Coconut Grove in Coral Gables in Miami-Dade County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

Coral Gables Waterway

Photographed by Marsha A. Matson, June 28, 2014

1. Coral Gables Waterway Marker

Inscription. When developer George Merrick (1886-1942) and the Coral Gables Corporation conceived the master plan for Coral Gables in the 1920s, the city's boundaries encompassed waterfront acreage allowing access to waterways. The original city boundaries went from Key Biscayne, south to Soldier Key and then back to the coastal wetlands called Chapman Field Park. Merrick´s promotional brochures advertised his new city as "Forty Miles of Waterfront" offering a ride in a gondola (narrow boat with curved ends used on the canals in Venice) from the Biltmore Hotel to Tahiti Beach (now part of the Cocoplum neighborhood). Although his grand vision was not realized due to the 1926 land bust, the Coral Gables Waterway has endured. The eight-mile-long waterway cuts west from Biscayne Bay to the intersection at Cartagena Plaza, then curves north, paralleling Riviera Drive on its way to the Biltmore Golf Course. It also connects the waterway's western loop through the University of Miami campus and the Mahi Waterway. The Coral Gables Waterway today has rugged limestone that rises up to 20 feet or more to the crossing beneath the LeJeune Road Bridge.

Erected 2012

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by A Florida Heritage Site. Sponsored by Florida Society Children of the American Revolution, the Miami Chapter Sons of the American Revolution, and the Florida Department of State. (Marker Number F-453.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Settlements & Settlers • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1926.

Location. 25° 42.349′ N, 80° 15.644′ W. Marker is in Coral Gables, Florida, in Miami-Dade County. It is in Coconut Grove. It is at the intersection of South Le Jeune Road (State Road 953) and Sunset Drive (State Road 986), on the right when traveling north on South Le Jeune Road. Marker located on the Cartagena Plaza roundabout. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Miami FL 33146, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in South Florida,

on the Gold Coast,

and in Greater Miami.

It is also in the American South

and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds

Photographed by Marsha A. Matson, June 28, 2014

2. Coral Gables Waterway Marker

LeJeune Road traffic bridge is in the background.

itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: State of Florida Historic Roadway (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Pinewood (Cocoplum) Cemetery (approx. half a mile away); Dr. Eleanor Galt Simmons-Office and Stable (approx. 0.9 miles away); GFWC Coco Plum Woman's Club (approx. 1.3 miles away); Cocoanut Grove Park (approx. 1.3 miles away); El Jardin (approx. 1.3 miles away); Cocoanut Grove Public Utilities Company (approx. 1.4 miles away); Evangelist Street Charles Avenue (approx. 1.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Coral Gables.

Photographed by Marsha A. Matson, May 28, 2014

3. Coral Gables Waterway Marker

LeJeune Road pedestrian bridge is in the background.

Limestone rising 20 feet under LeJeune Road bridge image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Marsha A. Matson, June 28, 2014

4. Limestone rising 20 feet under LeJeune Road bridge

Coral Gables Waterway image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Marsha A. Matson, June 28, 2014

5. Coral Gables Waterway

Photographed by Marsha A. Matson, June 28, 2014

6. Coral Gables Waterway

Credits. This page was last revised on February 3, 2023. It was originally submitted on June 29, 2014, by Marsha A. Matson of Palmetto Bay, Florida. This page has been viewed 3,297 times since then and 215 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on June 29, 2014, by Marsha A. Matson of Palmetto Bay, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.