It sat on the north bank of the
Miami River where it overlooked
Biscayne Bay. Five stories tall with a sixth-floor salon, the Royal Palm Hotel featured the city's first electric lights, elevators and swimming pool. Almost thirty years later, The Royal Palm Hotel was grievously damaged by the
1926 hurricane, and infested with
termites. In 1930, it was condemned and torn down. The hotel was built on the site of a
Tequesta village. A large
mound was removed to make way for the hotel
veranda. Between 50 and 60 skulls were found in the mound, and tossed into barrels and sinkholes. Some were later given away as souvenirs. Construction crews also removed evidence of the Spanish mission and slave plantation that existed on the site decades earlier. The construction of the Royal Palm brought many of the pioneers who would make Miami into a booming city.
John B. Reilly (first mayor),
John Sewell (3rd mayor and developer) and
E. G. Sewell (3-time mayor and promoter) would arrive in Miami in February of 1896 to work on the Royal Palm. ==References==