Research Description

Henry Flagler and the Florida East Coast Railway's Influence on Florida's Urbanism

My area of interest for research for the University Scholars Program is how Henry Flagler and the Florida East Coast Railway created several new areas of urbanism along the east coast. Although Flagler is best known for his railway and his lavish hotels, my interest lies in the affects these elements had in the development of cities in Florida.

Most of my analysis would be conducted through tracking the development of cities before, during, and after Flagler and his contributions. Possible questions to be explored would be what were the principle elements that started the cities, what was lacking that Flagler introduced to impact the city, the effects of his developments both locally and statewide, how are the cities similar, how are they dissimilar, and what influenced Flagler’s path for creating the railway. Exploration of Flagler’s vision of bringing northerners to Florida will be an important component in understanding the language of urbanism that helped create Florida’s urban character.

Along with historical research, this project would involve a trip down the Florida East Coast Railway. When visiting the cities along the original line, I would consider elements of preservation, historical roots for city patterns, the new language derived by the cities’ history, and how Flagler was involved in the direction the cities took.

In conclusion, this research is meant to broaden the understanding of what distinguishes a Floridian city by exploring the roots of its creation. This research would include a written analysis of the findings, historical documentation that would support the analysis, a series of photos, sketches, diagrams, and drawings that explore conditions of urbanism and language that were influenced by Flagler, and written speculation on how the railway will continue to transform Florida’s urban conditions.