Palm Beach, Florida

The Town of Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The Intracoastal Waterway separates it from the cities of West Palm Beach and Lake Worth. As of 2004, 9,860 people lived there.[3]

Palm Beach, Florida
Town
Memorial Fountain Park in Palm Beach designed by Addison Mizner
Memorial Fountain Park in Palm Beach designed by Addison Mizner
Flag of Palm Beach, Florida
Flag
Official seal of Palm Beach, Florida
Seal
Nickname(s): 
The Island
Motto(s): 
The Best of Everything
Location of Palm Beach, Florida
Location of Palm Beach, Florida
U.S. Census Bureau map showing town boundaries
U.S. Census Bureau map showing town boundaries
Coordinates: 26°42′54″N 80°2′22″W
Country United States
State Florida
County Palm Beach
Area
 • Total10.4 sq mi (27.0 km2)
 • Land3.9 sq mi (10.2 km2)
 • Water6.5 sq mi (16.9 km2)
Elevation
7 ft (2 m)
Population
 (2000)
 • Total10,468
 • Density2,669.2/sq mi (1,030.6/km2)
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code
33480
Area code(s)561
FIPS code12-54025[1]
GNIS feature ID0288390[2]
The Lake Trail along the Lake Worth Lagoon

History

Palm Beach began as a resort town when Henry Morrison Flagler,[4] a founder of Standard Oil, built the Florida East Coast Railway down the coast of Florida. In the center of the community, Flagler built two luxury resort hotels, the Royal Poinciana Hotel and The Breakers Hotel. West Palm Beach was built across Lake Worth as a service town, and is now a major city.

Flagler's land for houses was bought by people active in the Gilded Age, and in 1902 Flagler himself built a Beaux-Arts mansion named Whitehall, designed by the New York–based firm Carrère and Hastings and helped start the Palm Beach winter "season" by entertaining visitors. The town was incorporated on April 17, 1911.

An area known as the Styx housed many of the servants, most of whom were black. The workers rented their small houses from the landowners. In the early 1900s the land owners agreed to evict all of the residents of the Styx (who moved to West Palm Beach) and Edward R. Bradley bought up much of this land.[5]

References
  1. "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  2. "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  3. United States Census
  4. "Madoff scandal stuns Palm Beach Jewish community". Reuters. 2008-12-19. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
  5. "The Styx: Removal". Palm Beach County History Online. 1910-03-22. Retrieved 2010-10-25.
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