Miami, one of the most international cities in the
hemisphere, is Florida's largest urban center and
a major transportation and business hub of the southeastern
U.S. Greater Miami, which comprises the city of Miami
and surrounding Miami-Dade County, includes Miami
Beach, Coral Gables, Hialeah and many smaller communities.
The Miami area's history dates back to the discovery
of the "New World." Ponce de Leon saw the
tip of Key Biscayne in 1513 and named it, more than
100 years before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock.
In the 1850s only about 50 persons lived permanently
on Biscayne Bay, and it wasn't until the 1870s that
Bahamian wreckers helped found the area's first real
community, Coconut Grove. Miami was incorporated in
1896, the same year that Standard Oil co-founder and
railroad magnate Henry Flagler decided to extend his
railroad south from West Palm Beach to Miami.
During the land boom of the 1920s, Miami's population
swelled and, thanks to its inviting, subtropical climate,
it emerged as one of the nation's great winter resorts.
Miami Beach is known for its historic art deco district
and the numerous hotels that line its beaches, and
the area is filled with marinas and golf courses.
Since the 1950s, commercial growth has grown significantly.
Miami International Airport is the nation's largest
international cargo hub and third in terms of international
passengers. The Port of Miami is the number one cruise
port in the world.
The Miami of the 21st century is an exciting, dynamic
global marketplace. But being a global marketplace
does not mean it is just a trading post for goods.
Miami is a metropolis that is a major transfer station
for peoples and ideas from throughout the world. Miami,
once a town of tourists and retirees, has been reinvented
into a hemispheric crossroads for trade, travel, culture
and communications.
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