October 2007
23 posts
1 tag
Something Different
Driving around Pompano Beach one can find plenty of “personal touches” performed on what were standard tract houses. There are a few unique, custom built residences here and there, as well. Consider the possibilities for thinking outside the box at the website Offbeat Homes. There’s a number of Florida references, including one about the “Cosmic Muffin,” a converted...
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Small Town
When the Town of Hillsboro Beach was incorporated (for the second time) in 1947, it had 17 voters who were living in the town’s 9 private homes, 4 groups of rental cottages and apartments, and the Hillsboro Club. In 2000, the U.S. Census found Hillsboro Beach’s population to be 2,163 residents.
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Africa USA
Many Pompano Beach residents remember the Africa USA theme park in Boca Raton. Located on 300 acres off US 1 near today’s Camino Real road, the cageless zoo and botanical gardens operated from 1953 through 1961. Even though Africa USA has been closed for well over four decades, it’s possible to take a virtual tour of the park on the internet. Africa USA contains history, photographs,...
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Good Times Ahead
The uncertainties that faced many Floridians following the end of World War II were not shared by Edward Ball, a trustee of the DuPont estate and future head of the Florida East Coast Railway. In an interview with the Fort Lauderdale Daily News he saw good times ahead, especially in the agricultural sector of the state’s economy::Neither the returning GI nor war worker out of a job need...
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Fish Tales
From a 1958 Pompano Beach Chamber of Commerce publication:At famous Hillsboro Inlet, the Gulfstream flows closer to shore than at any other point along the coast, permitting charter boats to reach the game fishing waters in a five-minute run from the dock. Seven reefs just off shore create a constant and favorite feeding ground for the 150 odd varieties of fish abundant in these waters, naturally...
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The Town's Doc
Duane Jones remembered Pompano Beach’s Dr. George McCellan:Going to Dr. George’s office was almost always fun. He sat on an old swivel chair at a roll top desk that was always littered with papers, medical journals and a variety of pills. His office was at his home and his wife was his nurse. Dr. George called his patients by their first names, and when he looked up from his desk his...
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As the Bridge Turns
Pompano’s first bridge across the Intracoastal (although the body of water was not known by that name until decades later) was built in 1912 and was a wooden, hand-cranked swing-span bridge that turned in the middle. When that bridge was replaced by a wooden and steel bridge in 1924, the pivot was offset to allow a larger channel for passing boats.
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Uncle Jim
Many of Pompano’s early pioneers are remembered today, if at all, only by the longest-lived residents who may have known them. When those individuals died, however, they were lauded as significant to the formation and growth of the community. Such is the case with J. W. Pearce, who died in his Pompano home on August 25, 1942, at the age of 90. The Pompano Sun wrote this about him:When he...
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Scrap for Victory
The Lions went out Sunday and put in a real day, pushing eight more tons of scrap up on the platform. Pompano is unquestionably leading every community in Broward County in collecting scrap through the self-sacrificing work of the Lions club. Pompano’s advantage lies in the fact that it has men who know metal and what to do with it - and men who are willing to give their time to the work. ...
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Answering the Call
In March, 1943, the Miami Herald indicated that 128 men and two women from Pompano were serving in the military. Of those, 25 were at that time stationed overseas.
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War Shortages
One of the first impacts of World War II on the local economy was a labor shortage as able-bodied men were called to service. Many Pompano farmers could not find enough farm laborers to plant all their fields. To compound the problem, many other agricultural supplies were also in short supply. By the beginning of the 1942 planting season, local supply houses reported that they were having...
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Same Job, Different Counties
Pompano pioneer I. I. Hardy brought his family here in 1899. They had come to Pompano from Goldsboro, North Carolina, with a short stay in Ocala, Florida. Mr. Hardy had the unique distinction of serving as a county commissioner in two different counties without moving out of his home. When Palm Beach County was created in 1909, Pompano was its southernmost town and Mr. Hardy was elected to...
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Friendly Warning
One of the earlier settlers to this region was a man named Cobb (no first name was recorded). According to military reports, Mr. Cobb was living at or near the Hillsboro Inlet in the mid-1850s. The report does not indicate whether or not he had a family or others living with him. In January, 1856, Mr. Cobb arrived at Fort Dallas (today’s Miami) and told the military officials there he had...
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Expanding Numbers
In 1942, Pompano telephone subscribers received a telephone directory that contained about 150 pages of listings. Not only were Pompano telephone numbers included, but also Deefield, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Boca Raton and Greater Miami. By comparison, the most recent telephone book received by Pompano Beach residents (covering northern Broward County) has 486 pages of listings.
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Humble Beginnings
Originating in Pompano Beach’s Haitian community, Redemption Baptist Church, whose large, modern sanctuary is located at 3501 NE 3rd Avenue, began with thirty people in a storefront on Esther Rolle Avenue in 1990.
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Green Market Opens Oct. 27th
The Pompano Beach Green Market will begin its fifth season on October 27th. Located in Pompano Beach’s historic downtown, at the intersection of NE First Street and Flagler Avenue (just north of Atlantic Blvd., and east of Dixie Hwy.), the market will be open every Saturday through April 26, 2008, from 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Once again it will feature fresh, local produce, seafood, baked goods,...
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Fifty Years Ago: Architects
Pompano Beach architects in 1957:Paul Allen (office at 2701 East Atlantic Blvd.) Robert E. Hansen & Joseph T. Romano (2821 East Atlantic Blvd.) John M. Peterman (1280 South Federal Hwy.) C. Cranford Sproul (2329 East Atlantic Blvd.) Robert E. Todd & George C. Wiesman (3220 East Atlantic Blvd.)All of the above resided in Pompano Beach except for Robert Hansen and John Peterman, who lived in...
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Presidential Visit
Although Tallahassee had served as Florida’s capitol since the 1820s, it was not until 1980 that a sitting U.S. President visited that city. In October of that year President Jimmy Carter came to Tallahassee, stayed overnight in the Governor’s Mansion and signed a bill for refugee relief in the chamber of the Florida House of Representatives. Carter’s birthplace and hometown,...
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Running Rum and Making Shine
On October 17th, the Historical Society will present a special guest speaker at its monthly public meeting — author Sally J. Ling talking about her new book, Let the Rum In: Rumrunners, Bootleggers and Stills. In her newly-published book, Ms. Ling explores the impact of illegal liquor on South Florida during the Prohibition era. Conducting extensive research she has written an entertaining...
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The S. S. Copenhagen
About three-quarters of a mile off Pompano Beach’s shoreline lies the wreck of the S. S. Copenhagen. An English-built single-screw steamer launched in 1898 and registered in Scotland to the Glasgow Shipowners Company, the schooner-rigged ship was about 325 feet long. On May 26, 1900, during a voyage from Philadelphia bound for Havana transporting some 4,940 tons of coal, the Copenhagen ran...
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The Name's the Same
Two municipalities in Palm Beach County, Lake Worth and Hypoluxo, are named for the same natural feature. The local Indian name for the body of water known as Lake Worth was hypoluxo, meaning long water.
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Second Time's a Charm
Pompano Beach’s neighboring municipality, Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, was first incorporated on November 30, 1927, the ninth city to be incorporated in Broward County. In 1933, during, and as a result of, the Great Depression, the State of Florida revoked the town’s charter. Lauderdale-By-The-Sea was reincorporated on November 30, 1947.
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The Robbery Takes Place
Continuing with Hix Stuart’s account of the Ashley gang’s Bank of Pompano hold-up in 1924:At about 2:30 in the afternoon, Lynn, Middleton and Ashley entered the bank simultaneously. C. H. Cates, the cashier, and his assistant were the only persons in the bank, and they were engaged in making up the day’s balance. At the sharp command of “Hands Up!” from Lynn both...
