Rebuilding from the hurricane which hit Miami in 1926 went ahead
slowly after the crash in land values. The state's interest in road
building continued. The Tamiami Trail was completed in 1928. From
the vantage point of that year, Henry Villard noted the improving state of
Florida's transportation facilities. He pointed out that the East Coast Railway
had completed the earlier effort to double-track its principal line, the Seaboard
had extended to Florida City as previously planned, and the harbor at Miami
had been widened and dredged. The state repaved the Dixie Highway and a
system of feeder roads beckoned to a larger numbers of tourists ( Villard 1928,
635-636).

On the other hand, the railroads had expanded at a price. By years-end
1933, the three main ones had gone into bankruptcy. The East Coast Railway
ended up in the Alfred duPont estate. It survived years later as an asset of
Florida East Coast Industries, which in turn was controlled via a majority
interest held by the Ed Ball created St. Joe Paper Company.

Also, as we pointed out, the Florida boom was engineered and planned,
although it may have gotten out of hand. During the period when Henry
Flagler built his system, promoters hoped to attract to Florida members of the
leisure class, including tourists and winter residents. Flagler carefully laid out
his plans for the combined development of the railroads, the hotels, and the
highways. The land sales and promotions soon followed. Moreover, state
leaders stood behind the land drainage--encouraging it and engaging in it.
They sought population growth and had a goal of getting land on the tax rolls
through agricultural or other land improvements, and they targeted with a
1924 tax-prohibition amendment to the state's constitution those who would

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