Page 12 - Lifestyles in Palm Bach Gardens - December '22

Page 12, Lifestyles in Palm Beach Gardens
Historical Seeds Of The Gardens

Did You Know?

In 1888 the residents
of the Lake Worth area
were displeased with
the treatment they
received from the Dade
County seat at Biscayne
Bay and petitioned for
a special election to
choose the location of
the county seat for the
next 10 years. On Feb.

19, 1889, the winner – though as yet it had no name – was
a site near the northern terminus for the boat line on Lake
Worth. Commissioner Albert M. Field donated one acre
for the courthouse, now the site of the Oakbrook Square
shopping center. Field’s wife, Leahretta C. “Lettie” Field,
became postmistress that July of the newly established
Juno post office.
Also in July, Juno became the southern terminus for
the Celestial Railroad from Jupiter. Henry Flagler’s
much larger Florida East Coast Railway drove the small
company out of business a few years later and residents
convinced Dade County to convert the former Celestial
Railroad bed into a county road.
The courthouse, built at a cost of $1,495 and housing
offices, jail cells and a courtroom on the second floor, was
the largest assembly structure in Juno, also serving as a
church, lodge hall and ballroom.
When the county seat returned to Miami in 1899, Juno
lost its purpose. A forest fire in 1907 destroyed the town’s
remaining buildings, and nature quickly reclaimed the
area. A brick cistern was preserved at the Twelve Oaks
subdivision, where the Juno dock stood. Twelve Oaks, as
well as Lost Tree Village and Captain’s Key, on the former
site of Juno, are within the Village of North Palm Beach.
Today, a historical marker located in the Oakbrook
Shopping center reads “About three hundred feet east
of this marker, stood the Dade County Court House at
Juno, the county seat from 1890 to 1900. Juno – since
abandoned – was the southern terminus of the “Celestial
Railroad” from Jupiter to Juno, and the northern terminus Historical Seeds on page 13
of the boat and connecting stage coach line to Miami.”
Photos and narrative courtesy
of the Historical Society of Palm Beach County
Juno, Florida (pbchistoryonline.org)
*****
One of the first privately-owned country clubs in
Palm Beach Gardens was visited by the rich and famous.
Business owners, celebrities and heads-of-state enjoyed
hobnobbing for the weekend while hunting, fishing, and
relaxing around a campfire with a beer and ribs.
The Bonnette Hunt Club was started in 1961 by William
A. Bonnette Jr., a longtime resident of Palm Beach County.
Bill realized that there was little land left for hunters, so
he started the club as a private hunt club with some of the
best quail hunting, bird dogs, and guides in the country.
The members and guests have included people like Lawton
Chiles, Burt Reynolds, Bing Crosby (see photos), Mead
Johnson, Jim Kimberly (Kimberly Clark), Peter Pulitzer,
Alex Dreyfoos, and many other longtime Palm Beachers.
It was also one of King Hussein of Jordan’s favorite places
to hunt. The Lodge, shown here, was built in 1968.