How long did it take to build the Flagler railroad?

How long did it take to build the Flagler railroad?

7 years
It would take 7 years, over 50 million dollars ($1.25 billion in 2019) and 17 million cubic yards of material placed on the right-of-way to see his vision become a reality. At any given time, there were more than 4,000 men working to build the railroad. During construction, three hurricanes passed through the keys.

When did Flagler build the railroad to Key West?

1912
Completed in 1912 after seven years of unrelenting labor, it cost Flagler an estimated $50 million and required unparalleled vision and unswerving perseverance. According to a volume released in 1912 announcing the railroad’s debut, Flagler possessed those qualities in abundance.

Why did Flagler build a train to Key West?

“The only real natural port in those days was Key West. In 1900, it was Florida’s largest city, a bustling port alive with the cigar industry, fishing and sponging. So the impetus for building an overseas railroad was that Henry Flagler needed a port.”

What did Flagler call his railroad?

the Florida East Coast Railway
Realizing the need for a sound transportation system to support his hotel ventures, Flagler purchased short line railroads in what would later become known as the Florida East Coast Railway.

Is there still a railroad to Key West?

The Overseas Railroad (also known as Florida Overseas Railroad, the Overseas Extension, and Flagler’s Folly) was an extension of the Florida East Coast Railway to Key West, a city located 128 miles (206 km) beyond the end of the Florida peninsula….Overseas Railroad.

Overseas Highway and Railway Bridges
Added to NRHP	August 13, 1979

Was there ever a train that went to Key West?

Construction on the Florida Overseas Railroad began in 1905 and continued through 1912, when Flagler himself rode the first train from the mainland to Key West, where he was celebrated as a hero. …

What city did the Flagler railroad end in?

Palm Beach
Palm Beach was to be the terminus of the Flagler railroad, but during 1894 and 1895, severe freezes hit all of Central Florida, whereas the Miami area remained unaffected, causing Flagler to rethink his original decision not to move the railroad south of Palm Beach.

When did the railroad stop going to Key West?

1935
For more than two decades after the railroad’s 1912 completion it carried passengers to the Keys and Key West, affording them a breathtaking sense of steaming across the open ocean. The Over-Sea Railroad’s heyday ended abruptly when a portion of the line was destroyed in a 1935 hurricane.

How old was Henry Flagler when he built the Florida Keys railroad?

He did so in May 1913 at age 83. Over the next two decades, the Florida Keys Over-Sea Railroad carried thousands of passengers between Miami and Key West. Though it was not rebuilt after being damaged in a 1935 hurricane, Flagler’s railroad is still lauded for its monumental impact as the centennial of its completion is celebrated in the Keys.

Where did Henry Flagler ride the first train?

In that year, a proud Henry Flagler rode the first train into Key West aboard his private railcar, marking the completion of the railroad’s oversea connection to Key West and the linkage by railway of the entire east coast of Florida.

How much did it cost to build the Flagler railroad?

Completed in 1912 after seven years of unrelenting labor, it cost Flagler an estimated $50 million and required unparalleled vision and unswerving perseverance. According to a volume released in 1912 announcing the railroad’s debut, Flagler possessed those qualities in abundance.

Who was the founder of the Florida East Coast Railway?

Henry Flagler and the origin of the Florida East Coast Railway. Henry Flagler (1830–1913) was a principal in Rockefeller, Andrews & Flagler and later a founder of Standard Oil during the Gilded Age in the United States. The wealthy Flagler took an interest in Florida while seeking a warmer climate for his ailing first wife in the late 1870s.