(Source of image: Florida State Archives)

This picture comes from a landmark day, the final run of the passenger trains that belonged to a historic Southern business.  The Florida East Coast Railroad (FEC) last carried passengers on July 31, 1968. 

By eliminating its passenger service, FEC proved little different than many other railroad companies during the era.  In the years following World War II, American travel had greatly changed.  Automobile ownership steadily increased, and interstate highways spread throughout the land, making it much easier for drivers to pick up and go.  Commercial airliners also took off in greater & greater numbers.  The losers in this situation, though, were trains and ocean liners.  Their owners eventually saw a sharp drop in their numbers of passengers.  Adding to the FEC's woes was a labor dispute in 1968. 

Let's change gears now and take a look back at the Florida East Coast in better days, passenger-wise.  The FEC could trace to a line founded by Henry Flagler during the late 1800s.  His trains opened the state's east coast to development, and the FEC helped make household names of such places as Miami and Palm Beach.  The company stayed quite busy, transporting freight, tourists, and new residents.  By 1912 (the year the Titanic sank), FEC tracks linked Jacksonville with Key West.   

Whatever happened to this Keys connection?  It lost a bout with Mother Nature. The Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 demolished the Overseas Railroad.  Three years later, however, the Overseas Highway restored the mainland's ties to Key West.  The auto route was partly constructed on the railroad's remains.

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