Editing Lake Worth Beach, Florida (section)

==History==

===Prior to incorporation===

Native Americans migrated into Florida beginning about 12,000&nbsp;years ago.<ref name="native"/> While evidence near the town of [[Jupiter, Florida|Jupiter]] indicates local inhabitation dating back to the [[Paleo-Indians|Paleo-Indian period]],<ref name="sampler">{{cite web|url=http://www.pbchistoryonline.org/page/archaeology-in-palm-beach-county-a-sampler|title=Archaeology in Palm Beach County|publisher=Historical Society of Palm Beach County|accessdate=October 16, 2023|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230409112716/http://www.pbchistoryonline.org/page/archaeology-in-palm-beach-county-a-sampler|archivedate=April 9, 2023}}</ref> the [[Jaega]] were the first known tribe to have resided along the Florida Atlantic coast in the areas of [[Martin County, Florida|Martin]] and [[Palm Beach County, Florida|Palm Beach]] counties.<ref name="native">{{cite web|url=http://www.pbchistoryonline.org/page/native-americans|title=Native Americans|publisher=Historical Society of Palm Beach County|accessdate=October 16, 2023|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407002037/http://www.pbchistoryonline.org/page/native-americans|archivedate=April 7, 2023}}</ref> The remains of shell mounds sites, mostly dating back to approximately 750–1500&nbsp;[[Common Era|CE]], attest to [[Pre-Columbian era|pre-Columbian]] Jaega inhabitation near Lake Worth Beach, including in [[Boynton Beach, Florida|Boynton Beach]], [[Palm Beach, Florida|Palm Beach]], and [[South Palm Beach, Florida|South Palm Beach]].<ref name="sampler"/>

Among the city's first non-indigenous settlers were Samuel and Fannie James. The Jameses were an [[African American]] couple reported to be ex-[[slaves]], known as the Black Diamonds, who settled on the shores of the [[Lake Worth Lagoon]] near the current 5th Avenue South in 1885. A stone monument dedicated to Samuel and Fannie James at the northwest corner of Lucerne Avenue ([[Florida State Road 802|State Road 802]]) and J Street inaccurately uses the date 1883, due to a transcription error.<ref name="case study"/>{{rp|29}} The couple made a claim for their land under the [[Homestead Act]] in 1885.<ref name="case study">{{cite journal|url=http://www.pbchistoryonline.org/uploads/file/Fannie%20and%20Samuel%20James.pdf|title=Social Status and Race in the Pioneer Lake Worth Community - A Case Study of Fannie and Samuel James|author=Ted Brownstein|journal=The Tustenegee|date=Fall 2013|publisher=Historical Society of Palm Beach County|accessdate=November 16, 2021}}</ref>{{rp|25}} Their holdings, originally {{convert|187|acres|abbr=on}}, increased over time to more than {{convert|700|acres|abbr=on}},<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.historicalsocietyoflakeworth.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/oldesthousebrochure-final-less-picture.pdf|title=Lake Worth's Oldest Houses|publisher=Historical Society of Lake Worth Beach|accessdate=November 16, 2021}}</ref>{{rp|1}} including {{convert|160|acres|abbr=on}} of homestead land south of Lake Avenue (State Road 802) between M and F Streets;<ref name="brownstein">{{Cite book|title=Pioneers of Jewell|author=Ted Brownstein|publisher=Lake Worth Herald Publications|year=2013|isbn=978-0-9832609-4-3|location=Lake Worth, Florida}}</ref>{{rp|82}} {{convert|163.3|acres|abbr=on}} in modern-day [[College Park Historic District (Lake Worth, Florida)|College Park]], acquired from the estate of William Stephan, where Fannie ran a pineapple farm;<ref name="brownstein"/>{{rp|33–34}} and {{convert|160|acres|abbr=on}} to the south between the current [[Dixie Highway (Broward–Palm Beach)|Dixie]] and Federal highways ([[U.S. Route 1|Route 1]] and [[Florida State Road 5|State Road 5]]), acquired from Swedish immigrants Olai and Sarah Gudmundsen.<ref name="brownstein"/>{{rp|56–57}}

The initial name of the area's first post office was Jewel (sometimes spelled Jewell),<ref name="koontz">{{cite book|title=Lake Worth: Jewel of the Gold Coast|author=Jonathan W. Koontz|publisher=The Greater Lake Worth Chamber of Commerce|date=1997}}</ref>{{rp|20}} which served the few residences between [[Lantana, Florida|Lantana]] and [[West Palm Beach, Florida|West Palm Beach]]. Between 1889 and 1903, Fannie James served as postmaster of the post office, located in a small dry goods shop, which the couple operated to serve the lake traffic that connected the small [[Settler|pioneer]] homesteads located along the banks of the Lake Worth Lagoon.<ref name="hspbc">{{cite web|url=https://www.pbchistoryonline.org/page/city-of-lake-worth|title=Lake Worth Beach, Florida|publisher=Historical Society of Palm Beach County|accessdate=October 16, 2023|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404154413/https://www.pbchistoryonline.org/page/city-of-lake-worth|archivedate=April 4, 2023}}</ref> Area pioneers also reported that Jewell was included as a stop on the route of the [[barefoot mailman]] via the [[Jupiter and Lake Worth Railway|Celestial Railroad]] by July 1889.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Barefoot Mail Route|publisher=Lake Worth Pioneer Association|url=http://www.lwpa.org/barefoot_mail_route.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120218185102/http://www.lwpa.org/barefoot_mail_route.html|accessdate=November 4, 2021|archivedate=February 18, 2012}}</ref>
[[File:Bryant_and_Greenwood_office.jpg|thumb|right|The office of Bryant & Greenwood along Lake Avenue ({{c.|1912|lk=no}})]]
Beginning in the 1890s, the Jameses sold off most of their acreage in a number of parcels ranging in size from {{convert|5|to|20|acres|abbr=on}} to new residents and investors.<ref name="case study"/>{{rp|28}} After Samuel's death in 1909, Fannie sold her remaining {{convert|156|acres|abbr=on}} to the developer, Palm Beach Farms Company, keeping only a 1.25&nbsp;acre (0.51&nbsp;ha) farmette,<ref name="brownstein"/>{{rp|117}} which lay outside the new city limits as required by the segregation provisions of the 1913 town of Lake Worth charter.<ref name="brownstein"/>{{rp|119}}

After [[Henry Flagler]] extended the [[Florida East Coast Railway]] (FEC) south from West Palm Beach to [[Miami]] in 1896, a land development scheme was created to plant a [[townsite]] between the railroad and the lake.<ref name="koontz"/>{{rp|74}} Purchasers of agricultural lots, most of which were located in modern-day [[Greenacres, Florida|Greenacres]], would also receive a small {{convert|25|by|25|ft|m|abbr=on}} lot within the city of Lake Worth.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pbchistoryonline.org/page/greenacres|title=Greenacres|publisher=Historical Society of Palm Beach County|accessdate=October 16, 2023|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404154409/https://www.pbchistoryonline.org/page/greenacres|archivedate=April 4, 2023}}</ref> The developer, Bryant & Greenwood, promoted the area to markets across the United States and Canada.<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|17}} They proposed to name the town Lucerne,<ref>{{cite news|title=Lucerne – The City Beautiful|newspaper=Lucerne Herald|url=http://archive.boyntonlibrary.org/jsp/RcWebImageViewer.jsp?doc_id=7ca4f3f1-544c-490b-bb0f-898bb02763ff%2fboyntonb%2f20180507%2f00000543|date=May 23, 1912|page=1|accessdate=November 4, 2021}}</ref> but the [[United States Postal Service]] refused to accept the name because there already was a [[Lake Lucerne, Florida|Lucerne]] post office, now a [[neighborhood]] in [[Miami Gardens, Florida|Miami Gardens]]. Therefore, the city founders changed the new town's name to Lake Worth.<ref name="old lucerne"/>{{rp|29}}

In April 1911, "A solitary Indian mound surrounded by wild woods marked the spot where flourishing Lake Worth is now growing beyond the most vivid imagination", according to a promotional article published in the ''Lake Worth Herald''.<ref name="eyes">{{cite news|newspaper=Lake Worth Herald|date=August 28, 1913|url=http://archive.boyntonlibrary.org/jsp/RcWebImageViewer.jsp?doc_id=de29bdcb-c0d8-44da-aa34-4213f7cd747c/boyntonb/20180314/00000028&pg_seq=7&search_doc=|title=The Eyes of the World are Turned Toward Lake Worth|page=7|accessdate=September 7, 2022}}</ref> The population of the nascent city stood at 38 in July 1912.<ref name="timeline1862-1913">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/89081577/the-palm-beach-post/|title=Lake Worth: Growth of a Beach Town|author=J.D. Vivian|date=June 27, 2013|page=S3|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|via=[[Newspapers.com]]|accessdate=November 3, 2021}}</ref>

During that year, the library, schoolhouse, newspaper, Women's Club, Chamber of Commerce, first church,<ref name="old lucerne"/>{{rp|28}} and first railroad station (operated by the FEC at Lake Avenue) were established.<ref name="mustaine"/>{{rp|53}} The town's first census in December&nbsp;1912 indicated that there were "308&nbsp;residents, 125&nbsp;houses, 10&nbsp;wagons, seven automobiles, 36&nbsp;bicycles and 876&nbsp;fowls."<ref name="hspbc"/> Additionally, from 1911 to 1912, the Palm Beach Farms Company platted approximately 7,000&nbsp;residential lots and constructed some {{convert|55|mi|km|abbr=on}} of roads, including Lake Avenue, a major thoroughfare.<ref name="DYK">{{cite journal|url=https://www.pbchistoryonline.org/uploads/file/Did%20You%20Know-%20Lake%20Worth.pdf|title=Did You Know...|journal=The Tustenegee|date=April 2012|publisher=Historical Society of Palm Beach County|accessdate=November 17, 2021}}</ref>

===Incorporation to the Great Depression===
Lake Worth Beach was incorporated as the "town of Lake Worth" on June&nbsp;14, 1913.<ref name=LaWoHistory/> Its first elected Mayor was James Love, a carpenter and member of the [[Socialist Party of America]].<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /> The town grew rapidly enough that a new addition was platted in that inaugural year. The area along the [[Intracoastal Waterway]] from 5th Avenue South to 15th Avenue South still bears the name ''Addition 1.''<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|15}} An advertisement in the ''Lake Worth Herald'' in 1913 noted: "In the new addition, the Lake front has been divided into large lots covered with palm and tropical growth, where we expect to see charming villas and winter homes spring up as by enchantment. It will be the fashionable part of town, where the wealthy of the earth can display their artistic taste and make ideal homes. These lots are selling so fast that but very few are left."<ref name="eyes" /> Another section of the town was plotted in 1917, the Osborne Colored Addition, a small African American neighborhood along the south end of Lake Worth and west of the FEC. Some of the first African American families arrived in the addition in the early 1920s, when the [[Ku Klux Klan]] forced them out of western Lantana.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/89065751/the-palm-beach-post/|title=Eliminating epithet from county records not easy, officials say|author=Angela Hornsby|date=September 11, 1994|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|page=4B|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=November 18, 2021}}</ref>

Two years after the addition was platted, a wooden automobile traffic bridge over Lake Worth was completed in 1919,<ref name="old lucerne"/>{{rp|30}} the same year the Brelsford family of Palm Beach deeded a {{convert|1,000|ft|m|abbr=on}} parcel of land on the barrier island to the town.<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|18}} 
[[File:Lake_Worth_FL_Old_Lucerne_Res_HD_house03.jpg|thumb|left|A house (built in 1923) in the [[Old Lucerne Historic Residential District]]<ref name="old lucerne"/>{{rp|12}}]]
The town benefited with the rest of South Florida during the [[Florida land boom of the 1920s]], with Lake Worth's population more than quintupling from 1,106 in 1920 to nearly 6,000 in 1930.<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|15}} Following the approval of a $100,000 bond issue in 1920, the Mediterranean Revival-style Lake Worth Casino and Baths was constructed.<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|18}} Opening two years later, the casino drew many tourists to the area.<ref name="100th jewels1"/>

Moreover, the 1920s saw the completion of the [[Gulf Stream Hotel]], which is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] (NRHP),<ref name="old town">{{cite report|url=https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/1bdba7d5-7a18-46c3-9275-4eb7c5091cd2|title=Historic Old Town Commercial District|publisher=National Register of Historic Places|date=2001|accessdate=November 4, 2021}}</ref>{{rp|18}} as well as the construction of [[Lake Worth Community High School]] in 1922 and many commercial and industrial buildings and neighborhoods, including College Park and Lake Worth Heights in 1924.<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|15}}<ref name="100th jewels2"/> Lake Worth reincorporated as a city in 1925, while boundaries of the municipality expanded several times throughout the land boom.<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|15}} One year later, the [[Seaboard Air Line Railroad|Seaboard Air Line Railway]] constructed a freight and passenger depot in Lake Worth on 4th Avenue North.<ref name="mustaine"/>{{rp|53}}

William A. Boutwell arrived in the area in the 1920s. He established Boutwell Dairy in 1927 and managed the company until retiring in 1956. Boutwell is credited with inventing [[Half and half#Dairy product|half & half creamer]]; the dairy later merged with Alfar Creamery and then T.G. Lee, who distributed the product more widely until it became an American diner staple.<ref name="mustaine">{{cite book |author=Beverly Mustaine|date=1999 |title=The Images of America: On Lake Worth |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YEczDwAAQBAJ&q=%22boutwell%22+half+and+half+%22lake+worth%22&pg=PA55 |location=Charleston, South Carolina |publisher=Arcadia Books|isbn=978-0-7385-0055-3 }}</ref>{{rp|55}}<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pbchistoryonline.org/uploads/file/Alfar%20Creamery.pdf |title=Alfar Creamery|publisher=Historical Society of Palm Beach County|work=[[The Palm Beach Post]]|accessdate=November 4, 2021}}</ref><ref name="kleinberg">{{cite news |url=http://historicpalmbeach.blog.palmbeachpost.com/2001/12/05/lake-worths-boutwell-road-named-after-area-dairyman/|author=Eliot Kleinberg|date=December 5, 2001|title=Lake Worth's Boutwell Road Named After Area Dairyman |newspaper=The Palm Beach Post, Historic Palm Beach Blog|access-date=November 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150515124042/http://historicpalmbeach.blog.palmbeachpost.com/2001/12/05/lake-worths-boutwell-road-named-after-area-dairyman/ |archive-date=May 15, 2015|url-status=dead }}</ref> Boutwell also owned a grocery store and masonry supply store. Furthermore, he served as a Lake Worth city commissioner from 1924 to 1927 and briefly as vice mayor.<ref name="kleinberg"/> During his tenure, the city constructed approximately {{convert|36|mi|km|abbr=on}} of roads and two elementary schools,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/89136168/the-palm-beach-post/|page=2B|title=LW Dairy Pioneer Buried|date=July 3, 1982|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=November 18, 2021}}</ref> including the still active South Grade Elementary School.<ref name="100th jewels2"/>
[[File:1928 Okeechobee Aftermath 12.jpg|thumb|right|Scenes of devastation from the 1928 hurricane in Lake Worth]]
The [[1928 Okeechobee hurricane]] devastated Lake Worth. A survey indicated that the storm demolished about 600&nbsp;homes and damaged 1,500&nbsp;others, leaving about 700&nbsp;people homeless.<ref name="uf">{{cite web|url=http://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00001306/00001/1j|title=Palm Beach Hurricane—92 Views|date=1928|publisher=American Autochrome Company|accessdate=June 27, 2015|location=Chicago, Illinois}}</ref>{{rp|5}} Fewer than 10% of homes escaped damage.<ref name="property loss here">{{cite news|url=http://archive.boyntonlibrary.org/jsp/RcWebImageViewer.jsp?doc_id=de29bdcb-c0d8-44da-aa34-4213f7cd747c/boyntonb/20180612/00000206|title=Property Loss Here Placed at $3,000,000|date=September 21, 1928|newspaper=Lake Worth Herald|page=1|accessdate=November 5, 2021}}</ref> Approximately 50&nbsp;businesses were wrecked and 200&nbsp;others received damage – roughly 75% of buildings in the business district.<ref name="uf"/> The storm demolished or severely damaged many buildings, including First Presbyterian Church, St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, the Oakley Theater, the Gulf Stream Hotel, the Scottish Rites Cathedral, the Masonic Temple, the Florida Hotel, a car dealership, a sporting goods store, an investment company, the [[Old Lake Worth City Hall]],<ref name="property loss here"/> and an auditorium at [[Lake Worth Community High School]].<ref name="lwcharges">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/5720888/the_palm_beach_post/|title=1500 Homeless Are Lake Worth Charges|date=September 20, 1928|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|page=1|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=June 29, 2016}}</ref> Additionally, the bridge across the Intracoastal Waterway was virtually destroyed.<ref name="boyd">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19679401/the_palm_beach_post/|title=County's Storm Loss Will Total $350,000 According To Boyd|date=September 28, 1928|page=2|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=April 30, 2018}}</ref> The hurricane caused approximately $4&nbsp;million worth of damages in Lake Worth,<ref name="uf"/>{{rp|5}} as well as three deaths.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/9097876/the_palm_beach_post/|title=John Joy Dies After Exposure From Storm|date=September 21, 1928|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|page=6|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=February 22, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/9098316/the_palm_beach_post/|title=Storm Exposure Is Blamed For Death|date=September 25, 1928|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|page=6|accessdate=February 22, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/9098040/the_palm_beach_post/|title=Aged Lake Worth Man Second Storm Fatality|date=September 22, 1928|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|page=3|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=February 22, 2017}}</ref>

In the immediate aftermath of the storm, the Gulf Stream Hotel was converted to a makeshift hospital.<ref name="uf"/>{{rp|5}} The devastation left Lake Worth without a functional center for city government, although records were mostly unscathed. Consequently, a temporary [[city hall]] was established at the Lauriston building.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/9098148/the_palm_beach_post/|title=Important Lake Worth Records Found Intact|date=September 22, 1928|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|page=3|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=February 22, 2017}}</ref> The storm, combined with the [[Great Depression]] led to a severe economic decline within the community. Construction projects primarily shifted to repairing damaged buildings. However, there were a few conservation, construction, and [[New Deal]] projects during the 1930s.<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|16}} This included when President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s [[Works Progress Administration]] built the striking,<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|18}} Moorish-styled "city gymnasium" on the corner of Lake Avenue and Dixie Highway. The building today serves as the Lake Worth Beach City Hall.<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|8}}

===World War II to present===

[[File:Lakeworthcasino1953.jpg|thumb|right|A postcard ({{c.|1953|lk=no}}) showing the shoebox-style Lake Worth Casino built following the [[1947 Fort Lauderdale hurricane|1947 hurricane]]]]
Although no military installations were located in Lake Worth, the presence of military bases and repair facilities in nearby towns led to a significant increase in the city's population during [[World War II]], from 7,406&nbsp;in 1940 to 10,615&nbsp;about five years later.<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|27}} Development started again after World War II, especially due to the approval of the [[G.I. Bill]], allowing new homes to become affordable. Many veterans who trained in South Florida also returned to the area, leading to a population boom.<ref name="facts">{{cite web|url=https://lakeworthbeachfl.gov/our-city/facts-and-information/|title=Facts and Information|publisher=City of Lake Worth Beach, Florida|accessdate=November 24, 2021|archive-date=November 24, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211124063232/https://lakeworthbeachfl.gov/our-city/facts-and-information/|url-status=dead}}</ref> The city also saw a wave of immigrants, especially from [[Finland]]. These Finnish immigrants established three churches in Lake Worth to preserve their heritage while also benefiting the local economy,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pbchistory.blogspot.com/2017/03/local-church-has-roots-in-arctic-sami.html|title=Local Church Has Its Roots in Arctic 'Saami' Ministry|author=Robert I. Davidsson|date=March 9, 2017|accessdate=November 24, 2021}}</ref> which returned to a state of stability in the post-war years.<ref name="facts"/>

Two hurricanes impacted Lake Worth later in the 1940s, [[1947 Fort Lauderdale hurricane|one in 1947]] and [[1949 Florida hurricane|the other in 1949]]. Although the former damaged nearly all businesses and about half of homes, few structures suffered serious damage.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/89467306/the-palm-beach-post/|title=L. W. Reports Few Hardships|page=4|date=September 19, 1947|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=November 24, 2021}}</ref> However, among the structures experiencing substantial impact was the Lake Worth Casino, which was repaired and reopened in the 1950s with a [[shoebox style]] architectural design.<ref name="100th jewels1"/> Although the 1949&nbsp;hurricane made landfall in Lake Worth,{{Atlantic hurricane best track}} the cyclone caused less impact than the 1947&nbsp;storm. Around 300&ndash;400&nbsp;homes were damaged, with one destroyed, while the storm deroofed many homes in the Osborne Colored Addition. Winds also destroyed a filling station and shattered many windows at downtown businesses.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/17858050/the_palm_beach_post/|title=Lake Worth Reports Damage is Less Than in 1947 Storm|date=August 28, 1949|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|page=10|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=November 24, 2021}}</ref>

In 1954, a concrete wall was erected at the Osborne Colored Addition to separate it from the white Whispering Palms neighborhood. Although the city officially integrated in 1969,<ref name="kerr">{{cite web|url=https://lakeworthbeachfl.gov/press-release-lake-worth-beach-unity-wall-unveiling-road-closure/|title=Press Release: Lake Worth Beach Unity Wall Unveiling Road Closure|date=July 13, 2021|publisher=City of Lake Worth Beach, Florida|author=Ben Kerr|accessdate=November 24, 2021}}</ref> the neighborhood retained the name Osborne Colored Addition until 1994.<ref name="hspbc"/> Today, the remnants of the wall is referred to as the Unity Wall and is instead used for [[mural]]s.<ref name="kerr"/> Despite the ''[[Brown vs. Board of Education]]'' decision by the [[Supreme Court of the United States]] in 1954, Palm Beach County schools only slowly integrated. John Green and Theresa Jakes Kanu became among the first black students to attend a formerly whites-only high school in Palm Beach County when they arrived at Lake Worth High Community High School in 1961. Little further progress on the racial integration of schools in the county occurred until a court order in 1970.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-2004-05-09-0405090206-story.html|title=Brown vs. Board of Education|date=May 9, 2004|author=Scott Travis|newspaper=Sun-Sentinel|accessdate=November 24, 2021}}</ref>
[[File:Lake Worth Florida City Hall 200612231634.jpg|left|thumb|The building that has served as the Lake Worth City Hall since the 1970s]]
The 1960s and 1970s also brought the construction of many apartments, condominiums, and larger commercial buildings, which often resulted in the demolition of older structures.<ref name="facts"/> During a period of neglect and decline between the 1970s and 1990s, Lake Worth, in the words of then-city commissioner Dennis Dorsey, "had become known as the [[Pornographic film|skin-flick]] capital of the country". The venue now known as the Lake Worth Playhouse was the Playtoy, and was well known in Palm Beach County as the theater that showed [[X-rated]] movies; ''[[Deep Throat (film)|Deep Throat]]'' was shown there, motivating a police raid in the 1970s.<ref>{{cite news|author=Frank Cerabino|author2=Laura Lordi|title=Our (se)X-rated history: A titillating tour of nudity in Palm Beach County|url=http://projects.mypalmbeachpost.com/nakedpalmbeachcounty/|accessdate=November 4, 2021|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180131230652/http://projects.mypalmbeachpost.com/nakedpalmbeachcounty/|archivedate=January 31, 2018}}</ref> The decade also saw the construction of the current bridge across the Intracoastal Waterway. Opening in 1973, the Robert A. Harris Bridge is two lanes wider and higher than the previous bridge, built in 1938.<ref name="timeline1940-2013">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/89081577/the-palm-beach-post/|title=Lake Worth: Growth of a Beach Town|author=J.D. Vivian|date=June 27, 2013|page=S5|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=November 24, 2021}}</ref> Also during 1973, the Lake Worth City Hall moved from 414 Lake Avenue to 7 North Dixie Highway, its current location. The building at the former address has been listed in the NRHP since 1989 and is also often referred to as City Hall Annex.<ref name="100th jewels1"/>

Foreign political turmoil and the South Florida construction boom have brought another wave of immigrants from [[Central America]] and the [[Caribbean people|Caribbean]], especially since the 1980s. Included in the immigration wave of that decade were many Guatemalan-[[Mayan people|Mayans]], who consider themselves [[indigenous peoples of the Americas|indigenous people]] rather than "Hispanic" or "Latino", and some may not speak [[Spanish language|Spanish]]. Many Guatemalan-Maya people migrated to Lake Worth Beach to seek refuge from the [[Guatemalan genocide]] being committed against the indigenous Maya people in Guatemala, often referred to as the Silent Holocaust. The Maya mostly converse in [[Mam language|Mam]], [[Q'anjob'al language|Q'anjob'al]], or any [[List of Mayan languages|one of 22]] existing [[Mayan language]]s spoken in Guatemala.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-2009-08-16-0908150258-story.html|title=The Mayans of Lake Worth|author=Alexia Campbell|author2=Carey Wagner|date=August 16, 2009|newspaper=Sun-Sentinel|accessdate=November 9, 2021}}</ref> Adding to the racial and linguistic mix of the city is a large [[Haitian people|Haitian population]], many of whom speak [[Haitian Creole|Creole]]. Most immigrants from Haiti have also arrived in the United States since the early 1980s.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1988-02-07-8801080546-story.html|title=Learning to Cope Haitian Population Places Burden on Community Services|author=Sandra Jacobs|date=February 7, 1988|newspaper=Sun-Sentinel|accessdate=November 9, 2021}}</ref>
[[File:Lake Worth Pier.jpg|right|thumb|The Lake Worth Pier, damaged by hurricanes [[Hurricane Frances|Frances]] and [[Hurricane Jeanne|Jeanne]] in 2004]]
The downtown area underwent restoration efforts in the late 1990s. The [[Florida Department of Transportation]] spent $3.9&nbsp;million to improve sidewalks and streets, while the city of Lake Worth contributed over $670,000 for benches, landscaping, planters, trash cans, and new lights and sidewalk pavers. As a result, downtown property values increased in 1997 for the first time since the late 1980s.<ref name="downtown1998">{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/90025698/the-palm-beach-post/|title=Property values grew downtown in 1997, the first time in years|date=February 15, 1998|page=7B|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=December 7, 2021}}</ref> The area then saw a huge resurgence in interest and now sports an array of art galleries, sidewalk cafés, and night clubs.<ref name="DYK"/> The city's main street, Lake Avenue, contains some of the oldest commercial structures in South Florida. Lake Avenue, along with the parallel street of Lucerne Avenue, include most of the structures constituting the [[Historic Old Town Commercial District]], which has been listed in the NRHP since 2001.<ref name="old town"/>{{rp|4–5}}

Later in the 2000s decade, the city was hit especially hard by hurricanes [[Hurricane Frances|Frances]] and [[Hurricane Jeanne|Jeanne]] in 2004 and [[Hurricane Wilma|Wilma]] in 2005. Wilma alone destroyed 27&nbsp;homes and 7&nbsp;businesses and damaged 2,491&nbsp;homes and 93&nbsp;businesses to some degree.<ref name="chapter5">{{cite report|url=http://pbcgov.com/DES/affordable-housing/pdf/Chapter5.pdf|title=Palm Beach County Affordable Housing Study|publisher=Palm Beach County Department of Economic Sustainability|page=5 - 3|access-date=November 24, 2021|location=West Palm Beach, Florida|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222081757/http://pbcgov.com/DES/affordable-housing/pdf/Chapter5.pdf|archive-date=December 22, 2015}}</ref> Damage to businesses, government properties, and residences combined from Wilma totaled approximately $28.3&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite news|title=Adding Up Wilma's Fury: $2.9 Billion Countywide - More than 55,000 Homes, 3,600 Businesses Damaged|author1=Luis F. Perez |author2=Angel Streeter |author3=Ushma Patel |date=December 18, 2005|newspaper=Sun-Sentinel|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/33187506/south-florida-sun-sentinel/|page=16A|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=November 24, 2021}}</ref> The William O. Lockhart Municipal Pier, constructed in 1954, suffered significant damage from the hurricanes, especially due to Frances and Jeanne, requiring $3.4&nbsp;million to be repaired.<ref name="timeline1940-2013"/> The pier is home to a [[tide gauge]] with a sporadic history, showing an above average rate of [[sea level rise]].<ref name="lakeworthSLT">{{cite web|url=https://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/sltrends/sltrends_station.shtml?stnid=8722670 |title=Mean Sea Level Trend 8722670 Lake Worth Pier |publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration|accessdate=December 30, 2016}}</ref>

In 2015, the city was accused of asking for business licenses from surrounding churches. Then-City Manager Michael Bornstein described the controversy as a "dust-up" that became politicized, while the accuser, Pastor Mike Olive of Common Ground Church, later stated that the "problems are behind us now."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/89469811/the-palm-beach-post/|author=Kevin D. Thompson|title=Pastor set to take over Bamboo Room club|page=B5|date=April 15, 2016|newspaper=The Palm Beach Post|via=Newspapers.com|accessdate=November 24, 2021}}</ref>

A ballot initiative to change the name of the city to Lake Worth Beach in 2019, passed by a narrow margin.<ref name="thompson"/> The city stated that the name change "will be implemented slowly". One of the main reasons cited for the proposal was to distinguish the city from its suburbs to the west, which have a reputation for higher crime rates.<ref name=LW2LWB>{{Cite news|url=https://www.local10.com/news/florida/palm-beach-county/lake-worth-changes-its-name-to-lake-worth-beach|title=Lake Worth changes its name to Lake Worth Beach|author=Tom Swift|date=March 12, 2019|newspaper=Local10.com|access-date=March 13, 2019}}</ref> Another factor motivating support for the name change was that tourism could increase as the city would have an opportunity to rebrand itself as a beach town.<ref name=LW2LWB2>{{cite news|url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/palm-beach/fl-ne-lake-worth-beach-20190313-story.html|title='We are unique': How this city's new name, Lake Worth Beach, is making waves|author=Linda Trischitta|date=March 14, 2019|newspaper=Sun-Sentinel|accessdate=January 17, 2022}}</ref>

The city government became embroiled in another controversy that garnered national headlines in March 2020. Then-Mayor Pam Triolo and then-Lake Worth Beach Commissioner [[Omari Hardy]] became involved in a heated discussion over the potential for shutting off electrical services due to non-payment in the midst of the [[COVID-19 pandemic in the United States|COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns]].<ref name=Omari>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/03/22/omari-hardy-video/|title=Video shows official confronting mayor over utility shut-offs amid coronavirus outbreak|date=March 22, 2020|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|author=Lori Rozsa|accessdate=November 24, 2021}}</ref> In response, the city government allowed electrical service to residents to remain uninterrupted for the next few months, with or without payment, before city commissioners unanimously voted to resume power shutoffs in July&nbsp;2020.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://cbs12.com/news/local/utility-shutoffs-to-resume-in-lake-worth-beach|title=Utility shutoffs to resume in Lake Worth Beach|author=Danielle Waugh|date=July 3, 2020|newspaper=WPEC|accessdate=November 24, 2021}}</ref>