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The Seminoles once roamed the land that encompasses Wilton Manors, until Henry Flagler brought his East Coast Railway through the untamed wilderness in the late nineteenth century. By 1910, the railway had transformed the area into a viable farming and shipping hamlet known as Colohatchee, until a wealthy businessman began marketing the plot of land nestled between the North and South branches of the Middle River as a beautiful bedroom suburb of Fort Lauderdale. The 1926 housing market crash in south Florida, paired with a devastating hurricane brought an end to this dream one that wouldn't be revived until after WWII. Join local author Ben Little and the Wilton Manors Historical Society as they chronicle the history of this incredible town, from its humble roots to the thriving urban community it is today.
Whether the residents planned just to spend winters in Wilton Manors or the rest of their lives, it was no matter to E.J. "Ned" Willingham, a Georgian with a grandiose plan for the piny scrublands just outside the growing city of Fort Lauderdale. Willingham was rare among land speculators during the "Florida Frenzy"--a scrupulously honest man. He named this development, his favorite, Wilton Manors. Willingham envisioned a graceful community of modest homes on large yards, with schools, a hotel, and small parks dotting the exclusive, whites-only enclave. Almost 80 years later, Willingham's little community lives on, but not in the fashion he might have expected. His all-white community has grown and matured into a pleasantly diverse and uncommonly tolerant place with lovely homes, outstanding city services, and an eye on preserving its genteel history.
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Oakland Park was named for the massive stand of trees that lined the Middle River. Our first permanent settlers were the Whidby family, who came from Georgia to South Florida in 1901, when the area was known as Colahatchee. By 1918, other farming families had moved into the area, and bean and pepper fields were abundant. In 1923, a Miami development company initiated the Oakland Park subdivision with one of the biggest barbecues ever held in Broward County, with an estimated attendance of 5,000 people from Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties. The city was incorporated first as Floranada in early 1925 by the American-British Improvement Company, a group of international investors. Plans fo...