standards. Now, the birthpl ace of Miami is undergoing a rebirth. Downtown riverfront land is selling fo r $100 pe r square foot. As developme nt spreads out fro m the city cente r, the value of o ld neighbo rhoods and small businesses will make their land attractive fo r redeve lopme nt. The builde rs, marine inte rests and enviro nmentalists agree the river wi ll not re main as it is. Agreeme nt e nds there. (continued) The Art Deco building of Miami Ship y ards is on Southeast 2nd Avenue at South River Drive.

MARTY STOFIK

CITY OF MIAM I/DDA

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Commerce floats by with a Caribbean beat. (continued)

Downtown, o n the no rth side of the rive r, is whe re the actio n is. Just west o f Fo rt Dallas Park lies an und eve lo ped tract of land fl anke d by the proposed People Mover and 35-foot high, six-lane Miami Avenue Bridge. It and a large parce l immediate ly across

the rive r are ow ne d by Arm and o Codina's Intra-Ame rica n Investme nts, Inc. The prope rty o n the south side is the site of two histo ric ware ho uses.

The 1905 Citrus Exchange Building, o riginally timbe r now covered with metal siding, is the oldest in the community The company hasn't decided

Boats of every siz e and purpose pass each other on the Miami River.

MARTY STOFIK

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what to do with the p rope rty O r the wa re ho uses.

Fiftee n ac res of pr im e und eve loped land lie betwee n the new Miami Avenue Bridge and the path o f Metrora il. Wo rsham Brothe rs, Inc. plans to start constructio n late this yea r of an 18,000- to 22,000-seat colise um with conventio n, exhibit and merchandise mart space. On the west e dge of the p ro pe rty is th e 1925 Flo r ida East Coast Rail way fre ig ht te rminal, a one-of-a-kind brick relic from the rail road' heyday. There is a "possibility" the fo ur-sto ry b uilding will be re novated fo r sho ps and restaurants, if the company decides it will d raw sufficie nt traffic. And if the space isn't needed fo r parking.

Adjace nt to the FEC prope rty is a lo ng stretch of land owned by Florida Power and Lig ht. Across SW 2nd Avenue, the old Ryan Motors Building has been re legated to use as an FPL storage build ing, the beautiful mural o n its ceiling o bscured by stacks of boxes. (continued)

MARTY STOFIK

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On the south side of the River sits the f orm er Fruit Grow er's Ex change.

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A man takes a free shower at the empty Habrew Maritime Warehouse.

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s the river turns northwest, it

is flanked by a mixture of shiny new yachts, seedy boat yards, old neighbo rhoods, a pu blic ho using project, fishe ries and junk yards.

The City of Miami Parks Departme nt is trying to keep the river accessible to the public. Lummus Park (404 NW 3rd Ave.) is being connected to ri verfront land across North River Drive. The $4 million Jose Marti Park (SW 2nd St. at SW 4th Ave.) is unde r construction on te n acres whe re a tent city ho used thousands of Marie l boatlift refugees. Volunteer groups are being e nlisted to clea n up Sewell Park (1801 NW South River Dr.), a rare patch of natural flo ra alo ng the river. A new recreati on b uilding is being constructed in Curtis Park (1901 NW 24th Ave.) along with new lighting fo r the athletic fields.

And the departme nt is working with the Downtown Developme nt Authority and property owners to build Rive rwa lk, a way to remind the public the re is a river behind that wall of new constructio n. The $944,000

The Ry an Building on North River Drive was once an automobile showroom.

first phase leads from the Brickell Avenue Bridge to Fort Dallas Park. Paper plans call for a wa lkway lined with Roya l Palm s and ma hogany trees, ve ndors with pushcarts, seating, and lighting for evening strolls winding alo ng the north bank from 27th Ave nue to the bay.

A new clean-u p-the-river group, the Miami River Revival Committee, recently e merged with a five-year plan foc using o n commerce, recreati on, transportation, beautification and history. A Miami Ri ve r Coordinating Board is being fo rmed fro m members of various river-interest groups.

It plans to review problems to determine if o ne of the 30 organi zations with jurisdiction over the river and its banks failed to do its duty or if new laws are needed. The re is talk of a water-taxi project with terminals at the Hyatt, Dupont Plaza Hotel and Bayfro nt Park.

Life o n and alo ng th e r ive r is fl ourishing. Life in the river isn't do ing so well. A study do ne a few years ago showed the re was a highe r level of toxic PCBs in the botto m sedime nt of the Miami River than any other rive r in the country.

Manatees, snook, tarpon and pelicans still visit the river, but the seabirds no longer nest the re. The river has become the victim of the developme nt it spawned. Industrial acti viti es , sto rm run off, li ve-a board boats and shipping all contri b ute to the pollutio n. (continued) The Art Deco-sty le 7th Avenue bridge is operated by tender Luis Herrara.

MARTY STOFIK

MARTY STOFIK

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(continued)

Florida's First Lady, Adele Graham, on the Miami River:

The river no longe r flows. A foot and a half of silt has collected on its botto m since it was dredged in the 1930s. Shipping and marine inte rests want it dredged back to its o riginal 15-foot de pth . Enviro nme ntalists claim dredging the PCB-laden sedime nt would kill the river and Biscayne Bay Shippers are vehemently opposed to any new bridges. They want tunnels, to eliminate the hazard and incon ve ni e nce of bridges. Dow n towne rs look at the shipping traffic as an obstacle to be overcome in getting from tlle city center to the Brickell Avenue financial distr ict.

Bu sin ess me n say the b illi o ndollar-a-year shipping industry is vital to Miami's international trade. Regional shippers serving the Caribbean and South America prefer tlle non-union r iv~r docks. But they bring with them certain problems. As o ne vete ran river observer put it, "It's fun to see a ship come up the river in the .morning, then see it on the six o'clock news that evening:' It's b ee n fifty yea rs since Max Swartz moved his little seafood operation into the building o n the river at Flagler Street. It, too, will change.

David Swartz is making plans to re develop the fo ur acres he now owns. It might be a combination of offi ces, hotels, condominiums and restaurants. He isn't sure. He already has fired two planners because he didn't like their ideas. Whatever it is, it will relate to the river.

"I have certain commitme nts to my property," he said. "It's my heritage. I want something 'Miami: Miami is the most fabulous city you will ever find."

The old building Max bought in 1933 probab ly will re main. Swartz recently spe nt $90,000 on reinfo rcing tlle structure in an attempt to save it. "I like it the way it is;' he said.

Almost everyone likes their part of tlle Miami River the way it is. Almost everyone agrees it won't stay that way It never has.

"The Miami River has been the geographic and economic lifeline of Miami since the time when it was a small frontier settlement. Now iliat Miami flourishes as an international metropolis it is more important than ever to preserve and revitalize the natural beauty of the river that has given the city so much.

"The river provides a place of enjoyment for area reSidents as well as a vital transportation link for Miami's economy I am pleased to have played a small part some ten years ago in an effort to improve the Miami River. I am proud of the efforts being made today to make the Miami River what it should be - a jewel in the setting of a great city"

Sewell Park provides an oasis of tranquility along tbe busy River.

Marty Stofik is assistant editor of Preservation Today.

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TO

'S BOATYARI)

by Bogue Wallin

ETWEEN 4 p.m. and d usk, when the fishing boats straggle in, followed by sea gulls and pelicans swooping and diving for the morsels of fish jettisoned after the cleaning, the afternoon sun makes long shadows of the boats in Tommys Boat Yard. Across the river is the modern Miami of the James L. Knight Convention Center. Here, it is much as it was forty or fifty years ago.

Tommy Curry was a Bahamian who worked on his father's schooner hauling pineapples and fruit to Miami from the Bahamas and then north to Baltimore before returning home.

When the winds were out of the north and northwest, they usually anchored south of Cape Florida waiting for a good wind to sail up the bay. In 1917, Tommy and his brother stayed in Miami and began working at local boatyards along the Miami River. By 1929,Tommy decided to open his own boatyard close to the mouth of the river. He rented a tract of land from the Brickells, removed the old fishing shack from the water's edge and began clearing the land for a suitable yard.

Today, Tommy's Boat Yard is little changed from when it opened. Its marine railway was designed by Tommy based on his experience in other boatyards. Although marine railways were not uncommon, Tommy's is the only remaining railway of its kind in Miami. (Miami Shipyards' tl1ree much larger railways, for ships, have been completely rebuilt to accommodate newer technology.) The railway at Tommy's was built after World War II. Concrete was poured to support the rails, designed to haul yachts and fishing boats. Boats that draw more than five feet, are wider tl1an fifteen feet and longer than fiftyfour feet are too large for the railway Tommy's son, Tom Junior, the current proprietor of the yard, explains the advantages of a railway:

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"You see, the newer lifts pick a boat up in slings, and that can be hard on the boat. With a railway, tl1e boat is supported all from underneath; the only thing keeping the boat on the car is the weight of the boat itself. If the cable breaks on the railway, the boat just slides back in me water. But if a sling breaks on a lift, tl1e boat falls and you got real trouble. With tl1ese tracks laid criss-cross all over the yard, we can push a boat where we want it. You can't do mat too well wim new lifts:' Has he ever thought of replacing the railway?

"No, no. It's the best thing for this yard. It's safer and we can haul a boat in five or ten minutes. The only reason the yard looks the way it does is that we're not sure what's going to happen.

You see, my daddy, Tommy, died about a month ago and we don't know what's going to happen to me area. We want to stay here, but we just can't tell.

"With that kind of building" - he pointed to the new Convention Center - "and the people mover going right me omer side of this shed " - with a sweep of his arm he included a long, narrow, metal building adja-

cent to the yard that once housed a machine shop - "and the Brickell property, that's who I lease from , being in probate court 'til April, we just can't tell what's going to happen :' Will he know his plans after April?

"I don't know. The Brickells may owe a lot of inheritance taxes and this space is getting pretty expensive, high taxes and all.

"Besides mat, since the Bal1amas declared their waters off limits to foreign fishermen, me commercial fleet hasn't been doing too well, and tl1e countys trying to get me shippers to use the new port, but it's union and more expensive tlun picking up way up river. And you see, in Fort Lauderdale they want boatyards; why, mey give you a tax break for setting one up up there. Here in Miami , they just don't seem to care about us:' The sun had almost set. An empty freighter on me rivers edge appeared ghostlike in me waning light. It was time to go home.

Bogue Wallin, former deputy director of the Metro-Dade Historic Preservation Division, is now executive director of the Preservation Fund of Penn.

Co-proprietors Tommy Curry and Sidney Curry stand beside their original marine railway.

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M

I'SNE:WEST HISfOmC SITE

by Arva Moore Parks

HE beautiful , new City of Miami James L. Knight International Conference and Convention Center is more dlan a harbinger of Miami's future as a great international city. It is o ur link with the past - our generation's contribution to a 4,OOO-year-old continuing story of human endeavor on the nordl bank of the Miami River.

The construction of the Knight Center gave Miamians a rare opportunity to learn abo ut the people who preceded them. Before dle Centers foundation was laid, archaeologists were a ll owed to spend severa l months digging up the past and Sifting dlrough the layers of time. Although

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much of the four-acre site had been disturbed by previous consu-uction, several areas, including the gardens of the Granada Apartments, remained intact.

The site looked vacant when the archaeologists arrived except for a few trees and the shiny, gold tiles of the short-lived riverwalk. The earth, however, had retained memorabilia of past events and had pressed the objects between layers of dirt like pages in a giant scrapbook. The archaeologists knew that the earth's scrapbook offered more than a nostalgic trip through time. It was a reverse mystery book with a backward plot dlat began with "to be continued"

and ended with chapter one.

As dle archaeologists began digging dleir neat, grave-like pits, pieces of recent times were the first to surface - pop-tops, bottle caps, plastic botdes and a 1966 dime dlat someone had dropped in a parking lot. Boomtime Miami appeared in a tangle of debriS left behind by the wreckers who demolished the Robert Clay, Patricia and Towers hotels and the Granada Aparullents.

Except for a few pieces of concrete Sid ewa lk, the foundations of the boom-time hotels had all but obliterated any trace of dle homes that once made up the exclusive, rurn-of-thecent ury riverfro nt neighborhood

The City of Miami/University of Miami James L. Knight Conference and Convention Center and Hyatt Regency Hotel complex looks out over the Miami River.

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Before the Knight Center was built, the site was excavated for archaeological remains.

called Fort Dallas Park. During the heady days of the boom, these riverfront homes yielded to the skyscraper hotels and the tourists.

Although the house was gone, the archaeologists uncovered the entire solid rock foundation of Julia Tuttle's home. It was torn down in 1926 to make way for a hotel that was never built. For d1e neA1: fifty years it lay undisturbed under an asphalt parking lot. If it had survived, it would have been our most important historic site.

More than just the home of the "Mother of Miami;' it was also d1e 1845 home of William F. English, the man who had platted a forgotten village cal led Miami fifty years before the City of Miami was born.

Nearby, the archaeologists found a military button, lost by a soldier who came to fight the Seminole Indians who drove poor Mr. English away.

Even the Semino les left something behind on the site. Colorful glass beads were scattered about, left from a friendlier time when the Indians came to trade with the white man.

OME of the soldiers lived in both d1e English house and in his slave quarters, which housed Miami's first black residents. When the slave quarters were scheduled for demolition to make way for the Robert Clay Hotel, citizens raised the money to move the building to Lum-

mus Park where it remains today, known as Fort Dalla.

The archaeo logists also found mini-balls, liquor bottles and other items that the soldiers dropped or discarded during their stay at Fort Dallas. The most poignant discovery was the unmarked grave of a yo ung soldier. For over a hundred years, his skeleton, surrounded by the nails of his coffin that time had turned to dust, lay undiscovered.

The neA1: items to surface were left by settlers in dle early nineteenth century. Someone threw away a bottle A turbanned face on a clay smokingpipe bowl, dating from the 1850s, was found at the dig site.

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and a broken clay pipe. One of their contributions to the site did not have to be unearthed. Standing as a solitary sentinel was a tall palm, the last of hundreds that had been planted on the banks of the river in the early 1800s. The last palm tree hung on to life after it was moved to make way for d1e Knight Center. A second move, however, took its toll , and the tree died.

The pits were deep now, and the archaeologists knew that soon they sho uld find material from a period of Miami's history of which little was known. When they unearthed a piece of a Spanish plate, a broken olive jar and the tip of a scabbard blade, they entered the era when the Spanish built a mission on the north bank of the river in hopes of Christianizing Miami's native people, whom they called Tequesta Indians. Although the mission was short lived, Spanish contact set the stage for an incredible event d1at occurred 200 years later.

When the English and the Seminoles took over Florida in 1763, the Tequestas left for Havana with their Spanish allies.

T last the archaeologists were into the first chapter of the story of human life on the banks of the Miami River. Because

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â&#x20AC;˘ ALEXANDRA WARD

(continued)

Miami's native people had lived intermitten tly o n the site for more tl1an 3,000 years before any European set foot on Florida's sho res, tl1e natives had left the most behind. The plot thickened as tho usands of bro ke n shells and pieces of potte ry were lifted to the surface. Bo nes from animals, fish and birds told the story of a thousand meals on the river bank.

Tools, hand made from conch shells and sharks teeth, spoke of the native's ingenuity One wo man lost a bone pin that might have held back her hair, and ano the r d rop ped or discarded a necklace fashioned fro m the underside of a turtle. Was the little carved canoe a toy fo r a young Indian child or a totem to some unknown god?

When the archaeologists left witl1 their plastic bags filled witl1 Miami's past, tl1e contractor began to drive the Knight Center fo und ations in the earth. As the concrete shafts were d riven th rough 4,000 years of history to the beginning of time, our generation added its page to the book.

To d ay, whe n yo u come to th e Knight Center, you become part of the story. As you leave and walk o ut into the busy city, you can see the future unfo ldi ng before yo ur eyes . One glance backward, however, and the Miami River comes into view, just as it did tho usands of years ago whe n tl1e first people discovered the small strea m and decided that its northern sho re was a nice place to call ho me.

Arva Parks is an historian and au thor 0/ the books The Forgotte n Frontie r: Flo rida Through the Le ns of Ralph M. Munro e and Miami, the Magic City.

She is also associate editor o/Te questa,

published by the Historical Association o/ Southern Florida.

preservation is progress The new Hyatt Regency Ho tel towers over the Mediterranean Revival-sty le Brick ell Avenue bridge.

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IRE YOUNG MAN AND THE I

by Robert S. Carr

GREW up near the Miami River and haunted its banks like a wharf rat. I overturned rocks to find bit and pieces of fossil bo ne, Indian artifacts, or just to watch the strange trilobite-like creatures scramble as I molested their dark ho me. Despite my young age (thirteen), I was always aware that I was sharing the river with a long heritage of life and people that had lived here from an ancie nt time, lo ng befo re I had arrived into the wo rl d, and eve n earlie r th an the history-book time when my own ancestors had stepped fro m European ships o nto a New England shore.

I knew that I was sharing the river with a large metropo litan city that had shaped and altered this river dramatically from the time that it had been simply the gentle, sometimes wild , fl ow of Everglades water across the oolitic lime tone. The city had alte red the river and its flow with dredges, dy nam ite and indiffere nce. Once fresh and clean e no ugh to d rink, the r iver's discharge had been slowed and contaminated by salt-water intrusion as fre h-water pressure co ntinued to drop over the years. The "falls;' the rocky ledge that had separated the Everglades from the coastal ridge, was dynamited in 1909, and the rapids ceased. The river's pulse deade ned as a lo ng serpent plume of dark brown water spread four miles down the river into Biscayne Bay like a mo rtal wound.

As the city grew, the river's quality worse ned. Sewage and industrial waste were dumped into the rive r until 1968, whe n an 1896 law was enforced fo r the first time and stopped such practices.

In 1959, whe n I first discovered the river, I knew nothing of those grim facts, only that I had discovered a fascinating new world that was the heart of the City, a vital organ that fo r some reason no o ne had told me about -

not my family, not my teache rs, not any of the other children. I felt as if I had learned a special secret, and o nly late r, at age fifteen, when I read Marjorie Stoneman Do uglas' The Everglades: River of Grass, did I realize that there were others who knew and deeply understood the river, but they were the exceptio ns.

At a recent scientific confe rence, I was intro du ce d to a n e min e nt geomo rpho logist, an expert on rive rs. I seized the oppo rtunity to ask him how he tho ught the Miami River had been formed. He looked at me askance and respo nded, "That's hardly a river. Now, if you want to know abo ut an interesting river, let me tell you about some recent research on the

Mississippi .. :' His response reminded me of the reactio n of so many people whe n they are to ld abo ut Dade Co unty's multitude of historic and prehisto ric sites.

They are eithe r amazed o r begin to tell you abo ut the really "old " sites that they had seen "up no rth:' In truth, the Mian1i River, the natural lands of Southern Florida and the local heritage have all suffered in the publics perception because of subtle e levations, the unimposing native flo ra ( unimposing only to the uninitiated) and a history that gene rally has been unknown and o nly part of the Anglo -Amer ica n main st rea m (continued)

Metro-Dade archaeologist Bob Carr searching for artifacts in a limestone solution hole.

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â&#x20AC;˘ (continued)

since the nineteenth century. It is precisely this subtlety in the landscape and flo ra, and tile many unknowns abo ut tllis area's histo ry, that make it so attractive. And while the Miami may not be the Cadillac of rive rs, it certainly has bee n a vigo rous and dominant fo rce in ma n's habitati o n of Southeaste rn Florida fo r the past 4,000 years.

The river may have had its o rigin as a alt-wate r tidal channel flowing from a salt-water lagoon upo n a land form th at e me rged a re lati vely recent 200 ,000 to 4 00 ,000 ye a r s ago .

Geologists be lieve that the coastal limesto ne ridge be neath metropolitan Dade Co unty fo rmed as a result of the slow deposition of microscopic ino rganic particles called (olids) on a shallow sea botto m. Many scie ntists believe that the coastal ridge has been high and d ry for the last 120,000 yea rs.

As a boy" I had picked up fossil bo nes alo ng the river bank at Brickell Point. As I tumbled the dark brown forms between my fin gers, my mind w restle d with the forgotte n times whe n these bo nes had bee n part of living creatures that roamed the river bank long before man was tlle re to give the river a name.

Eight to te n tho usand yea rs ago, Flo rida was d rie r than it is today, with vast savannahs whe re the Eve rglades is now located. Large mammals such as the mammoth, ho rse, bison, and tapir fo rayed tI1rougho ut the area.

Animal ra nges p robably shifted fro m the savannahs to tile highe r, drier coastal ridge as the Everglades began to fo rm abo ut 7,000-8,000 years ago.

This shift meant a tremendous decrease in the available food range, and in all probability, tile animal populati o ns also bega n to dec rease. Altho ugh South Florida may have been o ne of tile last refuges of tile large Pleistocene animals, it is do ubtful tlley co uld have survived the major climatic changes. It was probably man, the hunte r, who undid the final knot that had tied these animals to the SOUtil Florida landscape.

The first Indians may have arrived in South Flo rida as lo ng as 9,000-

The mouth of the Miami River as it looked in the 1850s.

12,000 years ago, but to date, evidence of these Paleo-Indians has been fo und o nly in otlle r parts of Florida. They fo llowed the game animals - a single kill could provide fo od and sustenance fo r a relative ly long pe riod of time. Large animals co uld easily be trapped and ambushed at rive r crossings o r within Dade Co un ty's many limesto ne sinkho les. With tile eA'tinctio n of large game, the Indians shifted their de pe ndence to the sea and to smalle r animals. The Indians learned the r ive r's ways with an un ca nny ad e ptn ess a nd beca me a can oeculture tllat moved freely from tile Eve rglades to Biscayne Bay and even braved the ope n Atlantic. did not discover the area's Indian heritage until Mark Gree ne, a seve nth grade r at Ada Me rritt Junior High School, came to class with bulging pockets filled with potshe rd and pieces of she ll artifacts that he had picked up o n a mo und near the rive rs so uth bank o n a site where the Rive rgate is now situated. I convinced Mark to le t me join him o n his excavatio ns o f tile rive r mo und, and with as much p recisio n as two thirteen-yearo ld archaeo logists we re capab le of, we bega n to slowly excavate the mo und. Our inte rest was maintained by the occasional potshe rds and animal bo nes we would uncover.

Afte r two years of afte rnoon and summer digging, with several new recruits, we learned the secre t of the mo und. In its cente r we uncovered a huge mass of rusted iro n. As we scraped away the sand we realized

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that it was the remains of an o ld rusted Mode l.:r car, probably one that had been plucked fro m the rive r years ago, and with it had come the sand and artifacts that we had been finding fo r the last two years. Despite the shock of realizing tllat o ur mound was no mo re ancie nt than our pare nts, we were not discouraged.

We continued o ur journeys to tile rive r and soon fo und a wealth of artifacts that linked us to tllose Indians wh o had stOo d a nd walke d and laughed upon the same river bank as we, and we pictured in our minds the deer and bears and what a Tequesta Indian would have said to us if he had known us.

Our days alo ng the river e nded in the late afte rnoon befo re dinne r, and we wo uld wander ho me tired and dirty. I re me mber o nce afte r Hurricane Do nna in 1960 whe n I discove red, wedged betwee n the roots of an overturned tree, an ancient limesto ne anchor that was used fo r an Indian canoe. It took several days for me to s uccessfull y saw th e roo ts fro m aro un d the anchor, and I recall what seemed like ho urs spe nt trying to carry the twenty-five-po und artifact a mile to my ho me. My mother was never e nthusiastic abo ut the things I might re tu rn ho me with, and this large ancho r was certainly not we lcome. I co uldn't hide it very we ll, so I kept it outSide until I fin ally donated it to the Histo rical Associatio n of Southe rn Flo rida.

After my day o n the river I wo uld walk past an old two-sto ry woode n ho use, at 59 SE 6th Street, o nly a block

fro m the river. The ho use intrig ued me, and I wo uld imagine that hidde n in the ho use's attic were great treasures. A 1948 blue Cadillac sat in the ho use's driveway Sometimes, I could see th rough a window shade a single electric bulb dangling from a ceiling cord and fl eeting shadows o f so mebody moving be hind the shade. Those years in the early 1960s, whe n I passed the ho use w ith all its sec re ts, I would pa use to lean against the fe n c~ and stare dreamily The car neve r see me d to move; the ho use was always quiet a nd mysterio us again t the din of Bricke ll traffic.

The years p assed a nd boyhood d rea ms were pushed aside. One day, in 1979, whe n I had retu rned to Miami after seve n years in Tallahassee, I d rove past the ho use and was am azed to see the same blue Cadill ac in the d riveway, as well as a mo untain of ho useho ld tr~sh o n the sidewalk curb o ut fron t. I knew instantly it was the "secrets" of the attic. The Sidewa lk was littered with o ld clo thes, books and newspapers dating fro m the 1920s. As I stood the re looking at these treasures, the lea n, gaunt figures o f two men e merged from the ho use. They were the Fe r ri brothers, as o ld and craggy as the ir ho use. I to ld the m of my d esire to collect a ny histo ric d oc ume nts that mig ht be on the sidewalk.

"He lp yo urself;' the e lde r Ferris said , "but the re' mo re upstai rs," and he soon led me up narrow ste ps into a mu s t y, d a nk a tti c -caver n above Miami's streets. I was asto unded by what I saw! A bookshe lf filled with vo lum es, m o u n ta in o us stac ks of news pap er, o ld tr u n ks fill e d w ith papers. "Yo u see;' he said, "o ur Aunt Hattie was a teache r and a wr iter, and for a while the assistant edito r of the Miam,i Metrop olis. These are all her papers and her libra ry" But the treasure was not perfect. As I began to pull the ancie nt books fro m their he lves, I saw pinho les of daylight through dle wood , termite tunne ls everywhere. Miles of ho les channe led dlro ugh books, wood and paper. Despite the extensive d amage, I fo und many papers of historical value,

including a 1918 map of dle City ot Miami never before seen by local histo rians. sp e nt ho urs sorting dl roUgh Hattie Carpe nters lifetime as the Ferris b rodle rs talked of dle ho use and the ir lives. Like two tall wax candles slowly e bbing be neath a small but soodl ing fire, they stood beside me, relaxed , but keeping an eye o n exactly what I did find as I sorted th rough the pape rs of the ir aunts life.

They to ld me co untless sto ries o f the ir joy in ea rly Miami - of riding mules across Miami Avenue, o f picnics a nd w hit e- trimm e d wo me n w ho smiled at the ir awkward youth - b ut these stories alway seemed to flicke r against the ir despair abo ut the fate of the ir ho use.

"The re's no thing we ca n do;' H. T Fer ris said , "We're helpless to save this ho use. Taxes are too high and we're going to have to sell it. This land is just too damn valuab le. Maybe so mebody w ill resto re it and, if need be, move the ho use to p reserve it. Be ing built in 1906 by Ma ry Br icke ll makes this ho use mig hty historical, you know."

I knew. Mia mi as a city was o nly te n years o lder than the ho use, and the Br icke lls were am o ng the city's earliest pio neers. William Bricke ll had opened a trading post in 1871 o nly a few hundred yards east of there. Befo re I left that day I agreed to try to he lp the m find a way to save the ho use. I visite d the m seve ral odler times w ithin the next mo ndl, but two mo nths afte r my introductio n to the Ferris brothers, dle ho use was gone.

One evening in Ma rch, 1979, H. T Fer ris had heard a no ise o n dle o utside porch. He rushed o ut, an o ld Colt revolve r in his hand, and saw a ma n atte mpting to ig nite an o ld mattress against the build ing. Fe rris scared dle arsonist, who fled into the night, and whe n the po lice arr ived they arrested Fe rris for having a gun and took it away from him .

Two weeks late r, o n Ap r il 7, du ring a night whe n the Ferris b rothers were staying at their o ther ho me, the arsonist struck again. This time he was successful as he sp rinkled kerosene

I

21

across the Dad e Co unty pine. The ne ighbo rs said the ho use was soon a sheet of flames that we nt above the brick chimney and that yo u co uld see dle charred pages of o ld books and pape rs gliding skyward from the attic.

The o ld wood popped and groaned.

For twe nty minutes the ora nge tige r leapt and da nced across the Br icke ll skyline. Its ch ar re d ribs shrank against the night as the fi reme n soaked the ho use thoroughly The fire was put o ut easily, but the damage had been do ne.

Two weeks later what was left of the ho use was leveled with a bulldoze r.

H. T Ferris to ld me o f how a ne ighbo r had overheard two strange rs speaking in dle adj acent office parking lot the day of the fi re. "One man offe red the o ther $100 to b urn down my ho use. I guess he ea rned his money," he aid.

Las t wee k , I s too d up o n the sidewalk and looked across me grassy lo t (now crowded with parked cars) where dle Ferri ho use had stood . I looked beyond dle Fer ris ho me site toward the U.S. Custo ms building, w here an Indian village had been more than 1,000 years ago. The river dlat had brought fo ur mille nnia of me n together in dl is spot to b uild th atc he d huts, and late r woo d e n ho mes, was hidde n fro m my view by a mass o f co ncrete and g lass, a nd I couldn't help but sense me broke n link be twee n the river and the community This link was broke n because dle people had fo rgotte n; b ut neithe r an arsonist, a bulldozer no r a city's growing pains would eve r erase dle r iver's legacy so lo ng as a c hilddreame r could collect the me mo ries and trinke ts dlat un ify man and his fo rgotte n self widl a land well wo rn fro m a rivers jo urney

Robert S. Carr is an archaeologist w ith the Historic Preservation Division of Metropolitan Dade County and is editor of the Florida Anthropologist.

Preservation at Work A

by Becky Roper Matkov HY would a former builder of modern apartments, an owner of no-frill snack bars in shopping malis , seek out old houses to restore for his corporate headquarters?

Leonard Turkel, president of the Orange Bowl Corporation, puts it simply. "We just didn't want any more new. There was no longer any p leasure in building a new building:' Though the Orange Bowl Corporation has 150 standardized fast food outlets and "Pop Tops" tee shirt kiosks in regional shopping centers across the country, Turkel wanted his corporate headquarters to have character, to be something architecturally unique.

From 1970 to 1976, he assembled four parcels of property on NE 17th Street, a half block west of Biscayne Boulevard near the Omni in downtown Miami. The oldest dwelling was an "early Miami" style home built in 1919. Beside it was a Spanishinfluenced house built in 1924. During that era, 17th Street, with its wide, grassy median strip, was considered one of the finest residential areas in town, stretching all the way to Biscayne Bay. When Turkel bought the property, the Spanish house had been condemned by the City. Architects Gail Baldwin and Don Sackman were hired to devise a plan that would preserve tlle charm of the original architecture and add the space and modern conveniences required for corporate offices accommodating forty or more employees.

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Two older houses were joined to make offices for the Orange Bowl Corporation.

They did tllis by connecting the dwellings with a two-level enclosed passageway, stucco on the front side to blend with tlle exterior of tlle old houses, glass on the interior side to create a feeling of spaciousness. A two-story addition of walled glass was built onto the rear of the early Miami house, angling around a courtyard of patio decking. In tlle back, an apartment house was converted into a training center, a garage became extra office space, and ample parking for employees and guests was provided.

The front of the Orange Bowl Corporation was unified by a brick sidewalk, landscaping and by coral-colored 22

trim used on both the white stucco houses.

A visitor enters tl1fough the Spanish house, crossing over a tiled porch with arches and serpentine columns. A decades-old purple flowering vine carefully nurtured through all the construction work - still bloom beside tlle front steps.

The former living room, with its fireplace and magnificent col umned stairwell, is now a reception area. The Florida room is a sunny conference room and display area. Bedrooms became offices, and the kitchen was updated with commercial appliances for product development.

Great care was take n to retain the authe nticity of the Spanish ho use. The tile and woode n floors and moldings were preserved. The o riginal arches, some of which had been filled in, were restored. Ai r-co nditioning ducts were fitted inconspicuo usly between jo ists and under the floor. The barrel tile roof, windows and shutters we re salvaged.

In the second house, Turke l was able to preserve a handsome carved ceiling and a brick firep lace. "Thats a very ordinary looking fireplace;' he comments, "and we co ul d replace it with something much more impressive, but I believe we shouldn't just preserve what we find bea utiful, but what is of the period:' HE preside nts office, o n the second fl oor of the glass additio n, seems to hang in space, with a view of the tropical plants in the courtyard below. The decor, designed by Turkel's wife Annsheila, is conte mporary, with Turke l's collectio n of antique soda-fo untain dispe nse rs provid ing an interesting coun terpoint.

"It's im portant not to be afraid of building new o nto old;' Turke l asse rts.

"We have to get away fro m a museum me ntality abo ut old buildings and use them. Whe n restoration is done with senSitivity, everyo ne benefits."

He waves his hand over the roo m.

"This who le complex gives us and all the employee a good feeling - they care abo ut it. Its easy to get in and o ut of. It has all the right dime nsions. It just makes the day more pleasant to be here:' Turke l admits that it takes time and effort to acquire the right property for restoration. Buildings with great pote ntial are ofte n de molished before an inte rested buyer can act. And its hard to pursue owners of old buildings, Turkel continues. "Yo u have to develop rappo rt and tr ust with them :' Turkel did just that whe n he was assembling his property He has remained in contact with members of the Ro ncoli family, the for mer owners

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The Sp anish p orch prOVides a n in viting entrance. a: w a:

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A bundant use of glass in the addition creates a f eeling of sp aciousness.

23

DAN FORER

(continued)

of the Spanish ho use, ever since his purchase, keep ing them updated abo ut their old home.

From a fin ancial viewpoint, rehabilitating an o lder building can provide a great avings. Though he was not ab le to take adva ntage of many of the tax ince ntives available for preservation efforts today, Turkel found that he co uld carefully restore the o lder buildings and add on for approximately half the cost of building an all-new structure.

'And the long-range appreciation of old buildings in secondary neighborhoods is just fantastiC ;' Turkel emphasizes. "People just aren't aware of the potential for profit - and the good it can do a neighborhood - in rehabilitating rather than demolishing.

"Besides, a new building is so ordinary; it's no accomplishme nt. When yo u restore, you end up with something intriguing, worthwhile. You really have something:' Becky Roper Matkov is editor of Preservation Today.

Serpentine columns add drama to the reception area.

DON 'T HAVE A NICE DAY. HAVE A GREAT LIFE.

STONEAGE ANTIQUES on the river

24

Personality Profile

BESS BURDINE READ

by Grace Wing Bohne

HAT bumper-strip slogan, Miami's For Me, didn't originate with Bess Burdine Read, but she has always felt that way.

As the only daughter of pioneer store owner William M. Burdine, Bess grew up in Miami, drove a car on Flagler Street's wooden p2ving blocks, danced the waltz and two-step in the posh Royal Palm Harel ballroom . Petite and sparkling, she still loves to go to parties and dance.

In 1918, Bess married Lt. Cmdr.

Albert Cushing (Putty) Read, who be'"a: came a world-famous aviator a year :3u later when he commanded the first z a? transoceanic airplane flight. As a Navy ..: I wife, Bess lived in Washington, D"C, California, China and the Philippines, DHT 10th Anniversary Celebration chairman Grace Wing Bohne, honorary not to mention several less exotic chairman Bess Burdine Read and Trust president Tim Blake welcomed 200 guests stops. But wl~en her spouse, by then to the Orange Bowl spectacular. blue eyes and equally beautiful manan admiral, retired from active duty barked on a South Pacific cruise. ners did. Bess and Putty Read married The head of the Burdine clan late in World War II, there was no in Trinity Episcopal Church, then brought his wife and sons, Freeman , question about where the Reads downtown, and drove to Palm Beach would settle. They knew it would be Roddy and William M. Jr. (Billy), from for a brief wartime honeymoon.

Mississippi to Bartow, Fla., in the 1880s Miami.

But 1919 was their year of destiny.

Bess has kept her enthusiasm for and bought orange groves. When a The young Reads moved from life wherever she lived. "It's easier that freeze killed the crop, they followed Coconut Grove to Washington. Albert way," she says wisely. "You can't like Henry Flagler's new railroad into Cushing ReadJr. was born. And in May, every place. But there is something Miami, and in 1898 opened Burdines Putty took off with a five-man crew in store. (To answer your question, the about every place to like:' family pronounces it Bur-DINE.) an NC4 for the epoch-making flight to What's not to like about Miami are Bess was born in Bartow.

Growing London , via Newfoundland , the the muggy summers. Bess spends Azores and Lisbon. They were as June through October at her house in up in Miami, she swam in the Royal wildly acclaimed as astronauts. Putty Blowing Rock, N.C. , and until two Palm Hotel pool, the only one in was presented to the Prince of Wales years ago was a golfer. At home in town. Bathing attire called for a skirt and Parliament and received the Miami, she is an angel to the opera and stockings. Young folks swam in British Flying Cross. and St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Biscayne Bay, too. There were houses where Biscayne Boulevard When the NC4 was put on permais now, and Coconut Grove. Her address is a nent exhibit at the Pensacola Naval Air seagrapes shaded the waters edge. breezy house on the church grounds.

Burdine pere died in 1911. Bess and Station a few years ago, Bess was an Adm . Read died in 1967 and is honor guest at the ceremonies. It was buried in Washingtons Arlington Na- her mother, who lived until 1929, were a sentimental homecoming for her. tional Cemetery. Be s still shares his reSidents of the elegant Halcyon Hall Putty Read had earned his gold wings honors and his zest for travel. Two hotel, which in the 1930s yielded its at Pensacola before World War 1. Later, years ago she went back to China, location to the skyscraper Alfred I. when he and Bess were stationed where her husband and his Navy duPont Building. there, daughter Elizabeth was born. pilots were part of the U.S. Asiatic It was love at first sight when Bess Fleet so many years ago. Last summer met Lt. Cmdr. Read, who arrived in she and LaGorce Islander Virginia 1918 to command the new Navy flight Grace Wing Bohne is the former Sutherland (Mrs. Richard K) rode the training base at Dinner Key. Being a society editor of the Miami Herald born-again Orient Express across Yankee from Boston did not endear and a frequent contributor of artiEurope. This pastJanuary the two em- him to Mrs. Burdine, but his beautiful cles to magazines.

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THE north Italian baroque farm village preserved almost intact in the heart of Miami?

Not bloody likely! But on second thought, there are the Turkish delights in Opa-locka and the Chinese Village in Coral Gables. Both are left-over whimsies of the native excesses of the Roaring Twenties. Though worth keeping as charming mementos, like faded valentines, they cannot really be taken seriously as architecture. Like the Royal Pavilion of Brighton, or Louis XIV 's long-gone Chinese Trianon de Porcelaine at Versailles, they are late, small stepchildren in the age-old tradition of "follies;' or as Professor Kenneth Conant of Harvard fondly called them, "joke buildings:' In our serious and increasingly ordinary world, heaven knows there is room for some of these.

The Italian Farm Village does indeed exist, but by way of contrast it is in the great tradition of what would better be called Renaissance survival rather than revival , executed with great senSitivity in the finest Beaux Arts manner. This style was only rarely applied to vernacular buildings , which makes these all the more remarkable and worthy of serious study and preservation.

Vizcaya in its original complete form was a magnificent ensemble of almost Hadrianic proportions. It included some twenty-five miles of paths and roads; an exotic "Casbah" with an elaborate forecourt and reflecting pool; a large lake divided by a causeway lined with royal palms; a great yachthouse, the roof of which was a flower-filled garden with a central pool; many smaller lakes and canals and bridges; small forests of exotic trees; tennis courts; elaborate greenhouses; and on and on ...

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8 The Vizcaya Gate Lodge, where James Deering's servants once lived, has been restored for use as offices for the Vizcaya Foundation.

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VIZCAYA GATELODGE Much has been lost, of course, of the approximately 180 acres of the origina l estate; only about thirtyseven are now owned by Dade County and can be pre erved for the pleasure and enlighte nment of future generations. When the Villa, its Barge, the formal garde ns and hammock were acquired from James Deering's heirs as "The Dade Coun ty Museum of Art" in 1952, the County very wisely also saved "The Village" by means of a separate purchase agreement.

The design architect wa E Bun-all Hoffman,Jr., a thirty-year-old graduate of Harvard and the Ecole des Beaux Arts, who had studied with Deglane, the co-designer of the Grand Palais des Beaux Arts on the Champs Elysees, which is still admired today as one of the handsomest buildings in Paris. Hoffman received the commission in 1912 and spent the summer of 1913 studying the villas along the Brenta River near Venice. There he consciously or un consciously absorbed an extraordinary feeling for the minor as well as the major buildings, which were, of course, the real reason for his "study trip" to that blessed corner of the earth. He said of that trip, "What was really important was not a particular villa, it was discovering the baroque. It was a question of getting your eye in. I don't know why, but over here you don't get the same feeling of space and scale the relative size of things. It's partly a matter of the north Italian light:' R. Hoffman certainly had his "eye in" when he designed the Village. His newly found sense of space and scale is preeminently manifest in the Village, where with the limited and simple vocabulary of baroque farm architec-

M

ture he created a complex of extraordinary variety and beauty.

It included three gateho uses, a simple one on the Dixie Highway that served as the carpenters and painters workshop, and the handsome one on the west side of Miami Avenue, which is grand in scale and detail to balance the Villa's across the street. This west gatehouse was called the "Chauffeurs Lodge;' and though it reads in passing as a pendent, it is ingenio usly differenr in plan and originally conrained two dup lex apartmenrs for married servants, extra rooms for Single servants and the storehouse keeper's office and "Suppl y House:' The east gateho use, which stands beside the Villa's main gates on the Avenue was called the "Gate Lodge" and became the center of much excitement and activity this winter. It is an essenrially small, but architecturally very impressive and appealing building, with severa l delightful porches and balconie . From letters of the period we know that in 1919 it was the residence of a chauffeur and his wife, one of the hou emaids from the Villa, and provided quarters for a visiting maid who might accompany a house guest.

In recenr years it had been neglected in favor of more pressing priorities and was badly in need of restoration .

Now, through a happy alliance of the Vizcayans, the Vizcayan Foundation the Junior League of Miami and a number of enlightened corporations it was renovated to become the League's 1983 Show House. After it has filled this role, it will become the permanenr offices of both the Vizcayans and the Vizcayan Foundation.

It is a classic example of the adaptive use of a historic building to insure its preservation in w hich the whole 27

by Carl J Weinhardt, Jr. community can take pride.

Vizcaya was placed on the ational Register of Historic Sites in 1970, and the Village joined it there in 1975. The future reunion of these two integrally related parts will be a happy day indeed, for they were designed together as a unified whole, and neither can tell the story without the other. The magnificenr Villa alone is like a play without a second act, and the Village is perhaps the most elaborate, sophisticated and architecturally significanr group of functional service or "out" buildings ever built in America. It is miraculously fortunate for the community that the Counry owns them both and can control the destiny and preservation of this very importanr monumenr in our counrry's architectural heritage.

Carl]. Weinhardt,Jr. is the director ojVizcaya.

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•

HISTORIC PRESERVATION SPECIAUST JOHN WARD CLARK Broker Salesman

CONSULTING SERVICE ON TAX INCENTIVES FOR PRESERVATION • Trustee, Dade Heritage Trust, Inc. • Member, City of Miami Heritage Conservation Board • Chairman, Coconut Grove Chamber of Commerce Zoning Watchdog Committee • Member, Miami and Coral Gables Boards of Real Estate 448-4123/442-2656

VIZCAYA

MUSEUM AND GARDENS An Italian Renaissance Villa set in a subtropical jungle on Biscayne Bay. Open daily from 9:30 TO 5.

Free guided tours. Gift shop. Cafe.

VIZCAYA ALSO

Sound and Light at VIZCAYA weel~end evenings.

For information coil 579-2708.

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Fresh produce. Fine meats.

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Near the Civic Center.

Overlooking a park.

Introducing a luxury marina address for you and your boat. ,

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Artist's coli~tiOl'1 t. L ' .â&#x20AC;˘ 1!-- _--', 1' - _ \~

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And live so close to O mni and downtown that all kinds of entertainment are no more than minutes away.

River Run has racquetnalll

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