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In the
southeast corner of Palm Beach County on the Atlantic seashore, a village by the
sea that began as an agricultural community in 1895 has become one of Florida's
most popular destinations for visitors, new families and seasonal residents.
The City of Delray Beach encompasses slightly over 16 square miles with a
permanent population of nearly 65,000 and growing. Over the past decade,
renewal and re-development efforts in Delray Beach have resulted in recognition
as the All-America City in 1993 and 2001, the Blue Wave designation for our
clean and beautiful beaches and hailed by city planners around the nation as a
model for growth management.
All these accolades can
be attributed to the
significant involvement of the residents of Delray Beach. Every citizen of
this City can claim authorship to an unparalleled quality of life in a very
diverse community that works in concert for an even better future.
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PRECONSTRUCTION .
History of Delray
Beach:
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Prior to 1845, when Florida
became a state,
Africans, Seminole Native Americans, and Black Seminoles were already living
in South Florida and continued to do so along with
white Europeans
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In 1868 William and Sara
Gleason, Wisconsin
natives, began purchasing thousands of acres of land in various locations in
Florida including in what is now the City of Delray Beach. William
Gleason was the Lieutenant Governor of Florida from 1868 to 1870. Two
of their sons (W.H.H. and George) participated with them in handling real
estate transactions using the business name of "Gleason Brothers, dealers in
Real Estate." Many early settlers in the area bought property from the
Gleasons.
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The military maps of the peninsula of Florida
dating from the 1850's time of the Seminole Wars depict a haulover
identified as Orange Grove Haulover along the beach area of what is now the
City of Delray Beach. The name derived from an ancient orange grove
found growing near the beach.
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In 1876 The Orange Grove House of Refuge #3, a
haven for the shipwrecked, was constructed by the U.S. Lifesaving Service
and located just north of the ancient orange grove depicted on earlier
military maps. The first Refugee-keeper was Hannibal D. Pierce.
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In 1885 Annie Andrews, wife of Stephen N. Andrews
who was the second and last keeper of House of Refugee #3, established a
post office address named Zion, Florida for the area now known as the City
of Delray Beach.
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In 1885, Henry Flagler purchased the Jacksonville,
St. Augustine and Halifax River Railway in his efforts to build a railroad
to connect the entire east coast of Florida. Flagler was granted millions of
acres of land from the State of Florida to use in the construction of the
Florida East Coast Railway. Flagler also purchased many thousands of acres
of land under the name of Model Land Company along the east coast of Florida
including many hundreds of acres in the area now known as Delray Beach. Many
early settlers bought land from Model Land Company. Many of the
workers for Henry Flagler in the construction of his railroad were African
Americans.
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In 1890 the Florida Coast Line Canal (Intracoastal
Waterway) was made navigable in parts allowing for easier access to areas
along the southeast coast.
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By 1894 a number of people of African decent had
settled here from north Florida, other nearby southern states and the
Bahamas. Their population grew as they encouraged their relatives to
relocate to the area.
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In 1894 William S. Linton arrived in the area from
Michigan with David Swinton and Major Nathan Boynton. At that time, William
Linton was a U. S. Congressman for the State of Michigan, serving from
3/1893 to 3/1897. Congressman Linton bought tracts of land from Henry
Flagler's Model Land Company, the Gleasons and others. The following
year Congressman Linton returned with a group of almost a dozen people,
including civil engineer E. Burslem Thompson and named the town Linton.
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In 1894 the first school was established in
Linton. It was established by the African American settlers. The
African-American community was large enough to petition Dade County for a
school. (This area was then a part of Dade County until 1909 when Palm Beach
County was established) That school, known as "(Dade County) School #4,
Colored)," was located in Linton on Blackmer Street, currently known as
North- west "Historic 5th Avenue." As with many such pioneer schools, it is
thought to have been built with palmetto fronds.
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In 1895 the plat map of the Town of Linton,
including about a mile along the beach, was drawn by E. Burlsem Thomson, a
civil engineer in Congressman Linton's group. Atlantic Avenue was
platted next to a rock wall partially surrounding the ancient orange grove.
Development of the Town of Linton began.
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In 1895 Adolf Hofman, a German native of a
prosperous farming family arrived in the United States from Germany spending
a few weeks in New York and then on to Illinois for a few months. Later that
year, he traveled to Florida to purchase land for farming. He traveled to
this area on the same barge with Linton's group and first bought land from
Flagler's Model Land Company in 1896. That land was located north of
NE 4th Street (north of Linton's property) and stretched westward from the
"canal" (Intracoastal) to Swinton Avenue and included land that is now known
as Del Ida Park Subdivision. The Hofman family homestead was east of
N.E. Seventh Avenue near NE 6th Street. Shortly thereafter, Hofman
bought land from Congressman Linton and Gleason and later bought land from
others.
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In 1896 the original plat for the Town of Linton
was officially recorded.
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In 1896 the first church in Linton, Mt. Olive
Baptist Church, was established. It was established by African
American settlers.
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In 1896 Henry Flagler's Florida East Coast (FEC)
Railway route was completed through the Town of Linton. The railroad and the
local depot were essential for the farming economy and the growth of the
town.
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By 1896 African descendant Mary Cohen (aka
"Auntie" Cohen and "Ma" Cohen), a trained midwife, had settled in Linton and
was the midwife for the birthing of babies of all races.
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In 1897 the second church in Linton, St. Paul
African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, formerly named Mt. Tabor was
established. It was established by African American settlers.
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Between 1896 and 1898 a school was established by
white settlers for children of European descent. This school was located at
the site of what is now Old School Square.
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By 1898 Susan Williams, a trained midwife and
general nurse practitioner of African decent had arrived from the Bahamas
and handled medical needs of all races of people of Linton.
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In 1898 the name of the Town of Linton was changed
to "Delray" following hardship brought on by crop-destroying freezes and
William Linton's default on his land payments. W.W. Blackmer, a town
leader suggested the name "Delray" which was derived from the name of a town
located near Detroit, Michigan.
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In 1902 the Ladies Improvement Association was
established. This small group of women spearheaded projects for many
of the town's amenities that were later achieved through the years such as a
cemetery, the public library, Atlantic Avenue improvements, and a town hall.
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In 1903 the church now known as Cason United
Methodist Church was established by and attended by settlers of European
decent.
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In 1903 hurricane winds wrecked the British ship,
SS Inchulva, near the south end of Delray's municipal beach. Early settlers
of African decent who emigrated from the Bahamas initiated the rescue of the
survivors.
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In 1904 Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church
(originally called Evangelishe Lutherische Dreienigkeits Gemeinde by German
settlers) was established. Adolf Hofman and other pioneer families of
German decent were founding members.
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In 1904 "Yamato" was established as a Japanese
agricultural colony south of Delray. Jo Sakai, the leader, named the
colony "Yamato," an ancient name revered in Japan. The first group of
Japanese settlers were recruited by Henry Flagler and were all men. In
later years, their wives and children and some of their relatives and
friends joined them including George Morikami for whom the Morikami Museum
and Japanese Gardens in Delray Beach is named for which he donated more than
200 acres of land. The Japanese early settlers came to Delray for shopping,
recreation and participation in civic events. Their children attended grade
school in Yamato, but came to Delray to attend high school at Delray High
School.
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In 1904 Missionary Bishop Rt. Rev. William Crane
Gray held the first service in the new St. Paul's Episcopal Church which was
for settlers of European descent.
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In 1905 Delray's first parochial school (Deutsche
Schule) known as the German School was established by Trinity Lutheran
Church.
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In 1908 telephone service became available.
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In 1908 a group of Church of England members of
African descent from the Bahamas organized a church named after Saint
Matthews Church in Nassau. Before a church was constructed, church was held
in the home of Ernest and Marion Clark at 339 S.W. 5th Avenue. In
1911, the congregation constructed the original church made out of wood,
which was destroyed in the 1926 hurricane. A new church building was
constructed in 1929 that is still in use today according to the History of
Saint Matthews Episcopal Church compiled by Father McWhorter and Edith
Quinn, life long resident and granddaughter of Beatrice Rolle who arrived
here in 1901.
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In 1909 Palm Beach County was created from the
northern portion of Dade County.
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In 1911 the area west of the "canal" (Intracoastal
Waterway) was incorporated as the "Town of Delray." John Shaw Sundy
became the first Mayor and served seven terms.
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In 1911 the first bridge was built over the canal,
connecting the barrier island with the Town of Delray.
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In 1913 the Delray Beach Library was founded by
the Ladies Improvement Association.
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In 1913 a new Delray Elementary and High School
building was constructed. The building now houses the Cornell Museum
of Art and History at Old School Square.
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In 1914 the Town of Delray passed the first bond
issue and the first city electric and water plants were built.
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In 1923 "The Town of Delray Beach," the area east
of the Intracoastal, was incorporated.
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In 1925 a new separate building for the Delray
High School was constructed. The building is now the Crest Theatre at
Old School Square.
- On May 11, 1927, the two
incorporated towns - Town of Delray Beach and the City of Delray - united to
form "The City of Delray Beach."
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