FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY-GENERAL OFFICE BUILDINGS
Location: Malaga St. between Oviedo and King St.
Henry
Flagler's railroad legacy is still highly visible on the Flagler College
campus. These three buildings located three blocks west of Ponce de Leon Hall
were used by the Florida East Coast Railway into the 21st century. Today the
three buildings are home to a men's residence hall, a women's residence hall
and the college's Office of Institutional Advancement and Alumni Relations.
The historical marker in front of the buildings reads:
"Florida East Coast Railway - General Office Buildings. Henry M. Flagler
built the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) to link his resort empire and
establish the east coast of Florida as 'The American Riviera.' Flagler, partner
with John D. Rockefeller in Standard Oil, developed the Atlantic shoreline with
a chain of luxury hotels from Jacksonville to Key West. Perhaps Flagler's
greatest achievement was the construction of the Key West Extension finished
shortly before his death in 1913. By 1916, the FEC Railway included 23
railroads, terminals, and bridge companies along 739 miles of track. Steamships
linked the railroad at Miami to Nassau, Bahamas, and at Key West to Havana,
Cuba. The Florida East Coast Hotel Company owned 14 resorts joined by the rail
lines. In St. Augustine, Flagler's 1888 railway station west of downtown was
replaced by three office towers built starting from south to north in 1922,
1923 and 1926. They served as the Railway's headquarters until 2006, when the
FEC provided a $7.2 million gift-in-equity, making possible the transfer of the
property to Flagler College. The College is committed to preservation of the
buildings and adapting them for College uses."
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