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HenryFlagler
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façadeandcharacteristicgreenshutterswaserected.TheContinentalwelcomedits
firstguestsonJune1,1901.Ithad186rooms,fifty-sixbathrooms,numerousparlors
andanenormousdiningroomfor350people.Thehotelpremisesalsohousedadance
pavilion,anine-holegolfcourse,tenniscourts,abowlingalley,stableswithhorses,
afinancialfiasco,bringingalossofover50thousanddollarsafterthefirstfiveyears.
In1913,theentirelandincludingthehotelwassoldtotheAtlanticBeachCorporation
andthenamewaschangedtoHotelAtlanticBeach.
From1895,Flagler’ssecondwife,IdaAlice,wassufferingfrommentalillness
andwastreatedinapsychiatrichospital.In1901,thestatelegislatureapproved
alawunderwhichanuntreatablementalconditioncouldbeconsideredgroundsfor
divorce;thisallowedFlaglertomarryforthethirdtime.OnAugust24,1901,at
theageofseventy-one,heweddedMaryLilyKenan,thirty-sevenyearsyoungerthan
him.Atthesametime,Flaglersetupaseveral-milliontrustfundtoensurelife-long
careforhisformerwife(whodiedin1930).In1902,thenewlywedsmovedinto
Whitehall–aBeaux-ArtspalaceinPalmBeachwithseventy-fiveroomsbuiltas
aweddinggiftforhisspouse.TheNewYorkHeralddescribedFlagler’snewhome
asK…morewonderfulthananypalaceinEurope,granderandmoremagnificent
locationamongwell-offAmericanfamiliesandPalmBeachwasconsideredaproper
placeforawinterresidence,suchasElMirasoloftheStotesburyfamily,ElSalano
oftheVanderbiltfamily,IlPalmettooftheWidenerfamily,LaGueridaoftheWana-
makerfamily,andsoforth.
ItseemedthatHenryFlaglerwouldfinallyretire.Afterall,hewasoverseventy
yearsold,spentmillionsonhisprojects,builtmagnificenthotelsfromSt.Augustineto
Miami,andhisrailroadsreachedthesouthernmosttipoftheFloridaPeninsula(Home-
stead).Nonetheless,hestillhadfirmambitions.Hewastemptedbytheclosenessof
Cuba,theCaribbean,MexicoandSouthAmerica,aswellastheUnitedStates’support
fortheconstructionofthePanamaCanal.Ifthatinvestmentcametofruition,thecity
ofKeyWest(situatedonanislandoftheverysamenameintheFloridaKeysarchi-
pelago)wouldhavebecometheclosestAmericandeep-waterportandanimportant
tradepoint.Flaglerwasconvincedthatinorderforhimtobenefitfromit,hehad
tofacilitatetransportationbymeansofconnectingKeyWesttothemainland.Ulti-
mately,inthesummerof1905,hestartedtheimplementationofacolossalendeavor
calledtheOverseasRailroad,alsoreferredtobysomeastheKFlagler’sFolly”,which
consistedinlaying128milesofrailroadtracksacrosstheislandsandtheopensea.With
JosephC.Meredithasitschiefconstructionengineer,theprojectrequirednumerous
engineeringinnovations,vastamountsofmaterialsandnearlythreethousandworkers.
Dikeswereformed,andsteelandconcretebridgeswereputupovertheseaandin
thewetlandsontheislands.Theconstructionworksweredelayedbyhurricanesthathit
