The Flamingo Hotel overlooked

Biscayne Bay Biscayne Bay () is a lagoon with characteristics of an estuary located on the Atlantic coast of South Florida. The northern end of the lagoon is surrounded by the densely developed heart of the Miami metropolitan area while the southern end is la ...

on the west side of the newly formed city of

Miami Beach, Florida Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and artificial island, man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the ...

, until the 1950s, when it was torn down to make room for the new Morton Towers development, which is now known as the Flamingo South Beach.

History

The hotel was built by pioneering Miami Beach developer

Carl G. Fisher Carl Graham Fisher (January 12, 1874 – July 15, 1939) was an American entrepreneur. He was an important figure in the automotive industry, in highway construction, and in real estate development. In his early life in Indiana, despite fa ...

in 1920, designed by

Rubush & Hunter Rubush & Hunter was an architectural firm in Indianapolis, Indiana in the United States. Established in 1905 by architects Preston C. Rubush and Edgar O. Hunter, Rubush & Hunter operated until 1939. Firm history Preston C. Rubush and Edgar O. Hun ...

of Indianapolis, and opened in 1921. An adjoining golf course was designed by Captain H.C. Tippet. Fisher was determined to avoid the ocean-side beaches where his development partner

John S. Collins John Stiles Collins (December 29, 1837 – February 11, 1928) was an American Quaker farmer from Moorestown Township, New Jersey who moved to South Florida at the turn of the 20th century. He attempted to grow vegetables and coconuts on the swam ...

had established a casino. He saw the smooth waters of

as the perfect place for a boat racing spectacle, as an attraction for wealthy and refined tourists. The automobile racing promoter established the Biscayne Bay Speed Boat Regattas near Belle Isle as a publicity draw for his large new hotel. He would continue to stoke the exotic vacation destination image that drove the

land boom A real-estate bubble or property bubble (or housing bubble for residential markets) is a type of economic bubble that occurs periodically in local or global real-estate markets, and typically follow a land boom. A land boom is the rapid increase ...

in the area with stunts like his publicity photos with his elephant Rosie. The Flamingo site overlooks

Flagler Monument Island Flagler Memorial Island is an uninhabited artificial island of South Beach in the city of Miami Beach in Biscayne Bay, Florida. A high obelisk with allegorical sculptures at its base stands as a monument to Miami pioneer Henry M. Flagler, and w ...

in Biscayne Bay. In 1935, despite a reservation by the New York Giants baseball team, Jewish players

Phil Weintraub Philip Weintraub (October 12, 1907 – June 21, 1987) was an American professional baseball first baseman and outfielder. Weintraub played for 13 minor league teams, for whom he had an aggregate batting average of .337, as well as for the New Yo ...

and

Harry Danning Harry Danning (nicknamed Harry the Horse; September 6, 1911 – November 29, 2004) was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire Major League Baseball career as a catcher for the New York Giants (NL), New York Giants, and was ...

were refused entry to the hotel, which had a "No Jews" policy. However, the hotel backed down and the Jewish players were allowed to stay, when Giants manager

Bill Terry William Harold Terry (October 30, 1898 – January 9, 1989) was an American professional baseball first baseman and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Giants from 1923 to 1936 and managed the Giants from 1932 to 19 ...

threatened that he would remove the whole team to another hotel if his Jewish ballplayers were not allowed in.''Jewish Major Leaguers in Their Own Words: Oral Histories of 23 Players'' - Peter Ephross, Martin Abramowitz
/ref>

References

External links

Flamingo South Beach
in Miami {{Miami Beach Hotels in Miami Beach, Florida Hotels established in 1921 Hotel buildings completed in 1921 Demolished hotels in Florida 1921 establishments in Florida 1955 disestablishments in Florida Buildings and structures demolished in 1955