Whitehall Flagler Museum

Whitehall Flagler Museum


Palm Beach, Florida (FL), US
Flagler Museum, also known as Whitehall, is a 55-room mansion open to the public in Palm Beach, Florida in the United States. The building is a National Historic Landmark.

Henry Flagler, one of the founders of Standard Oil, built Whitehall for his third wife, Mary Lily, in 1902. The architects were Carrère and Hastings. It was originally intended as a winter residence, and Henry gave it to Mary as a wedding present. They would travel to Palm Beach each year in one of their own private railcars, one of which (#91), was restored to its original 1912 condition and is sitting outside the museum.

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The building was used as a hotel after 1925 and was saved from demolition by one of Henry Flagler's granddaughters Jean Flagler Matthews. Her father, Harry Harkness Flagler, had died in 1952 leaving her a large Standard Oil inheritance. She established the Henry Morrison Flagler Museum corporation which purchased the building in 1959, opening it as a museum in 1960.
Flagler Museum, also known as Whitehall, is a 55-room mansion open to the public in Palm Beach, Florida in the United States. The building is a National Historic Landmark.

Henry Flagler, one of the founders of Standard Oil, built Whitehall for his third wife, Mary Lily, in 1902. The architects were Carrère and Hastings. It was originally intended as a winter residence, and Henry gave it to Mary as a wedding present. They would travel to Palm Beach each year in one of their own private railcars, one of which (#91), was restored to its original 1912 condition and is sitting outside the museum.

The building was used as a hotel after 1925 and was saved from demolition by one of Henry Flagler's granddaughters Jean Flagler Matthews. Her father, Harry Harkness Flagler, had died in 1952 leaving her a large Standard Oil inheritance. She established the Henry Morrison Flagler Museum corporation which purchased the building in 1959, opening it as a museum in 1960.
View in Google Earth Museums - History
Links: www.flaglermuseum.us
By: kjfitz

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Anonymous picture
Anonymous
@ 2008-01-22 09:03:08
Actually some of your information is incorrect. The Museum is a National Historic Landmark. John D. Rockefeller actually credits Henry Flagler with coming up with the idea of Standard Oil. Flagler did build Whitehall as a wedding present for his wife and they did travel to Palm Beach in the Winter on there private railcar. The railcar (#91) was built in 1886 and was the first car to travel to Key West on Flagler's over sea railway. The railcar is on display at the Museum inside a new Beaux-Arts style pavilion.
kjfitz picture
@ 2008-01-22 09:30:25
The information is from Wikipedia so feel free to go there and update the info.

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