subject: Miami: Miami Between History And Culture [print this page] The name "Miami" comes from an Indian word meaning "sweet water". The first traces of settlement date back about 12,000 years. The Tequesta Indians were the inhabitants of the region at the time of the arrival of the Spaniards: they settled on the banks of the Miami River, especially on the north shore. They practice hunting, gathering fruits, roots and plants, but do not know agriculture. Archaeologists believe they are originally from the Miami Circle archaeological site located in the downtown and made a perfect circle of 24 holes or basins cut into the rock, which dates from 1700 to 2000 years. Its authenticity has nevertheless been challenged by some experts and many theories circulating about him.
Juan Ponce de Lean, a Spanish conquistador, is the first European to visit Florida. He discovered the Biscayne Bay in 1513 and wrote in the logbook that he has reached Chequescha: This is the first name registered in Miami. It is unclear whether organized an expedition to Earth, and it is well Pedro Menandez de Avilas and his men who are considered to be the first to dock. They visit the village of Tequesta in 1556. Their arrival has consequences on the lives of American Indians: diseases, including smallpox, and war will ravage the Tequesta, which are entirely 250 years later.
In the early 1800s that the first European settlers, who mostly come from the Bahamas, settled in the area. The region is affected by the Second Seminole War, a conflict that raged from 1835 to 1842. The civilians left the area and the army installs Dallas Fort to protect the area. At the end of the conflict french william founded the Village of Miami on the south shore.
In 1844 Miami become the chief town of the county. Julia Tuttle, a wealthy woman originally from Cleveland, buys a large lemon grove in the area, then settled there after the death of her husband. Considering that Miami has great potential, the one who became known as the "mother of Miami" spends the rest of his life to the development of the city. With the help of William Brickell, co-founder of Miami, she persuaded Henry Morrison Flagler Florida East Coast Railway from Miami to connect this railway line, which is made April 7, 1896. On July 28, 1896, the city is a municipality. The Royal Palm Hotel, inaugurated in January 1897, opened the city hitherto mainly dedicated to agriculture to tourism. Devastating aftermath of hurricane Andrew in a neighborhood north of Miami in 1992.
Miami had its heyday in the years following the First World War. It was the era of movie stars, major hotels and a formidable real estate business.
During the 1920s the city allows gambling and does not enforce the prohibition, which causes a population boom, the population increasing in recent years from 30 000-200 000. This earned the city the reputation of "the American capital of smuggling. However, a cyclone hit the city in 1926. It causes the death of hundreds of people and destroyed thousands of homes: between 25,000 and 50,000 people are homeless since . The disaster, followed a few years later by the Great Depression, interrupted the housing boom. The city, however, quickly boost its economy through the aviation industry.
When World War II, officials of South Florida devoted themselves to convince the federal government to establish military training camps in Miami and Miami Beach. Temporarily abandoning their tourist, resorts were converted into real military bases. After the war, soldiers poured into the city, attracted by the opportunity to buy a house cheap and the training programs offered by the University of Miami under the GI Bill, a law granting certain privileges to former combatants.
The coming to power of Fidel Castro in Cuba in 1959 to an influx in a decade a half million Cubans in southern Florida, including 250,000 in Miami. Andrew Louragan cause more than 45 billion dollars of damage in the region in 1992 is one of the most destructive natural disasters the country has suffered. Despite several episodes of economic crisis and racial tension, as well as problems of corruption and drug trafficking, Miami is currently booming and is attracting new people.
Miami was hit hard by the economic recession that engulfed the country in the 1980s. The office tower at One Biscayne Boulevard declared bankruptcy, the banks seized the unfinished condominiums, shopping centers, there remained only half rented...
