Florida

Although several people had considered constructing a railroad to Key West beginning in the early 1800s, it took a bold industrialist with unparalleled vision to make it happen.

In 1902, Henry Flagler made the decision to extend the Florida East Coast Railway to "the nearest deepwater American port." In this book, renowned Florida historian Seth H. Bramson reveals how the Key West Extension of the Flagler-owned FEC became the greatest railroad engineering and construction feat in U.S., and possibly world, history, an accomplishment that would cement Flagler's fame and legend for all time. Join Bramson as he recounts the years of operation of this great railroad, what it did for the Florida Keys and what it meant to the resident conchs.

Florida East Coast Railway has been the speedway to America's playground for more than 110 years. FEC offered some of America's finest rail passenger service until 1968 and remains the freight lifeline of Florida's east coast. The railroad arrived on the shores of Biscayne Bay on April 15, 1896, and it reached Key West in January 1912. That feat etched both Henry Flagler's and the railroad's names in Florida and U.S. railroad history. FEC's operation is so precise and punctual, its roadbed and motive power so well maintained, that it is the benchmark for every other railroad in the country.

The history of Florida railroads began as early as 1834, when the Tallahassee-St. Marks Railroad incorporated.

On April 14, 1836, the St.Joseph–Lake Wimico line was the first to be put into service, with trains operating between the boomtown of St. Joseph and the Apalachicola River.Although the Florida railroad “boom” began with Henry Flagler and Henry Bradley Plant, the expansion continued into the 1920s when the president of Seaboard Railway, S. Davies Warfield, extended his lines to Miami and Naples. With the passage of time, numerous railroads were bought, merged, or abandoned. Today, 12 full-service railroads are still operating as well as several port railroads.

Seth H. Bramson has written 32 books on and about Florida history, 21 of which have been published by Arcadia Publishing and The History Press. A lifelong Miamian, he is America’s senior collector of Florida East Coast Railway, Florida transportation, and Miami memorabilia as well as Floridiana. He is America’s single most-published Florida history book author.

Track the history of the Florida East Coast Railway from its beginning in 1885-present day.

The benchmark for US railroad operations, the Florida East Coast (FEC) Railway is often referred to by other American railroads as the best-maintained and -operated railroad in the country. The FEC Railway can trace its lineage back to December 31, 1885, the day Henry M. Flagler purchased the Jacksonville, St. Augustine & Halifax River Railway. The FEC was known for its famous passenger trains, and the last scheduled FEC Railway passenger train ran on July 31, 1968, due to the work stoppage by the nonoperating unions that began on January 22, 1963. Although without passenger trains since 1968, the FEC's partner, All Aboard Florida, with its Brightline trains, will soon establish a new standard for privately operated rail passenger service in America. Today, caboose-less, the FEC operates numerous high-speed freight trains between Jacksonville and Miami.

When the first Iron Horse arrived in Southwest Florida—at Charlotte Harbor in 1886—nearly 150,000 miles of railroads already existed in America, the transcontinental route was open, and Pullman sleeping cars were in wide use. But despite a late start, railroads forever transformed this beautiful region of the Sunshine State and connected its people to the outside world. In Railroads of Southwest Florida, the golden age of railroading
is documented with captivating images of stations, machines, and the people whose lives were affected by this significant form of transportation. From interior views of well-furnished passenger cars to scenes of hardworking men who made it all possible, this collection provides a thorough look at a fascinating, almost forgotten heritage.

At well over 100 years old, Tampa Union Station is one of the few historic buildings in Tampa that still serves its original purpose. Designed by architect J.F. Leitner of Wilmington, North Carolina, Tampa Union Station has seen millions of travelers pass through its doors since its 1912 opening--from servicemen and women to "flower children" and from families on vacation to college kids setting out on their own. Once threatened with demolition, the train station reopened its doors to the traveling public in 1998 following a multimillion-dollar restoration. Through images from archives and individuals, Tampa Union Station captures moments in time related to this iconic building, including pictures of trains such as Seaboard Air Line's Silver Meteor and Atlantic Coast Line's Tampa Special, as well as other fascinating looks at life at the station.

Railroads have served the northern counties of Central Florida since before the Civil War. Following the war, railroads expanded down the peninsula to bring transportation services to even more people and places throughout the region. By 1929, the railroad network in the state had reached its peak, with some communities being served by two or more railroad lines. Trains provided the means for growth and development, and the local depot was the focal point of every town throughout Florida's central region. Stretching across the middle section of the peninsula from coast to coast, the Central Florida area includes Levy, Gilchrist, Alachua, Putnam, and Volusia Counties to the north, while the counties of Sarasota, Desoto, Highland, Osceola, and Brevard define the southern boundary. Featuring depots of the Atlantic Coast Line, Seaboard Air Line, Florida East Coast, and their predecessor railroads, the photographs used by the author were obtained from local historical groups, the Florida State Archives, and private collections.

Pinellas County's railroad heritage began in 1888 and lasted almost a century. Today few people who walk, run, or bike the 41-mile Pinellas Trail realize the importance of this path as they travel through Pinellas County railroad history. Railroading in Pinellas County transports the reader through 100 years. History is brought to life through photographs of the individuals who brought to Pinellas the railroad, railroad stations, railroad engines, passenger and freight cars, railroad companies, employees, and industries such as tourism that utilized this form of transportation. These photographs were culled with the assistance and permission of local historical societies, county and state archives, and various private collections.

Florida's railroads emerged in the 1830s amid Native American upheaval and territorial colonization. Many periods of development marked this fascinating heritage, but one era towers above the rest: the 1920s. It was then that Florida experienced a colossal land boom, one of the greatest migration and building stories in American history. People poured into the state as never before, real estate traded hands at breakneck speed, and the landscape added countless new homes, hotels, apartments, and commercial buildings. Florida's biggest railroads--the Atlantic Coast Line, Seaboard Air Line, and Florida East Coast--were unprepared for the tidal wave of traffic. Thus, the "Big Three" had to rapidly expand and increase capacity. Dozens of projects unfolded at great cost, by one estimate over $100 million. When the building frenzy ended, the railway map of the state stood at its greatest extent--some 5,700 miles. Further, the frequency of railway service within and to the Sunshine State reached an unprecedented level, never again to be repeated.

Florida's railroad heritage began in the 1830s amidst Native American upheaval and territorial colonization. Surpassing waterways as the primary mode of transport, the "Iron Horse" linked practically every town and city, carried tourists and locals, and ably conveyed the wealth of Florida's mines, factories, forests, groves, and farms. Nearly 175 years later, railroads still remain a dependable source of transport within the Sunshine State.