By Seth H. Bramson

As our readers have learned in this over the past several weeks, the year 1896 was truly the crucible year for the then becoming-a-city-that-year community, one that was so tiny that, prior to Henry Flagler’s commitment to extend the railroad to the shores of Biscayne Bay and to build one of his great hotels (which would be named the Royal Palm) on the north bank of the Miami River, many, if not most, American maps did not even show a place named Miami on them. In the articles it was also noted that there were several other years of great and major importance to the life and growth of the area, but, unquestionably, the bellwether year for all of Greater Miami was 1926, for it would be in that year, as I explain to my Florida history students at both Barry and Nova Southeastern Universities, that the five terrible events that would test the mettle of the Gold Coast, particularly Dade County, which was then in the midst of the greatest boom ever seen or recorded in Florida (as well as most of the country) up until that time.