Cover: Evening on Miami River looking east in 1900
A photograph of the Miami River looking east in 1900 during a beautiful and tranquil evening as the sun set to the west behind this vantage. The photographer was stationed approximately where today’s Underline begins on the south bank of the Miami River underneath the Metro Mover tracks near the Neo Vertika condominium building. The picture was taken by John Chamberlain who documented the development and captured the vistas of early Miami beginning when he arrived in April of 1896.
Off in the distance one can see a boat docked on the north bank of the river at what was Avenue D in downtown Miami. This stretch of street is now known as South Miami Avenue and was the primary commercial corridor of Miami during its first year of development. Shortly after incorporation, particularly following the Christmastime fire of 1896, businesses began migrating to Twelfth Street, or today’s Flagler Street.
Figure 1: Captain Vail’s Floating Hotel from the south bank of the Miami River in 1900
The vessel moored on Avenue D, as seen in the closeup of the photo seen in Figures 1 and 2, was Captain Vail’s floating hotel. The accommodations were so scarce in early Miami that Captain Edward E Vail converted his steamship into an inn to lodge workers who came to Miami to help build the city. Those who were not able to secure a bed on the floating hotel, or could not secure a room in the partially completed Hotel Miami, were left to find a patch of land to pitch a tent or construct temporary quarters, as seen in Figures 3 and 4.
To the north of the floating hotel, but out of picture, was the Dade County Seat, which was located in a converted fish house from 1899 to 1905, as well as Hotel Miami, which was constructed by the Tuttle family but finished by Salem Graham who operated the inn for a few years until he moved onto other projects. Avenue D was home to E.L. Brady’s Grocery Store, the Miami Metropolis, and a variety of other pioneer businesses.
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Figure 2: Captain Vail’s Floating Hotel in 1896
Figure 3: Temporary structure erected in downtown Miami in 1896
Figure 4: Thatch tent erected in downtown Miami for family who relocated to South Florida in 1896
Photos:
- Cover: Evening on Miami River looking east in 1900. Courtesy of U.S. Library of Congress.
- Figure 1: Captain Vail’s Floating Hotel from the south bank of the Miami River in 1900. Courtesy of U.S. Library of Congress.
- Figure 2: Captain Vail’s Floating Hotel in 1896. Courtesy of HistoryMiami Museum.
- Figure 3: Temporary structure erected in downtown Miami in 1896. Courtesy of HistoryMiami Museum.
- Figure 4: Thatch tent erected in downtown Miami for family who relocated to South Florida in 1896. Courtesy of HistoryMiami Museum.