Under The Sun

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INTERVIEW BY MITCHELL KAPLAN

The old Bahia Honda bridge was built over Flagler’s Railroad, which was sometimes called “Flagler’s Folly” because it was such a crazy idea at the time. /Alicia Zuckerman

The actual end of the line in Florida is Key West, of course. And for about 23 years in the early 20^th century, a railroad could get you there. It was Henry Flagler’s dream – it was referred to as “Flagler’s Folly” because it seemed like such a crazy idea. Today, those railroad tracks stop mid-way, just hanging in the air above the ocean.

This month marks the centennial anniversary of the railroad. We asked Mitchell Kaplan, owner of the bookstore Books & Books, to interview author Les Standiford , who documented this history in Last Train to Paradise: Henry Flagler and the Spectacular Rise and Fall of the Railroad that Crossed an Ocean.

Under the Sun: “End of the Line” Full Episode

This story was originally part of a full episode of Under the Sun stories about life at the end of the line. Listen here.

RELATED LINKS

Books & Books has just published a centennial edition of Last Train to Paradise by Les Standiford.

Florida Keys Over-sea Railroad Centennial

WLRN Channel 17 airs their documentary, Century in the Sun: Henry Flagler and the Making of Modern Florida, this Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012 at 8 p.m.

PREVIEW OF CENTURY IN THE SUN: HENRY FLAGLER AND THE MAKING OF MODERN FLORIDA