Description:

Florida Land Boom
Key West, FL, ca. 1920s-1940s
Extensive 150+ Florida Land Boom Archive of Letters and Documents
Archive
An extensive archive of over 150 letters, typed and handwritten, concerning the Florida land boom of the 1920s. Varying sizes, various places, mostly from New York and Key West, dating ca. the 1920s to 1940s. The collection is communications between Paris Singer, Diego Suarez, Johnson and Johnson Realty, and the Duc and Duchesse de Richelieu and provides a remarkable insight into the first real estate bubble in Florida. Many of the documents are papers of the Duc and Duchesse de Richelieu and the property they owned in Key West, ranging from contracts for buying and selling property, telegrams regarding sale of property, correspondence with lawyers, and newspaper clippings. The letters and documents have flattened folds with varying degrees of toning and soiling. Some letters are very brittle and browned, with paper loss and chipping at the edges. Bold signatures. With this being a sizeable collection, we would invite any interested parties to make an appointment to see the archive in our offices! Ex. Collection of Steve Forbes.

This pioneering era of Florida land speculation was the product of extensions of the Florida East Coast Railway, coupled with the Everglades being drained to create new dry land, and the First World War preventing the rich from their holidays on the French Riviera. Florida seemed an ideal place then to construct vacation properties, but a lack of knowledge about storm frequency and the poor building standards used by boom developers ultimately set the conditions for the first real estate bubble in Florida. This land boom lasted from 1924 to 1926 and attracted investors from all over the nation, leaving behind entirely new, planned developments incorporated into towns and cities. Among those cities at the center of this bubble were Miami Beach, Coral Gables, Hialeah, Miami Springs, Opa-locka, Miami Shores, and Hollywood.

Inflated excitement caused developers, brokers, and dealers to speculate wildly on commodities, ordering supplies in excess of what was actually needed and sent shipments to general destinations. The result was railroad freight cars becoming stranded, choking the movement of rail traffic statewide. By January 1925, investors were beginning to read negative press about Florida investments. Forbes magazine warned that Florida land prices were based solely upon the expectation of finding a customer, not upon any real land value. The Bureau of Internal Revenue began to scrutinize the Florida real estate boom as a giant sham operation. To make matters worse, in October 1925, the "Big Three" railroad companies operating in Florida—the Seaboard Air Line Railway, the Florida East Coast Railway, and the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad—called an embargo due to the rail traffic gridlock of building materials, permitting only foodstuffs, fuel, perishables, and essential commodities to enter or move within the state. Bringing building supplies into the Miami area became nearly impossible, and the city's image as a tropical paradise began to crumble.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

WE PROVIDE IN-HOUSE SHIPPING WORLDWIDE!

  • Provenance: Ex. Collection of Steve Forbes.
  • Dimensions: Each box: 11.75" x 3" x 15.25"
  • Medium: Archive

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September 18, 2024 10:00 AM EDT
Wilton, CT, US

University Archives

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $299 $20
$300 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $2,999 $200
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000