- April 16, 2025
Your free article limit has been reached this month.
Subscribe now for unlimited digital access to our award-winning local news.
Cars park on the beach in Flagler Beach, circa late 1920s. Photo courtesy of Randy Jaye
The Flagler Beach Hotel in the early 1950s. Photo courtesy of Randy Jaye
Cars parked on the beach in Ocean City, circa 1920. Photo courtesy of Randy Jaye
Charles Lindbergh in Flagler Beach on Nov. 29, 1931. Photo courtesy of Randy Jaye
An aerial of Flagler Beach, circa 1950s. Photo courtesy of Randy Jaye
"Flagler Beach Incorporation Carried Easily."
That was the headline printed in the April 9, 1925 edition of the Flagler Tribune, announcing the results of the recent election.
"Incorporation for Flagler Beach has been agitated for some months, and at a meeting of the Civic League recently, an election was planned for the purpose of settling the problem for all time," the article reported.
Voting was orderly and very few seemed dissatisfied with the results, according to the article.
"It was stated that a few people living within the prescribed incorporated limits raised dissenting voices, but they were in such small minority that the number were insignificant," the article states. "The greater number of citizens of Flagler Beach were heartily in favor of the measure, it was said, they believing that this move will prove to be one of the outstanding features of the town's early history."
And now, Flagler Beach will be celebrating its 100th anniversary on Wednesday, April 16, the official incorporation date. (It wouldn't become a city until 1963, when it met the milestone of 500 residents.)
The centennial anniversary will be marked by a birthday block party, held at 2nd Street and Central Avenue from 4-7 p.m. The free community event will feature live music, snacks guest speakers, arts and crafts for kids, as well as a cake cutting in Veterans Park at 6 p.m. The Rotary Club of Flagler Beach will also form a "100" on the beach at 5 p.m. to mark the occasion.
The celebration is presented by the city and the Flagler Beach Historical Museum.
Flagler Beach Mayor Patti King, who is also the director of the museum, said she's looking forward to having people come out and celebrate the centennial birthday of their town.
"A hundred years — that's a long time," King said. "I'm just excited that to be a part of it, I'm honored to be the mayor and director of the museum, and to be a huge part of it is amazing to me."
Before the city got its present name, it was known as the town of Ocean City.
It's first resident was William Archie Cookman, who purchased 7 acres of land from the Bunnell Development Company in 1909, according to an article by local historian Randy Jaye. By 1912, Cookman had 300 orange trees growing on his property and an article from the St. John's Tribune in 1913 remarks that he also had "two large ripe pumpkins and plenty of green ones," adding that he was clearing more land to plant grapefruit, tangerines, king oranges, lemons, figs and other fruits.
According to "A New Beginning: A Picturesque History of Flagler Beach, Florida" by Catherine P. Wickline Wilson — a descendant of the Wickline family who operated a mercantile business and led the effort to open a local post office, with Esther Wickline becoming the first postmaster in 1915 — Ocean City's beach became a popular spot for family picnics, "surf bathing," camping and fishing.
Around the same time, George Moody, younger brother of Isaac Moody, who is known as the "Father of Flagler County," homesteaded 169 acres and built the first two houses on the beach in 1913.
"George Moody had a vision for the development of the coast line as a beach resort," Wickline Wilson wrote.
Moody built a ferry boat to cross the canal and in 196, built the Ocean City Beach Casino. In 1920, the ferry was replaced by a swing-bridge.
After Flagler Beach was incorporated, the first public officials were named.
Moody was elected mayor, and he was joined by councilmen Charles Parker, Harry Wallace Sessions, Robert W. Raulerson, Dewey D. Moody and Luther O. Opson.
"George Moody is the pioneer. of the beach town, he having lived at Flagler Beach many
years ago," the Flagler Tribune reported. "He has been identi- fied with the town's activities since its inception. Other members of the new officials have lived in the town for varying periods of time, but all are familiar with its needs and have given assurance that they will
strive to make Flagler Beach one of the best resort cities on the east coast of Florida."
On July 4, 1925, the 30-room Flagler Beach Hotel opened its doors.
"Its architectural style was American Colonial Type and featured fire protection and electrical lighting throughout," Jaye wrote in his article. "As more people moved into Flagler Beach various other businesses were built including a pharmacy, churches, hotels and restaurants."
The hotel was built by Moody and D.F. Fuquay, who later donated a block of property in lieu of taxes — a property that was designated to be a park forever, and is now known Veterans Park.
In 1931, famous aviator Charles Lindbergh made an emergency landing at the Flagler Beach Airport due to low visibility and heavy fog. He stayed at the Flagler Beach Hotel for three days and two nights.
"Isla Fuquay Kester remembers serving him hot biscuits with his meal and how he enjoyed them," Wickline Wilson wrote, adding that Lindbergh would slip out of the back door of the hotel and go to the rocks north of town to fish and swim.
"It seems that Mr. Lindbergh preferred to be away from crowds," Wickline Wilson wrote.
The hotel was torn down in the early 1970s.
Today, a new hotel is in the works on the very same property: The Margaritaville Hotel.
"That property had always been earmarked and designated and zoned for a hotel, so we were always hoping one day it would come back to that again, and now it has, which is extremely exciting," King said.
Plus, the Margaritaville Hotel will open almost a 100 years to the day that the Flagler Beach Hotel opened.
"What better way to have a beautiful downtown area than a gorgeous hotel, a nice place for people to stay," she said.
In 1927, the Flagler Beach Pier was constructed by the Weir & Benson Company, of Jacksonville. It was 656 feet long, and work on the pier continued in 1928 after its opening.
The existing A-frame carrying the city's name is original — and is staying that way as the city plans to rebuild the pier, which has sustained significant damage from storms in recent years.
Construction for the new $14 million pier is scheduled to start at the end of May. This time around, it will be made out of concrete and constructed 10-feet higher, in hopes that it will be able to sustain better during storms.
King said the city is looking for the pier to be completed by July 4, 2027.
If King had to describe Flagler Beach's 100 years of history in one word, it would be "eclectic."
People flocked to the city from all over, she said. She moved to Flagler Beach in 2011 and fell in love with the welcoming and laid-back community, she said.
When asked what she would like the next 100 years to look like, King said she'd love it to stay the same.
"However, change is inevitable, and either change controls us, or we control change," King said. "And I just want to see the growth that is occurring, and will occur into the future, to be done in a manner that all of our forefathers would be proud of."
That means mom-and-pop businesses and a sense of community that is "allve and well," she said. No more high-rises, just a simple way of life.
"We're the last town of its type in Florida, as things have grown and taken off," King said. "We're just about grown up now. There's not too much more we can do in terms of land mass, so what you see is pretty much what you get."
Centennial events will continue throughout the year. For a list of events, visit www.cityofflaglerbeach.com/348/Flagler-Beach-Celebrates-its-Centennial.
Your free article limit has been reached this month.
Subscribe now for unlimited digital access to our award-winning local news.