Essay Database

George Merrick, a son of a Congregational minister, Solomon Merrick, was not even thirty years old when he embarked on the construction of Coral Gables. His family first came here when he was only a child, escaping the raging blizzard happening in New England at the time. They were actually headed for Miami, but, because of a yellow fever quarantine, they decided to settle west in an area known then as "pine land. George had …

…for the city included one more golf course, a yacht club, several yacht basins, an amusement island, a two thousand- room hotel and casino, and other outdoor sports facilities. The abundance and generosity of the invented landscape of Coral Gables, in the form of Unique open spaces, giant banyon trees, poincianas and a variety of palm trees provides comfort to the resident, and dazzles the visitors' eye and confirms Merrick's vision of the American Dream.