For Sale —American Paradise (62 page)

152. Citing a report by Worth M. Tippy, an investigator sent to Florida: American Red Cross News Release, September 29, 1926; Box 732, Folder DR-207.72, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926, News releases Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

152. A few Florida newspapers were starting to pick up on the effort: Newspaper clipping, undated, “Experience Of Local Unit In Storm Area Convinces Of Necessity For Relief,” no byline; Box 732, Folder DR-207, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926; Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

152. “Thousands of three- and four- and five-room cottages are now only a pile: Telegram, William B. Taylor, American Red Cross Headquarters, to Douglas Griesmer, Miami, Florida, September 30, 1926; Folder DR-207, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926, Reports and statistics, Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

153. In a news release from Washington, Payne said the Red Cross's fund-raising: American Red Cross News Release, October 1, 1926; Box 732, Folder 207, Florida hurricane 1917–1934; Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

153. That same day, Brisbane praised Warfield's outrageously misleading statements:
The Bee
of Danville, Virginia, October 1, 1926

153. The war of words reached a nasty apex on Saturday, October 2:
Miami Tribune
, September 18, 1926

154. The Red Cross fired back the next day: American Red Cross News Release, October 3, 1926; Box 732, Folder 207, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926; Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

154. That same day, Henry Baker, the Red Cross medical director in Miami, made an appeal: Radio script for Henry M. Baker for WRNY Radio; Box 732, Folder 207, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926; Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

154. Included in the comments was a cartoon that appeared on editorial pages of large newspapers:
The World-Herald
of Omaha, Nebraska, October 5, 1926

154. On October 8, the
Wall Street Journal
jumped back into the fracas
: Wall Street Journal
, October 8, 1926

155. A week after one of the nation's most influential newspapers allowed Knight:
Washington Post
, October 16, 1926

155. “The educational campaign minimizing the disaster”: Memo, James Fieser to Henry Baker; Box 732, Folder 207, Florida hurricane 1917–1934; Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

156. Despite the outrageous verbal assaults on their organization: American Red Cross news release, December 24, 1926; Box 732, Folder 207, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926; Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

156. Like thousands of other Florida residents, Edwin Menninger:
South Florida Developer
, September 24, 1926

Chapter Nine: Hope from the Swamp

157. But that's exactly what they heard when prankster Charles Haines:
Manitoba
(Ontario)
Free Press
, September 24, 1926

157. “Reports from all sections of the country showed that donations”:
New York Times
, October 15, 1926

158. The hurricane struck Havana around 10:45 that morning: Perez, Louis A. Jr.,
Winds of Change: Hurricanes and the Transformation of 19th-Century Cuba
(Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina Press, 2001) p. 6

159. “The sun is shining brightly in Miami”:
Miami Daily News
, October 20, 1926

159. Red Cross officials, however, were assembling a glum forecast: Memo, “Confidential Notes of Conference in Atlanta, October 23, 1926; Box 732, Folder 270, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926; Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

160. The November 1926 edition of the respected journal
Review of Reviews: Review of Reviews
, vol. LXXIV, no. 442, pp. 483–485

161. As 1926 drew to a close, Red Cross officials summarized their efforts: American Red Cross news release, December 24, 1925; Box 732, Folder 270, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926; Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

161. At 6:25 p.m. on the evening of January 5, 1927, Warfield: Turner, Greg M.,
A Journey Into Florida's Railroad History
(Gainesville, Florida, University Press of Florida, 2008) p. 204;
New York Times
, January 6, 1927
; New York Times
, January 8, 1927;
Miami Daily News
, January 8, 1927;
Miami Daily News
, January 9, 1927

163. Despite the new optimism among Miami boosters: Box 732, Folder 270, Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

164. By mid-
February, the Red Cross was ready: Box 732, Folder 270, Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, Florida hurricane 9-18-1934, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

164. Solomon Davies Warfield was known as an autocratic business leader: Turner, Gregg M.,
A Journey Into Florida Railroad History
(Gainesville, University Press of Florida, 2008) p. 199

164. On March 1, 1927, Henry Baker, the director of the Red Cross relief effort in Miami:
Miami Herald
, March 2, 1926

164. The following day, Baker was invited to a smaller gathering: Letter, Henry Baker to James Fieser, March 3, 1927; Box 732, Folder 270, Florida hurricane 9-18-1926;
Donated Records Collection, formerly Records Group 200, Records of the American National Red Cross 1917–1934, National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

165. “It leaps like a flung lance”: Douglas, Marjory Stoneman,
The Everglades: River of Grass
(Sarasota, Florida, Pineapple Press, 1997) pp. 342–343

166. For all of the exotic wildlife in the Everglades: Author's visits to Everglades, 1993–97, 2000, and 2013

167. Otto Neal, who worked on the Tamiami Trail:
The Collier County
(Naples, Florida)
News
, April 26, 1928

167. At first glance, the walking dredge: Author's visit to Collier-Seminole State Park, Naples, Florida, November 20, 2013

167. Meece Ellis, who worked on the construction project:
Orlando Sentinel
, March 1, 1998

168. But other accounts say that men died: Douglas, Marjory Stoneman,
The Everglades: River of Grass
(Sarasota, Florida, Pineapple Press, 1997) p. 344

168. Many men who hired on with the construction project: Haney, P.B; Lewis, W.J.; and Lambert, W.R.,
Cotton Production and the Boll Weevil in Georgia: History, Cost of Control, and Benefits of Eradication
(Athens, GA: College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, The University of Georgia, 2012) p. 14

168. “First a crew went forward through sawgrass”: Douglas, Marjory Stoneman,
The Everglades: River of Grass
(Sarasota, Florida, Pineapple Press, 1997) p. 344

168. At one point, Collier was asked how many shifts:
Naples
(Florida)
Daily News
, July 4, 1976

168. “The men on the job were wonderful”:
The Collier County
(Naples, Florida)
News
, April 26, 1928

168. “They were not violent men, but their lives were full of violence”: Crews, Harry,
Classic Crews: A Harry Crews Reader
(New York, Touchstone Books, 1995) p. 24

169. “He had not wanted her”: Crews, Harry,
Classic Crews: A Harry Crews Reader
(New York, Touchstone Books, 1995) p. 20

169. Moonshine was another source of diversion:
The Davenport
(Iowa)
Democrat
, August 26, 1926

169. Ellis, the former dredge operator:
The Orlando Sentinel
, March 1, 1998

169. Roan Johnson was another young Georgian:
The Miami Herald
, August 31, 2003

169. The nights were “dark as only a swamp”: Crews, Harry,
Classic Crews: A Harry Crews Reader
(New York, Touchstone Books, 1995) p. 19

169. The men were fed in the work camps:
The Orlando Sentinel
, March 1, 1998

170. The work gang that followed the crew clearing: Author's telephone interview with Bob DeGross, Chief of Interpretation and Public Affairs, Big Cypress National Preserve, Ochopee, Florida, May 28, 2014

170. “Sometimes the drills stuck in the mud: Douglas, Marjory Stoneman,
The Everglades: River of Grass
(Sarasota, Florida, Pineapple Press, Inc., 1997) p. 344

170. In its November 1928 issue:
Explosives Engineer
magazine, November 1927, reprinted in
History of the Tamiami Trail
, published by The Tamiami Trail Commissioners and the County Commissioners of Dade County, Florida, 1928, p. 22

170. The limestone was crushed: Author's telephone interview with Bob DeGross, Chief of Interpretation and Public Affairs, Big Cypress National Preserve, Ochopee, Florida, May 28, 2014

170. “Just ten days behind the schedule”:
The Collier County
(Naples, Florida)
News
, April 26, 1928

171. With a bottle of whiskey on the floorboard: Crews, Harry,
Classic Crews: A Harry Crews Reader
(New York, Touchstone, 1995) pp. 22–23.

171. . . . a heavily guarded armored car left Miami:
New York Times
, March 9, 1927

171. On March 16 at the Boston Braves' spring training camp:
The Evening Independent
of St. Petersburg, Florida, May 16, 1927;
Modesto
(California)
News-Herald
, March 17, 1927

172. On August 7, 1927, Horace Alderman and his partner: Buchanan, Patricia, “Miami's Bootleg Boom,”
Tequesta
, vol. 30, 1979, pp. 25–26

172. In late September 1927, Menninger met briefly:
South Florida Developer
, October
28, 1927

173. Warfield's doctor told the
New York Times: New York Times,
October 25, 1927

173. “Stuart as a community will feel this blow”:
South Florida Developer
, October 28, 1927;
Kingsport
(Tennessee)
Times
, October 25, 1927;
The Gettysburg
(Pennsylvania)
Times
, November 23, 1927

Chapter Ten: Mr. Brown in Paradise

174. Maybe the Everglades sunset lifted the spirits of the Boston Braves:
Miami Daily News
, March 27, 1928;
Miami Daily News
, March 28, 1928

174. Their bus would be one of the first vehicles:
Lincoln
(Nebraska)
State Journal
, March
28, 1928

174. . . . Miami's boosters were confident that a large crowd:
Miami Daily News
, March
28, 1928

175. Brooklyn won the game, 9–0:
Evening Independent
, 3-30-1928

175. “If Adam and Eve could have seen Florida”:
South Florida Developer
, January 13, 1928