Henry Morrison Flagler was a genius business man and philanthropist. Although not on the scale of Rockerfeller, who was his contemporary, Flgaler was an architect of Florida's economy. His contributions were largely in railroads, steamship lines and fuel. He left a magnificent residence in Palm Beach that now serves as a museum.
Museum Event & Experience
In the early 1900's, Henry Flagler built a 75-room, 100,000 square-foot home that was used as a Palm Beach winter retreat for his family. Gatherings at the residence -- known as Whitehall -- were an establishing force of the Palm Beach season for wealthy families during the Gilded Age. Flagler died roughly 100 years ago, and subsequent years saw the residence and grounds become a National Historic Landmark and achieve consistent support through the fund development of the Whitehall Society, an organization created to cultivate fiscal support and ensure sufficient patronage to preserve Whitehall. One of the main areas of focus for the Whitehall Society is the support of creative educational programs for children. For instance, in March 2014, the Whitehall Society will host a Mad Hatter's Tea at which children and their parents will craft festive hats and practice table etiquette at a Gilded Age styled lunch in the Cafe de Beaux-Arts housed in the Flagler Kenan Pavilion on the Museum grounds. This upcoming event is a bit different than most of the Whitehall Society fund-raisers in that it children are primary participants and the focus of the event. The event that I attended was definitely designed for adult connoisseurs of the arts.
November 9, 2013, at the customary time before dinner, the Whitehall Society hosted a cocktail party designed to celebrate the tradition of cocktails -- and its history in America. Attendance at the fundraiser was moderately priced, with $40 for members of the Whitehall Society, and $50 for non-members. Hors d'oeuvres were suitably served in Flagler Kenan Pavilion at One Whitehall Way, Palm Beach, Florida. Six cocktails popular during the time in American known as the Gilded Ages were featured, providing guests ample opportunity to taste cocktails and identify their favorites.
Attendees were members of the Board of Trustees of Whitehall, donors and guests, including: Rob Hanke, William Matthews, Baxter & Ann Webb, Brooke Chapman-Marshman, Robert Murphy, April Wehle, Homer Marshman, Nicole & Ryan Munder, and Pam & Brad Miller. While guests were dressed in contemporary fashion -- unlike the adornment worn at the Bal Poudres, which means powdered wig balls, held at Whitehall -- the setting was more contemporary than the main floors of Whitehall. The Flagler Kenan Pavilion is an extraordinarily beautiful, large, and complex structure.
The architects of Whitehall were trained at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. The Flagler Kenan Pavilion illustrates the beau-arts tradition well, and is a fitting location for a celebratory event. Whitehall was constructed to evoke a Grecian temple, such as those constructed to honor Apollo. The Greeks believed that temples to Apollo functioned as homes for Muses of art and literature. Notably, the word museum translates as home of the Muses. Accordingly, Whitehall became the first museum in Florida.
The Pavilion is a newer structure, designed by a Palm Beach firm, Smith Architecture Group, and holds the distinction of being the first public building built in the U.S. In the Beaux-Arts style in the last 60 years. Interestingly, the private railcar of Henry Morrison Flagler is kept in the 8,100 square-foot Pavilion. In keeping with the 100-year mark of Flagler's legacy, the exhibit on display was a collection of historical photographs detailing the life and rise of Henry Morrison Flagler.
Three rooms of the museum are dedicated to the collection of photographs and ephemera. The collection is interestingly varied, including documents, maps, photographs, postcards -- each of which contributes to the mosaic of a man known to many as a businessman of considerable brilliance, a generous host and philanthropist, and a remarkably visionary economic developer. The images span panoramic photos to group snapshots that feature the railroad workers, the engineering crew, the gathering of guests at a New Year's Eve ball, and ladies enjoying afternoon tea at the residence. The business side of Flagler's life is well documented in images that feature Standard Oil, a company co-founded by Flagler, John D. Rockefeller, and Samuel Andrews, and the Florida East Coast Steamship Co. An entertaining piece is a postcard that promotes Havana as "the Paris of the Western Hemisphere." Interestingly, at the time the postcard was sent, a round trip ticket to Havana would have cost a vacationer about $20 from Orlando or about $18.70 from Tampa -- not a trifling sum in those days.
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