Speakers Bureau

Today Palm Beach County is a modern paradise, easily reached from anywhere in the world, but in the late 19th century, getting here was not so easy. And, when you arrived, a lush jungle paradise greeted you, from which you would have to hack out your homestead. Journey back in time to look at the difficulties of getting here, the settlers’ early homes, life-saving stations, food, hotels, mosquitoes, and pioneer life in what they thought was a “Garden of Eden.”

Many people are surprised to learn that Palm Beach County’s rich history stretches back 12,000 years. This lecture will introduce the county’s earliest Native American residents through historic sites and markers from Jupiter to Boca Raton, and from West Palm Beach to the Glades.

This lecture examines the military presence in Palm Beach County during World War II and civilian activities towards the war effort. Topics include the county’s contributions, including two army air bases, a secret listen station, civilian organizations, U-boat hunters, the Coast Guard, military hospitals, and a POW camp.

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Author Pat Yost will discuss her book, based on the memoirs of her late husband. Robert’s father was a successful New York businessman who, in 1925, dove headlong into the peak of Florida’s raging land boom. Pat captures the essence of the madness that blazed through the state, rising fast and falling fast, victim to nature’s massive fury and man’s blind greed. Through period photographs, she will shine a spotlight on the beginnings of the boom, from the ambitious land speculation in Miami and on to Boca Raton and the Palm Beaches. It was an exciting yet tragic time, built on unreasoned dreams of newfound wealth in that tropical paradise called Florida.