Speculation in Land: The Florida Boom and Crash

Conditions.

Florida before the 1920s was a relatively undeveloped state. It was almost devoid of industry, except for agriculture and tourism, and it had an extremely shaky financial system. Economic development was largely in the hands of outsiders, speculators such as Standard Oil's Henry M. Flagler, who was a promoter of the Florida East Coast Railroad and builder of luxury hotels and resorts in the state.

Promotion.

In the early 1920s Florida became increasingly attractive to Americans from other parts of the country. With its warm winters, exotic landscapes and seascapes, inexpensive real estate, and low cost of living, it seemed to be a paradise. Thus began a land rush south-ward from the cold, overpopulated northeastern states, propelled by newly adopted methods of promotion and publicity coming into use during the decade. Newspapers, radio commercials, elaborate brochures, and even William Jennings Bryan,...

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