<p>Edmund and
Ann Beasley are cited as the Grove’s first permanent settlers; after Ann was
widowed she rented out some of the Beasley property to a Dr. Horace Porter, who
attempted to establish a U.S. Post Office in the area, naming it Coconut Grove
after observing the Coconut Palms that were nearby. However, Dr. Porter not
being successful at his attempt, moved away and the post office was forgotten.
Other prominent 19th century settlers were the Bahamas-native Pent
and Frow families, brothers “Jolly” Jack and Charles Peacock and their family,
and sailboat designer Ralph Munroe. The Peacock brothers and Monroe forged a
friendship and together opened the area’s first hotel, the Bay View Inn, in
1882. In reviewing a postal map, Munroe also discovered Dr. Porter’s post
office, and he and his comrades reopened it, re-establishing the community’s
name Coconut Grove. The sub-tropical community attracted an increasing number
of visitors and the hotel entrepreneurs expanded the building in order to host
more guests; they also changed the hotel’s name to the Peacock Inn.</p>

<p>&nbsp;During WWI,
one of the United States’ first naval air stations was built on a nearby island,
Dinner Key. Over 1,000 men were trained there, and Coconut Grove citizens
voiced their annoyance with the noise and pollution that resulted from the
base. The government closed the station in 1919, the same year Coconut Grove
became an incorporated town. However, the Grove’s township only lasted six
years before it was annexed by the City of Miami. Eventually, in 1929, the old
Navy air station became a hub for Pan American Airways.</p>

<p>&nbsp;All through
the twentieth century, the Grove flourished as a cultural center, attracting “creative
types like the writers Marjory Stoneman Douglas, Hervey Allen, and Tennesse
Williams, as well as many of the areas most accomplished artists and musicians.”
The Grove’s Bohemian atmosphere has also drawn “beatniks and hippies” and even
today hosts eccentric crowds.</p>

Historic Coconut Grove
Photo source: http://www.coconutgrove.com/history/

Video

Website

Established in 1873, Coconut Grove is one of the oldest neighborhoods in Miami. Originally home to the Tequesta Indians, it eventually became a popular stop for sailors, who were interested in the fresh water springs that it offered. In addition to mariners, Coconut Grove has also attracted "luminaries [such] as Tennessee Williams, Robert Frost and Alexander Graham Bell" who have drawn inspiration from the Grove's serene tropical ambience. Today, the community remains just as popular as ever as it offers residents and visitors unique and quality boutiques, restaurants, art galleries, and event venues. 

Coconut Grove

This short walking tour includes several historical markers and other sites that share the history of this unique Miami neighborhood. 

<p>The Adirondack-Florida School was the nation’s first
migratory boarding school. Ransom was a successful lawyer who first became
interested in education through tutoring. Through this experience, he
established strong views concerning the importance of students receiving
individualized attention from instructors. In a letter to incoming students,
Ransom wrote that the world held three types of people and that people who
belonged at his school were part of the third type. He wrote, “The people of
the third class believe that they are in the world not so much for what they
can get out of it as for what they can put into it.” When Ransom passed away in
1907, his wife Alice began running the school in his place. In 1955, a similar
school was established fewer than two miles away. This was the Everglades
School for Girls, founded by Marie and Edward Swenson.</p>

<p>In 1974, the Ransom School and the Everglades School for
Girls combined to from the present-day Ransom Everglades School. For middle
school students, the institution offers courses such as Issues and Ethics,
Digital Citizenship, and Writer’s Workshop. The Upper School (9-12 grade)
offers courses such as Literature of War, Personal Narrative Workshop, and
Voices from the Inside: Stories Written in and about Prison, and What They can
Teach Us about Ourselves.</p>

This marker indicates the place where the Ransom School was founded. At the time, it was known as the Pine Knot Camp and was founded by Paul C. Ransom. In 1896, Ransom first brought students from an Eastern preparatory school to Florida for the winter. Education focused on dedication to outdoor life and valuing different types of intelligence. In 1903, it was renamed the Adirondack-Florida School. Fall and spring terms were held in the Adirondacks and the winter term was held in Coconut Grove. It was closed from 1942-1947 due to World War II. In 1949, it was named the Ransom School and moved to this site permanently.

Ransom School- Historical Marker

<p>The neighborhood continued to thrive during the early twentieth century and was filled with Black-owned businesses and single-family homes. However, the neighborhood began to decline following the end of World War II. During this time, large apartment buildings replaced the single-family homes. Today, the area is filled with empty storefronts and boarded-up buildings.</p><p>
















</p><p>Charles and Isabella Peacock built the Peacock Inn. Originally from England, Charles’ brother Jack convinced the couple to move to South Florida. Jack kept the House of Refuge, near what is today Miami Beach. The Peacocks left their meat business in England behind and moved to Florida in 1875. Their sons, Charles, Alfred, and Harry, also made the journey. In the July 27, 1917 issue of the publication <i>Metropolis</i>, one of Charles and Isabella’s sons, Harry, recalls these early days in Florida: “We conducted a trading post and exchanged merchandise and commodities with the Indians who brought in gopher skins, Plumes, corn and pumpkins . . . Besides trading, we also manufactured starch from komtie [coontie] selling that in Key West.” After seven years in Florida, the family built their inn. The inn was a vital aspect of the newly developing community and for a time housed a post office and a courthouse. The site of the Peacock Inn, which was demolished in 1926, was purchased by the City of Miami in 1934 and converted into Coconut Grove Bayfront Park.</p>

The marker indicates where the first South Florida Black community developed. Beginning in the late 1880s, most Blacks that migrated to South Florida were originally from the Bahamas and had been working in Key West. They came from Key West primarily to work in the Peacock Inn. This community was essential to the development of Coconut Grove as most of them had experience using tropical materials for building.

Charles Avenue- Historical Marker

<p><span>Munroe first visited
South Florida in 1877 while on vacation from New York. Initially a pleasant
visit, his next expedition to the area would be far less welcoming. In 1881, his
doctors informed Munroe that his wife, Eva, had contracted a bad case of
tuberculosis and that a radical change of climate was needed as soon as
possible to help better her condition. Munroe recalled the beauty of Biscayne
Bay and brought his wife down south, hoping it would aid in her recovery.
Despite his efforts and the assistance and nursing of Isabella Peacock, Eva
passed away at their camp on the Miami River. Upon returning to New York,
Munroe discovered that his only child had passed away.</span></p>

<p>Munroe later returned to
Southern Florida in 1882 to visit his beloved’s grave and to assist Charles and
Isabella Peacock open up a hotel in the area. Initially known as the Bay View
Villa, the building later became the Peacock Inn and went on to have a long and
quite profitable history. To show their gratitude for his help to them, the
Peacocks gave Munroe four acres of land in the area. Munroe had his wife’s
grave moved to his new land and then donated his property to the community for
the construction of its first church. A well-accomplished amateur photographer,
Munroe went on to take many iconic photos of life in Biscayne Bay around this
time.</p>

<p>Munroe's passion during
his life was designing yachts, and he received many commissions from friends in
South Florida. During his life, he would draw plans for 56 different boats over
the years.</p>

<p>Munroe purchased forty
additional acres of land in 1886 for $400 and one of his sailboats, “Kingfish,”
was valued at an additional $400. The Boathouse was built the next year. This
building served as a home, his workshop, and as the clubhouse for the
newly-formed Biscayne Bay Yacht Club. Munroe was then elected as the club’s
first Commodore and held the title for a grand twenty-two years. When the
Boathouse was destroyed during a hurricane in 1926, he quickly rebuilt the
building right in the very same location. The new structure had a solid,
concrete foundation, a set of guywires strapping the framework to the ground,
and a new set of walls in front and back that were designed to break away
during any future storms. It would go on to survive Hurricane Andrew in 1992.</p>

<p>While living in the
original Boathouse, Commodore Munroe designed a one-story bungalow that would serve
as his next residence. Finishing construction in 1891, the new house was named “The
Barnacle,” because the lines of the buildings high-pitched roof were thought to
mimic the shape of the cone-shaped sea creature of the same name. </p>

<p>1894 marked a new
beginning for the Commodore. Munroe met a Miss Jessie Wirth during a cruise
with friends. The couple was married the very next summer, and thus began a
long and happy life together. Upon giving birth to a daughter, Patty, in 1900, Jessie
asked her sister, Josephine, to come assist with the house and the baby. Miss
Jo (aka Aunt Dodie) would become a permanent inhabitant of The Barnacle and would
serve as librarian at Coconut Grove Library for an impressive fifty-five years.</p>

<p>A second child, a boy
named Wirth, was born in 1902, and in turn, the family once again needed more living
space. They began by enclosing the porches on two sides of their house to
expand the interior as a whole. By 1908, the family had raised the entire
structure by using railroad jacks and completed a brand new first floor below
it. Electricity, healthy city water, and a sizable library wing all followed
suit. The last major changes to the structure were in 1928.</p>

<p>After the passing of
Ralph and Jessie, an adult Wirth moved back into the main house with his own
spouse, Mary, and his two boys, Bill and Charlie. Mary Munroe would go on to
live in a retirement community after her husband’s passing in 1968, and after
turning down some rather lucrative offers from developers, the Munroe family decided
to sell The Barnacle to the State of Florida. The area became a park for the
public in 1973 and was soon listed on the National Register of Historic Places.</p>

<p>Today, The Barnacle is
the oldest house in Miami-Dade County still standing in its original location. The
location remains a powerful reminder of Miami's nautical history and brings
with it memories of a simpler time. </p>

The house, simply known as The Barnacle, is situated on five acres of land, which make up this Florida state park. Originally owned by one of the first and most influential Coconut Grove settlers, Ralph Middleton Munroe, the home has been well preserved and stands as a testament to the history of frontier times. Additionally, thanks to Munroe’s stewardship, the land also remains abundant and true to its original state, featuring numerous large, ancient trees. Visitors are welcome to the park and can view the home, take a nature walk on the grounds, or see the replicas of two of Munroe’s sailboats.

The Barnacle Historic State Park

<div>Kirk Munroe was born near Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin on September 15, 1850. He spent his childhood in the Wisconsin frontier. Munroe and his family moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts when he was sixteen. He began working as a reporter for the New York Sun in 1876. He was also the first editor of Harper's Young People Magazine. He served as the commodore of the New York Canoe Club from 1879-1884, during which time he and Charles Pratt founded the League of American Wheelman on May 31, 1880. The League of American Wheelman, now called the League of American Bicyclists, is a non-profit organization that strives to promote cycling for fun, exercise, and transportation. During the late nineteenth century, the organization governed amateur bicycle racing in the United States. The League also founded the Good Roads Movement in the late nineteenth century to advocate for better roads and highways. In 1898, over 103,000 people were part of the league. Notable early members of the league include John Jacob Astor, Diamond Jim Brady, and John D. Rockefeller.&nbsp;<br><br><div>He married Mary Barr on September 15, 1883 and the couple moved to Coconut Grove in 1886. In Florida, Munroe became a member of the Florida Audubon Society. Munroe also helped establish the Ransom Everglades School, which has its own entry on this site. The only tennis park in the city of Miami is located at 3101 Florida Avenue in Coconut Grove and is named Kirk Munroe Park.&nbsp;</div></div><div><br></div><div><br><br></div>

The Coconut Grove Library was founded by writer Kirk Munroe and his wife Mary Barr Munroe as a reading club on June 15, 1895. This reading group was called the Pine Needles Club. On March 27, 1897, it became the Exchange Library and opened at the location indicated by this marker as the Coconut Grove Library on March 6, 1901.


Coconut Grove Library- Historical Marker

<div>Pan Am was the largest international airline in the United States from 1927 until it went under on December 4, 1991. It was founded in Florida, with its initial flights, a mail and passenger service, operating between Key West, Florida and Havana, Cuba. The airline is credited with initiating the widespread use of jet aircraft, jumbo jets, and computerized reservation systems. Pan Am was also a founding member of the global airline industry association, the International Air Transport Association (IATA).</div><div><br><div>Pan Am was founded on March 14, 1926 by Air Corps Majors Henry H. "Hap" Arnold, Carl A. Spaatz, and John H. Jouett. It was created to compete with SCADTA, a German airline operating services in Colombia beginning in 1920. Pan Am expanded throughout the twenties and early thirties by purchasing failing airlines in Central and South American and then securing mail contracts in these regions. Juan Trippe, operating head of Pan Am, traveled Latin America with Charles Lindbergh in September of 1929 for the purpose of negotiating landing rights in various countries. By the end of 1929, Pan Am was operating flights down the west coast of S. America to Panama. Much of Pan Am's success is attributed to its excellent flight crews, who were trained in long distance flight, seaplane anchorage and berthing operations, over-water navigation, radio procedure, aircraft repair, and marine tides.</div></div><div><br></div>

This area got its name for being a convenient picnic spot as far back as sailboat days. It served as a Naval air base during World War I. Significantly, Pan American World Airways began a flying boat service to Latin America in 1930. As part of this endeavor, Pan American World Airways, colloquially known as Pan Am, built hangars and a terminal. Thousands of people flocked to the area every month to see the Flying a Clippers. In 1932, a seaplane base was established here by the Coast Guard. The key was purchased by the City of Miami in 1946.


Coconut Grove

Coconut Grove

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources

Additional Information