April 13, 1896
The first train, with Henry Flagler aboard, makes its way from Jacksonville to the banks of the Miami River. The train’s arrival effectively opens the once remote and sparsely populated settlement of Miami to the rest of the country.
July 28, 1896
Miami the “Magic City” is born. 344 men vote to incorporate the city (women were not allowed to vote); more than a third of registered voters were Bahamian immigrants.
Jan. 16, 1897
Flagler’s grand Royal Palm Hotel opens on the north bank of the Miami River. The 350-room hotel features a 578-foot-long verandah and quickly becomes the center of life in early Miami. It was demolished a few years after the Hurricane of 1926.
June 20, 1898
The Spanish American War breaks out in the summer of 1898. The U.S. Army stations 7,500 troops in Miami while the men await deployment to Cuba.
Sept. 14, 1898
Julia Tuttle dies at age 48. She is considered the only female founder of a major American city.
1899
Yellow Fever spreads across Miami. City leaders quarantine the city in an effort to contain the spread of the potentially fatal virus (not yet aware it spreads through mosquitoes).
