Photograph as originally submitted to this page in the Historical Marker Database www.HMdb.org. Click on photo to resize in browser. Scroll down to see metadata.

Photographer: Marsha A. Matson
Taken: September 28, 2014
Caption: Mystery Hole Marker
Additional Description: In 1882, four years before he bought this land, Ralph Munroe visited this hole in the ground. Even then it was shrouded in mystery. A popular tale of the time claimed it was dug by Ponce de Leon in his search for the Fountain of Youth. We know Ponce de Leon never entered Biscayne Bay, and he certainly did not dig this hole. Who did, and why, remains a mystery to this day. In the 1840s it is believed this land was occupied by Edmund D. Beasley. The next person known to live here was Dr. Horace P. Porter, who tried to start a coconut plantation in 1872. He abandoned the plantation after two years; by 1882 only two coconut trees remained. As the only two people known to have lived in this area, it is thought either Beasley or Porter dug this hole. Though we call this "the well," its function is no more clear than its creator. Why dig a well when there were many nearby springs? Why was it already dry in 1882? Why put in steps? Speculation by park visitors has included a ceremonial bath, a root cellar, and even a dungeon. What's your guess?
Submitted: September 28, 2014, by Marsha A. Matson of Palmetto Bay, Florida.
Database Locator Identification Number: p287289
File Size: 1.354 Megabytes

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