On February 22, 1927, Floyd L. Wray proudly planted the first tree at Flamingo Groves.
When Wray first came to Florida, he sold real estate for Homeseekers, one of Joseph W. Young’s companies. He noticed the shortage of oranges during the summer and the high prices. He saw the late summer-maturing Lue Gim Gong Valencia oranges, developed by a botanist in central Florida, as a new opportunity. The fruit could be harvested when the other varieties were out of season.
He bought 320 acres inexpensively in the drained Everglades west of Davie from Frank and Mittie Chaplin. Flamingo Groves was incorporated in January of 1927. Floyd L. Wray was President, Frank Stirling Vice President, and Jane Wray was Secretary-Treasurer. With the help of Frank Stirling, a member of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Florida State Plant Board, a bare field soon became citrus as far as the eye could see.
Not a pretty picture. This is what the plowed land surrounding the oak hammock looked like in 1927. The area was already drained by canals built in 1906 by Florida Governor Napoleon Bonaparte Broward. The soil was rich and, with time, a lush grove of citrus would replace the bare landscape.
The first trees were planted in tight rows and would be replanted later.
Young 5-6 foot trees are pruned by 1/3 and then dug up. The soil is washed off the roots again. The trees are packed in a bundle and sent to the banting crew.
The banting crew replanted the trees over 40 acres with plenty of room to grow to maturity. Robert Wood, shows a young tree in the planted grove.
Frank Stirling and Robert Wood stand behind a small healthy, growing tree.
It takes years for the trees to mature and bear fruit.
As the first trees grew, others were started and replanted. More varieties of citrus were included in the expanding grove.
To raise funds during the depression, Wray offered 5-acre parcels for sale with a five-year contract. Flamingo Groves would care for the trees. After five years, buyers had the option to return the land at a previously specified price or receive the profits for sale of the fruit.
By 1936, 470 acres were planted with a variety of citrus and fruit trees such as papaya. At its height, Flamingo Groves covered 2,000 acres, about three-square miles, and grew almost 80 varieties of citrus.
Today, unfortunately, there are few citrus trees left anywhere in Broward County, due to hurricanes, and rapidly spreading diseases like canker and citrus greening. Flamingo Gardens today has a few citrus trees, but most have been replaced by mangos and other varieties of fruit.
Flamingo Gardens is certainly a beautiful place to visit, but do you know how it came to be?
The short answer is that Floyd L. and Jane Wray bought 320 acres in the Everglades for just under $5 an acre in 1927, incorporated as Flamingo Groves, and planted 40 acres of citrus orchard. In 1969, upon Jane Wray’s death, 60 acres of the property was preserved and became Flamingo Gardens.
That is just the beginning of a fascinating history.
There are so many questions that arise, and each leads to more. Answering those questions, and filling in the details, is the really interesting part of the story.
It all begins 10,000 to 14,000 years ago, Paleo-indians lived here in South Florida, probably with mammoths and bison. Cypress swamps and hardwood hammocks appeared about 5,000 years ago. An archeological dig less than a mile west of Flamingo Gardens on Long Key shows civilization 3,000 years ago. The Tequesta lived here in the southeast. When the Spanish explorers came in 1510, they found Seminoles living and growing crops on this land. As time went on, the Seminoles and Miccosukees agreed to move to areas that were set aside for preservation of the environment and to use as a safe haven in which to maintain their customs and traditions.
The Wrays were newcomers when they moved here from the Midwest.They bought property in the Everglades from Frank and Mittie Chaplin and started a citrus grove.It’s easy to see in that photo that there wasn’t much here when the first tree was planted on February 22, 1927. Jane said, “There was no road within four miles.Roads had to be built, ditches dug, drainage provided.There was no water, electricity, telephones.The only toilets were outdoors.There was no Road 84.What a thrill to sink our first plow; to plant our first tree!”That first year, they planted 40 acres of summer oranges.
In 1928, Wray began planting the botanical garden with exotic plants and seeds provided by the government “so that our guests might realize the beauties of this tropical section of South Florida and to further emphasize the wonderful climate.”
Construction began on Flamingo Road in 1929.By the early 1930s, there were oranges to sell and ship.As the first elected Chairman of Port Everglades, Wray acquired federal funds to widen the entrance and deepen the basin at the port to allow large freighters and cruise ships to dock at Fort Lauderdale instead of Miami for the first time, and allow convenient shipping of fruit to the north.
Floyd and Jane lived in Hollywood, but they needed a place on the grounds for business and entertaining. Wray Home was erected in 1933, beautifully situated on one of the high points of the majestic oak hammock.
The gardens at Flamingo Groves were open to visitors 12 months a year.An early newspaper ad read, “A Cordial Invitation is Extended to Guests and Citizens of Fort Lauderdale to visit Flamingo Groves, Southern Florida’s Newest and Largest Orange Grove Development.” There was a small sightseeing tram ride with a talk about citrus, the groves, and the Everglades, a pond with 12 flamingos, free-roaming peafowl, the prized botanical collection, and of course, a fruit stand.
Due to the increase of groves in the whole area, Wray built the first modern citrus packing and shipping plant on Federal Highway in 1934. (The photo to the left shows the groves that year.)By 1939, Wray’s original 40-acre grove had grown to more than 200 acres.The Flamingo Groves Catalog of 1951 listed 83 different varieties of citrus for sale. At its peak, Flamingo Groves eventually covered over 2,000 acres (about 3 square miles).
Mr. Wray passed away in 1959; Mrs. Wray in 1969. Her will endowed the Floyd L. Wray Memorial Foundation to honor her husband and preserve 60-acres, including the beautiful botanical gardens, to share with the public.It’s greater purpose was to teach awareness of the beauty and bounty of the Everglades.
Today Flamingo Gardens is an enduring gift from the Wrays, and a living museum of Florida’s past, a refuge to endangered and injured wildlife, as well as a haven for native and migrating species.Schoolchildren of all ages arrive daily during the week on field trips, and guests visit from around the world to enjoy the legacy left them by the Wrays and to learn more about the Everglades, environment, animals and history of the area. As the end of the year approaches, please keep in mind that donations to help Flamingo Gardens maintain that legacy are tax-deductible. And, visit the website flamingogardens.org for more general information.
There’s so much more to the story, with so many interesting details and tidbits to share as the saga unfolds, so be sure to check back for next month’s blog.
By the way, if you have old photos of Flamingo Gardens or Flamingo Groves in digital form to share, please email them to [email protected] along with the dates and your recollections.Call the Flamingo Gardens at 954-473-2955 if you have photos that you can bring to be scanned.We would love to add them to our archives.
On February 22, 1927, Floyd L. Wray proudly planted the first tree at Flamingo Groves.
