Florida Made: The 25 Most Important Figures Who Shaped the State

by GEORGE S. LEMIEUX, LAURA E. MIZE

Overview

Once considered just an insect-ridden swampland, Florida is now a top destination for tourism, business, agriculture and innovation thanks to these 25 individuals.

Florida is in many ways both the oldest and newest of the megastates. The ideas and actions of a colorful cast of characters - from beloved cultural icons to political heroes and even a socialist dictator - transformed the peninsula. A Barbados native rescued Florida's orange industry after the catastrophic 1835 freeze. Known as the "Grande Dame of the Everglades," Marjory Stoneman Douglas worked tirelessly to save the state's vast, incomparable wetlands from annihilation in the early twentieth century. In the mid-1800s, a Florida doctor developed a precursor to modern air conditioning. Join former U.S. senator George LeMieux and journalist Laura Mize as they profile and rank, according to impact, the 25 trailblazers who have changed the Sunshine State forever.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781467140034
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	04/09/2018
Series:	American Heritage
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.31(d)

About the Author

George S. LeMieux is a native Floridian who has a varied career in both the public and private sectors. George served as Florida's 34th United States Senator in the 111th Congress. In the United States Senate, he served on the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee; the Armed Services Committee; and the Special Committee on Aging. George also worked as Florida's deputy attorney general, managing more than four hundred attorneys and appearing before appellate courts on behalf of the State of Florida, including the United States Supreme Court. As the governor's chief of staff, he oversaw, on behalf of the governor, all state agencies and operations. In that role, he negotiated a gaming compact with the Seminole Tribe of Florida.

George currently serves as the chairman of the board of Gunster law firm. He is the founder of the LeMieux Center for Public Policy at Palm Beach Atlantic University. He lives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.



Laura E. Mize is a freelance journalist and former reporter for the Palm Beach Post. She has written extensively about Florida business, culture, food and dining and agriculture. She also has worked as a health and medical sciences writer for organizations such as the University of Florida and Mayo Clinic and the nationally syndicated radio show Health in a Heartbeat. Laura's work has appeared in newspapers across the country and in the Local Palate magazine. She lives in Southwest Florida with her husband and daughter.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements 9

Introduction 11

1 Henry Morrison Flagler 15

2 Walter Elias Disney 25

3 Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz 35

4 Henry Bradley Plant 47

5 and 6 Hamilton Disston and Napoleon Bonaparte Broward 57

7 Dr. Joseph Yates Porter 69

8 Dr. John Gorrie 81

9 Captain Washington Irving Chambers 91

10 Julia DeForest Tuttle 101

11 Carl Graham Fisher 109

12 Douglas Dummett 117

13 Dr. Kurt Heinrich Debus 125

14 Barron Gift Collier Sr. 137

15 Marjory Stoneman Douglas 145

16 Mary McLeod Bethune 153

17 Thomas LeRoy Collins 159

18 Pedro Menéndez de Avilés 167

19 and 20 James Monroe and John Quincy Adams 173

21 Ted Arison 179

22 Harry Wayne Huizenga 187

23 George Washington Jenkins Jr. 195

24 Julius Frederick Stone Jr. 201

25 Chief James Edward Billie 207

Conclusion 215

Notes 219

Bibliography 241

Index 273

About the Authors 283

Editorial Reviews

"Made elegant being printed on glossy paper, which makes the illustrations stand out, this book is a must-have for Floridians who love their state and want to brag about it. It will also bring pleasure to readers who love history and enjoy seeing how the present attributes of an area grew out of the creative genius and hard work of far-sighted individuals. Written in an attractive, engaging prose style, it will make a fine addition to any Florida library. It's also a good choice for gift giving." Florida Weekly



"Some of the most influential people in the history of Florida include household names such as Henry Flagler, Walt Disney and … Fidel Castro? According to a new book from former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux and co-author Laura Mize, the late Cuban dictator's unlikely role in molding the Sunshine State had to do with his authoritarian regime, which was so bad that it precipitated the influx of Cuban residents that remade Miami. It was a "sleepy, Southern town" before Cubans and other Hispanic people started flooding in and changing the city into the bustling, international metropolis that exists today." Palm Beach Daily News

"There must be something about holding statewide office in Florida that gives leaders a unique appreciation of how we got here and where we're headed. And, once they leave office, they have the time and perspective to share what they've learned.

Former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux is the latest to record an entertaining, very useful look back at the people and events that made this state what it is, for good or not-so-good. "Florida Made," coauthored with former Palm Beach Post reporter Laura Mize, is subtitled "The 25 most important figures who shaped the state."

The Florida Made roster of 25 includes some obvious heroes like Collins, who kept Florida from going the way of other southern states in the futile resistance to racial integration, and Marjory Stoneman Douglas, whose writings and environmental activism probably saved the Everglades from being paved. There are visionaries like Walt Disney, Henry Flagler, Wayne Huizenga and Henry B. Plant, whose business empires shaped the state." Tallahassee Democrat

From the Publisher