Editing History of Florida (section)

===Boom of 1920s===
{{Main article|Florida land boom of the 1920s}}
The 1920s were a prosperous time for much of the nation, including Florida. The state's new railroads opened up large areas to development, spurring the [[Florida land boom of the 1920s]]. Investors of all kinds, many from outside Florida, raced to buy and sell rapidly appreciating land in newly [[plat]]ted communities such as Miami and Palm Beach. Led by entrepreneurs [[Carl Fisher]] and [[George E. Merrick|George Merrick]], Miami was transformed by [[land speculation]] and ambitious building projects into an emerging metropolis. A growing awareness in the areas surrounding Florida, along with the Northeast about the attractive south Florida winter climate, along with local promotion of speculative investing, spurred the boom.<ref>{{cite journal | first=James M. |last=Ricci| title=Boasters, Boosters and Boom: Some popular Images of Florida in the 1920s| journal= Tampa Bay History|year= 1984| volume=6 |issue =2|pages=31–57 | url = https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/tampabayhistory/vol6/iss2/5/}}</ref>

A majority of the people who bought land in Florida hired intermediaries to accomplish the transactions. By 1924, the main issues in state elections were how to attract more industry and the need to build and maintain good roads for tourists.<ref>{{cite journal | first=Victoria H. |last=McDonnell|title=Rise of the 'Businessman's Politician': The 1924 Florida Gubernatorial Race|journal=Florida Historical Quarterly|date=July 1973|volume= 52 |issue= 1|pages= 39–50 |jstor=30150977}}</ref> During the time frame, the population grew from less than one million in 1920, to 1,263,540 in 1925.<ref name=tebeau/>{{rp|361}}

By 1925, the market ran out of buyers to pay the high prices, and soon the boom became a bust. The [[1926 Miami Hurricane]], which nearly destroyed the city further depressed the real estate market.<ref>{{cite journal | first=Paul S. |last=George|title= Brokers, Binders, and Builders: Greater Miami's Boom of the Mid-1920s|journal= Florida Historical Quarterly|date=July 1986|volume= 65 |issue=1|pages=27–51|jstor=30146317}}</ref> In 1928 another hurricane struck Southern Florida. The [[1928 Okeechobee hurricane]] made landfall near [[Palm Beach, Florida|Palm Beach]], severely damaging the local infrastructure. In townships near Lake Okeechobee, the storm breached a dike separating the water from land, creating a [[storm surge]] that killed over 2,000 people and destroying the towns of [[Belle Glade, Florida|Belle Glade]] and [[Pahokee, Florida|Pahokee]].<ref name=tebeau/>{{rp|378}}

Tourists continued to arrive in Florida by train. The introduction of the automobile resulted in an increased number traveling on sometimes macadamized, sometimes dirt roads. The destination was usually Miami or Miami Beach. Roadside attractions included orange shops and alligator wrestling.<ref>{{Cite news | first=Michael | last=Stephens | title=In memory of our state's roadside attractions | url=https://www.gainesville.com/story/opinion/2020/12/14/michael-stephens-memory-floridas-roadside-attractions/3885773001/| newspaper=Florida Today | location=Melbourne, Florida| pages= 11A | date=December 22, 2020 | accessdate=February 19, 2021}}</ref> Tourism was confined to the winter months. Summers were uncomfortably hot for visitors.