Ultimate Pulp Era Gear Archive

The Ultimate Pulp Era Gear Archives are a series of free visual reference documents prepared by Colin Chapman for use with any pulp-era roleplaying game or related project. All contain pictures, manufacturing dates, and other useful real-world statics.

It has a host of downloadable pdfs by categories that you can use that will be invaluable for your character. Enjoy!

http://www.unclebear.com/wiki/...ulp_Era_Gear_Archive

Cameras, radios, typewriters!
Men and ladies fashions!
Vehicles and weapons!

Roaring 20's
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roaring_20%27s

Credit was abundant and much of it began to flow into speculation, particularly in the New York Stock Exchange. This created a bubble and set the stage for the Wall Street crash of 1929. A bubble of a different sort occurred in the first half of the decade, namely the Florida Land Boom, which dissipated in 1925-26.

Art Deco was the style in design and architecture that marked the era. Starting from Europe, it spread to America towards the end of the 1920s, where one of the most remarkable buildings featuring this style was constructed as the tallest building of the time: the Chrysler Building. The forms of art deco were pure and geometric, even though the artists often drew inspiration from nature. In the beginning, lines were curved, but later on. rectangular designs became more and more popular. (It is in place even in Miami today, especially in the South Beach area.)
http://miami.about.com/cs/arts/a/aa010603a.htm


Pulp Magazines
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulp_magazine

1920's
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1920s
The Wall Street Crash of 1929
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wall_Street_crash_of_1929

1930's
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1930s
Great Depression
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Depression
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:08, Mon 09 Oct 2006.

Pulp Adventure Roleplaying

http://www.fantasylibrary.com/lounge/pulp.htm

Links about Pulp Roleplaying

Rising with the turn of the century and reaching its pinnacle in the 1930s as a magazine form (but surviving in some forms even today, though not as magazines), the Adventure Pulps assure us that there will always be heroes, and that they will overcome adversity thru the strength of their spirits, the skills that they have honed over decades and the power of the human heart.

The heroes of Pulp are often larger than life, honorable and fearless before enemies that care not who they destroy in their quest for profit and power. They may possess supernatural talents, expertise in unusual martial arts or a strength of will that can overcome the bounds of reality. Pulps see the human potential and show it in its glory. Heroes of the pulps are The Shadow, Doc Savage, The Spider, The Green Hornet, James Bond and the like.

Whole Pulp Catalog

http://www.seedwiki.com/wiki/p...pulp_project1557.cfm

WELCOME TO PROJECT 1557!

The Collaborative Repository of Pulp Information for Pulp RPG GMs and Players

On the Yahoo Groups Pulp_Games http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Pulp_Games/ newsgroup, the idea was raised some time ago to construct a quasi-encyclopedic Pulp RPG resource and reference work, a sort-of "Whole Pulp Catalog" as a means of collating together useful information for persons interested in the Pulp RPG genre, which would  not be tied to any one particular RPG system or background setting. The idea was first raised in message #1557, hence the name of this project.

After some initial discussion, and a long hiatus, it was thought that a collaborative "Clipping Service" of interesting information of the historical "Pulp Era", factual essays, inspirational material, and home-brew resources would be an efficient way to both collect and disseminate this information.

This Pulp Wiki Page created on June 13th 2003 is one attempt to do this, and everyone is free to not only add new material, but also to help enhance the organization and appearence of the connected network of pages.

You can do this all by yourself, with no input from others, by simply steering to and editing and adding yourselves the pages you wish to improve and augment. Please tell us who is contributing this information if you add a new page (ie. put your name in the "save by" box!), and it is always more effective to have an introductory line or even paragraph on a brand new page ifs you are just providing a listing of links.

Pulp relevent information for this project should contain background material for the time period 1920-1949 (with material outside this era posted on the pages dedicated to Other Eras).

Pulp Biographies
Pulp Cities
Pulp Timeline
Pulp Transportation
Pulp Communication
Pulp Science
Pulp Business And Finance
Pulp Politics
Pulp Geography
Pulp Culture
Pulp Crime And Law Enforcement
Pulp Military Technology
Pulp Inspirational Material
Pulp Mythology
Pulp Ideas
Pulp Adventures
Pulp Campaign Ideas
Pulp Campaign Write Ups
Pulp Miscellany
Pulp Rpgs
Other Eras
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:09, Mon 09 Oct 2006.

Pulp Fiction Central

http://www.vintagelibrary.com/...lpFictionCentral.php

The description of the Vintage Library!

On May 10, 1996, the Vintage Library opened its doors for business. We currently have over 150 stories available for immediate download. But the power of the internet has gone much farther than just electronic downloads. Its brought together a fan base and created a market where we've encouraged a number of small press publishers to create a regular stream of pulp reprints and to constantly improve quality. The result...

Today we are experiencing a pulp fiction revivial where new fans are coming into the hobby in large numbers and we have more and more books, magazines, reprints and replicas available than ever before. Adventure House, Girasol Collectables, and Wildside Press are some of today's top publishers keeping us awash in pulp fiction.

Pulp Fiction Central is your source to great pulp fiction reading with pulp replicas, pulp reprints, electronic pulps, articles, fanzines, and even original pulp magazines for sale.

History of South Miami

http://www.cityofsouthmiami.net/history.htm

HISTORY OF THE CITY OF SOUTH MIAMI
Although Native Americans had doubtlessly roamed the area for centuries, the recorded history of South Miami began at the turn of the century when the rich farmlands of South Dade lured pioneers down through Little Hunting Ground (later known as Coconut Grove) to Big Hunting Ground (now known as Cutler).

In 1897, W.A. Larkins, an early pioneer and founder of South Miami, brought his family into the lush wilderness at the southernmost end of the wagon trail that is now the Ingraham Highway. He started a small dairy and a year later established a post office near what is not Cocoplum Circle.

Upon the completion of the Miami to Homestead extension of the Florida East Coast Railroad in 1906, Larkins bought the property west of what is now Red Road and south of Sunset Drive and established the first grocery and general supply store located in the area. Additionally, the US Government moved the post office to that location, and the surrounding community was named Larkins in honor of the its Postmaster.

By 1917, the population of Larkins had swelled to 350. As with much of Florida, the real estate boom of the Roaring '20's had a large impact on Larkins. Land values reached an all-time high when a ten-acre tract sold for $100,000. The epicenter of the boom was near the original Riviera Theater, which is more commonly referred to today as the Shops at Sunset Place.

Beginning in the mid-1920's, many citizens of Larkins expressed a desire to incorporate their burgeoning community. In March of 1926, a group of qualified voters met and voted affirmatively to annex an area of approximately 6 square miles, bounded on the East by Red Road, on the South by SW 104 Street and Kendall Drive, on the West by Ludlam and the Palmetto and on the North by Bird Road.

The citizens of the newly incorporated area named the new municipality the Town of South Miami and elected Judge WA Foster as Mayor and JL Paxson, JW Barrs, John Myers, WG Stang, RL Martin, JB Janes and Harold Dorn as Aldermen.

The Town Council immediately went to work. Within weeks, it established a Town Seal; formulated a town code; rented a building to be the Town Hall; purchased a fire truck; and appointed a health officer, engineer and an attorney.

The Great Hurricane of September 1926 dealt a punishing blow to the Town of South Miami. Only the courage and determination of its citizens permitted the Town to survive the disaster. Although the Town requested federal assistance, asking Congress to "relieve the people of their income tax for the current year", none was received. To make matters worse, the Florida East Coast Railway station burned down, leaving the town without a station for many years.

Many citizens became dissatisfied with the municipality's status as a town, feeling that the "town" was being ignored by the State and Federal Governments, and began calling for a change to a "city". Therefore, the Town of South Miami prepared a new charter and presented it to the Florida Legislature during its 1927 Session. The Florida Legislature approved the charter, and on June 24, 1927, the Town of South Miami ceased to exist and the City of South Miami was born.

The early 1930's signaled the beginning of what was probably the most turbulent and uncertain period in South Miami's history. Financial problems and local dissension generated a temporarily successful movement to abolish the City in 1931. In fact, all City functions were suspended for approximately six months until the courts intervened and ordered the City to resume operations. On May 17, 1932, Judge Worth A. Trammell ordered the Mayor and Council to resume City business because no one had made any provisions to retire the City's debts! Interestingly, one of the largest debts was to the LeFrance Fire Engine Company, from which the City had purchased a fire engine six years earlier. South Miami may be the only city in the nation to be saved by a fire engine with no flames in sight!

In 1933, in an effort to lessen municipal responsibilities and to appease many concerned citizens, South Miami's total area was reduced from its original six square miles to just over three square miles. Later, in 1937, the City's size was reduced again, as many dissatisfied northern residents sued out of the City. These actions created most of the irregular boundaries that still characterize South Miami today.

During World War II, South Miami's development temporarily slowed, but the post-war period brought exponential growth. The tremendous impacts of growth soon caused the City to realize that its original charter was inadequate. Consequently, a committee was appointed to study the existing charter's shortcomings and recommend improvements. The committee recommended an entirely new charter providing for a city manager-commission form of government. The new charter and form of government were instituted on July 31, 1953, upon the approval of a citizen referendum.

Since the 1950's the City and its charter have experienced several changes, but have largely remained true to the pioneers' vision. Today, much like the post-war period, the City of South Miami is experiencing tremendous growth and redevelopment, as people have recognized the unique "small-town" atmosphere of the "City of Pleasant Living". The City stands poised to lead by example in the next millennium.

---

Prior to the late 19th century, most of South Florida was sparsely populated frontier territory. Miami was a small settlement with a few plantations. Julia Tuttle (think the Julia Tuttle causeway) recognized the areas' value as a strategic seaport. In 1895 she traded land to Henry Flagler (think Flagler Street) in exchange for his extending his railroad to Miami from West Palm Beach. The city reincorporated the following year when the railroad was completed.

A Quaker farmer from New Jersey named John Collins (think Collins Avenue) purchased property on one of Miami’s barrier islands. In 1913, he and Carl Fisher (think Fisher Island) had a bridge constructed connecting the island to the mainland. Biscayne Bay was dredged, creating more waterfront property and stabilizing the island. In 1915, this area was incorporated as Miami Beach.

This became a popular winter getaway with people coming from the north to enjoy the warmth and beaches that South Florida had to offer. Big hotels and estates were constructed during the roaring 20's and through the prohibition era. Movie stars and famous people were regularly seen in the area, from politicians to Al Capone. Al Capone used his stay in Miami Beach as an airtight alibi for his participation in the St. Valentine's Day Massacre.

The area fell on hard times just prior to World War II, but had a resurgence when many of the large hotels were used to house soldiers while they were trained in the area. After the way, many returned to the area to settle, having enjoyed the warm weather and lush tropical environment during their stay.

Biltmore Hotel
The historic Biltmore Hotel has been a Miami landmark since 1926 reflecting the opulence and elegance of the roaring 20's with its sprawling estate-like setting and Mediterranean-inspired architecture.

The Carlton Hotel
The Carlton Hotel is proud of its location in the traditional heart of South Beach. The people visiting the area aren't just amazed by the beauty of our property and the oceanfront, but are able to bask in the rich history that the area has to offer.


Rail History

The history of railroading in Florida spans almost 170 years and is closely linked with the state’s development and growth. While the sound of a steam whistle echoing through the pine forests of north Florida evokes romantic images of a frontier past, the real impact of rail transportation has been the development of the urbanized Florida we know today.

Both freight and passenger railroads are experiencing rebirth. Today’s freight railroads set new ton-mile records yearly, Amtrak has re-established the conventional passenger train and Tri-Rail has brought commuter rail services to south Florida.

Follow us through the four periods of Florida’s rail history as the rural short lines became the major rail systems of today...

1834-1883

The dawn of railroading in Florida was a supplement to water travel. The new railroad technology had not yet found its place in the transportation picture but, by the late 1800's, railroads were the engine of growth in Florida.

1834 - The Tallahassee Railroad began construction of a 22-mile route from the new capital city of Tallahassee to Port Leon, near the Gulf of Mexico. Mules pulled carloads of cotton from the compress and warehouses in Tallahassee to the ocean-going ships at the port. Today, the route of Florida’s first railroad is the St. Marks recreational trail. By 1836, a second line was operating, The St. Joseph - Lake Wimico Railroad serving Port St. Joe.


Cotton ready for loading at Tallahassee

1850 - Senator David Yulee promoted the Florida Railroad from the port of Fernandina to the Gulf of Mexico at Cedar Key. While built to speed shipments between the Atlantic seaboard and gulf coast destinations, the line also encouraged the development of interior north Florida. Parts of this line are still in use today.


Tracks leading to Cedar Key

Prior to the Civil War, the Atlantic and Gulf Central Railroad line extended from Jacksonville to Tallahassee and by 1874 was extended to River Junction near Chattahoochee. In 1883, the Louisville and Nashville line from Pensacola made the connection at River Junction.

Early railroads were also build to connect with the St. Johns river boat lines. Example were the Tocoi Railroad bringing early tourists from the St. Johns to St. Augustine, and the Orange Belt Railroad connecting the river port of Sanford to the developing city of St. Petersburg.

1883-1928

This period saw the opening of peninsular Florida and a boom in railroad construction. The "Henry’s", Henry Plant, Henry Flagler and Henry Sanford used their railroads to open previously inaccessible parts of the state.

1883 - The proceeds from the Disston Land Purchase established the Internal Improvement Fund. The fund was used to assist the construction of new rail lines.

Holiday excursion on the Orange Belt Railway

Henry Plant’s rails pushed south from Jacksonville along the St. Johns River to Sanford then southwest through Orlando to Tampa. The University of Tampa now occupies Plant’s hotel at the end of the line. Henry Sanford’s lines penetrated the interior of the state.

Henry Flagler acquired the Jacksonville, St. Augustine and Halifax River Railway, and advanced construction south along the east coast arriving in the settlement of Miami in 1896.

Henry Plant, developing the midlands and west coast regions of Florida, wired Flagler, "Friend Flagler, where is this place called Miami?" Flagler wires back, "Friend Plant, just follow the crowd!"

Henry Flagler
Henry Plant

1911 - Flagler’s Florida East Coast Railway goes to sea and the first train arrives in Key West.

Florida East Coast Railway train in the Florida Keys

The 1920's - The Roaring 20's made Florida the place to be and the land boom was on! The Florida East Coast Railway, already in Miami, added a second track. The Seaboard Air Line Railroad rapidly built south, arriving in Miami in 1927.

The Florida Special arrives at Miami

Major hurricanes in 1926 and 1928 abruptly ended the land boom. Both the Florida East Coast and the Seaboard, burdened by the expense of rapid expansion in Florida, entered receivership.

Atlantic Coast Line train in Main Street, Gainesville

1928-1980

East Coast Champion, all-reserved coach train operating between New York and Miami.

The Dixie Flagler, deluxe streamliner stopped at Hollywood on its Miami-Chicago run.

With the exception of the war years, this period was generally marked by hard times and decline for the railroads. Florida’s tourist trade stayed relatively healthy during the Great Depression, aiding the passenger train business, but following the Second World War, inflexible regulation and competition from air and highway modes took its toll.

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~hyper/Allen/ch11.html

HOME, SWEET FLORIDA

. . ."GO TO FLORIDA--

--WHERE ENTERPRISE IS ENTHRONED--

A tale about the growth of Florida in the 20's, an interesting read...

How Miami grew! In 1920 its population had been only 30,000. According to the state census of 1925 it had jumped to 75,000-and probably if one had counted the newcomers of the succeeding months and Miami's share of the visitors who swarmed down to Florida from the North in one of the mightiest popular migrations of all time, the figure would have been nearer 150,000. And this, one was told, was only a beginning. Had not S. Davies Warfield, president of the Seaboard Air Line Railway, been quoted as predicting for Miami a population of a million within the next ten years? Did not the Governor of Florida, the Honorable John W. Martin, assert that "marvelous as is the wonder-story of Florida's recent achievements, these are but heralds of the dawn"?

Yes, the public bought. By 1925 they were buying anything, anywhere, so long as it was in Florida.

A lot in the business center of Miami Beach had sold for $800 in the early days of the development and had resold for $150,000 in 1924. For a strip of land in Palm Beach a New York lawyer had been offered $240,000 some eight or ten years before the boom; in 1923 he finally accepted $800,000 for it; the next year the strip of land was broken up into building lots and disposed of at an aggregate price of $1,500,000; and in 1925 there were those who claimed that its value had risen to $4,000,000. A poor woman who had bought a piece of land near Miami in 1896 for $25 was able to sell it in 1925 for $150,000. Such tales were legion; every visitor to the Gold Coast could pick them up by the dozen; and many if not most of them were quite true-though the profits were largely on paper. No wonder the rush for Florida land justified the current anecdote of a native saying to a visitor, "Want to buy a lot?" and the visitor at once replying, "Sold."


Was there any doubt that there would be unscrupulous business men? Those who would take life savings to make a buck? This game may have a few...
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:33, Mon 09 Oct 2006.

I will check to see which of these actually existed during the 20's and remove them as I identify the date they began. But these are the 15 newspapers currently in Miami.

XX Biscayne Bay Tribune (can't find)
Daily Business Review
XX Doral Tribune (can't find)
El Nuevo Herald (?)
El Popular (?)
XX Entertainment News and Views (founded < 1981)
XX Hurricane (University of Miami)
La Voz Catolica (?)
Miami Herald
XX Miami New Times (founded 1987)
XX Miami Today (founded 1983)
XX Palmetto Bay News (can't find)
XX South Florida Business Journal (part of American City Business Journals)
XX Street Weekly
XX Westside Gazette (founded 1971)

http://miaminewspaper.com/
http://www.abyznewslinks.com/uniteflmm.htm
http://www.mondotimes.com/1/world/us/9/525

Miami Library (on Microfilm):
http://www.miami.lib.ok.us/special_collections.htm
Miami Newspapers are available on microfilm, dating from 1901 Indian Territory to the present.
"Afton American Newspaper" Death Notices. 1900 - 1941.
"Afton American Newspaper" Death Notices. 1942 - 1986.
"Miami District Daily News".  Aug. 1917 - March. 1922.
"Miami Daily Record Herald".  Nov. 1917 - Sep. 1922.
"Miami News Record".  1901 - present.


The Miami Herald:
First edition published Sept 15, 1903 (as The Miami Evening Record); renamed The Miami Herald on Dec. 1, 1910; acquired by John S. and James L. Knight in 1937

Daily Business Review
1926 - First published as the Daily Record serving Dade County's legal community.
1927 - Consolidated with a second paper, publication renamed the Miami Review and Daily Record.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:37, Tue 10 Oct 2006.

This would have appeared later than our time period, but I thought I would make a note of it. Los Angeles had Philip Marlowe and San Francisco had Sam Spade.

Miami, Florida had Mike Shayne.

He had a tall angular body that concealed a lot of solid weight, and his freckled cheeks were thin to gauntness. His rumpled hair was violent red, giving him a little-boy look curiously in contrast with the harshness of his features. When he smiled, the harshness went out his face and he didn't look at all like a hard-boiled private detective who had come on the top the tough way.

Welcome to Flagler Street (www.mikeshayne.com), a website devoted to author Brett Halliday's most famous creation—Miami's famous redheaded private detective, Mike Shayne. Flagler Street, for the uninitiated, is the street in Miami on which Mike Shayne has his offices.

Mike Shayne debuted in the 1939 novel, Dividend on Death. He subsequently appeared in more than 50 novels, in addition to the hundreds of short stories published in the monthly Mike Shayne Mystery Magazine. The last Shayne novel appeared in 1976 and the magazine folded in 1985—an impressive 46-year run in the public consciousness. That's quite a feat for a former writer of circulating library books.

In addition to print, Mike Shayne starred in two series of films during the 1940s and three radio programs during the 1940s and '50s. He had his own TV series on NBC, lasting one season (1960-61), and was featured in his own comic book—a three-issue run published in 1961-62.

http://www6.miami.edu/UMH/CDA/UMH_Main/

The University was chartered in 1925 by a group of citizens who felt an institution of higher learning was needed for the development of their young and growing community. The inaugural class of 560 students enrolled in fall of 1926.

The Hurricanes:
It began in controversy. Some reports say the 1927 football team held a team meeting to select Hurricanes, hoping they would sweep away opponents just as the devastating storm did on September 16, 1926. Another version holds that Miami News columnist Jack Bell asked end Porter Norris of the 1926 team what the team should be called. Told that the local dignitaries and University officials wanted to name the team for a local flora or fauna, Norris said the players wouldn't stand for it and suggested “Hurricanes” since the opening game had been postponed by such a storm. From time to time, opposition has arisen to the name that would “reinforce Miami’s negative reputation as a weather-beaten community living constantly under the threat of destruction.” But as one UM official rationalized in the 60’s, “Does anyone think Chicago is overrun by bears just because the town has a football team by that name?

Orange, Green & White:
UM’s school colors were selected in 1926. The colors of the Florida orange tree represent UM. Orange symbolizes the fruit of the tree, green represents the leaves and white, the blossoms.

Sebastian the Ibis:
Folklore maintains that the Ibis, a symbol of knowledge found in the Everglades and Egypt, is the last sign of wildlife to take shelter before a hurricane and the first to reappear after the storm. The local marsh bird was considered UM's first unofficial mascot when the school yearbook adopted the name “Ibis” in 1926. Its popularity grew among the students during the 50’s. In 1957 San Sebastian Hall, a residence hall on campus, sponsored an Ibis entry in the homecoming celebration. The next year, student John Stormont performed at games in an Ibis costume that was glued, sewn and pinned together and was the forerunner of today's bird. Through the years, the Ibis has become one of the most recognizable college mascots in the United States.

Alma Mater:
Southern suns and sky blue water,
Smile upon you Alma mater;
Mistress of this fruitful land,
With all knowledge at your hand,
Always just to honor true,
All our love we pledge to you.
Alma Mater, stand forever
On Biscayne's wondrous shore.

http://www.floridahistory.org/floridians/1920's.htm

FLORIDA IN THE 1920'S
THE GREAT FLORIDA LAND BOOM

In the 1920's Florida was the focus of one of the greatest economic and social phenomenon in American history as hundreds of thousands of Americans of all types of financial strata poured into the Sunshine State and forever changed the global image of Florida. There were similar movements in the south of France during the 1920's, but the Florida story was so vast and complete in changed the entire scope of the state.

Two important elements played roles in the Florida Land Boom. For the first time Americans had the time and money to travel to Florida to invest in real estate. For the educated and skilled working American, the 1920's meant paid vacations, pensions, and fringe benefits unheard of during the Victorian Era. The United States also had the automobile: that indispensable family transportation that allowed you to travel to Florida. This "welfare capitalism" of time and money contributed to the arrival in Florida of a new kind of tourist - middle class families.

PROHIBITION DAYS
While rural Floridians accepted the outlawing of alcoholic beverages, urban Floridians actively disliked Prohibition. Unlike other Southern states, Florida had serious Prohibition problems due to both its close proximity to the Bahamas and Cuba, and its general environment as a vacation group for Northerners and foreigners.

Nassau and Grand Bahama flourished as rum smuggling centers and Florida's one thousand mile coastline was hardly conducive to stop the smuggling of hootch. Despite the fact that locals were just a boat trip away from a wet vacation, Florida's tourist industry didn't want tourists taking their money to another country. In 1921, there were nine enormous liquor warehouses on Grand Bahama Island, just sixty miles from Palm Beach. This was the start of Rum Run to Florida.

There were more registered crop dusters and more new airplane runways in Florida in the 1920's than any other Southern state. Indignant Florida leaders assailed the laxity of controls in the Bahamas, but the only concession England made was to allow the United States to search British vessels in Florida waters.

The smugglers developed "Bimini boats", large cargo speedboats with equipment designed to detect Coast Guard vessels. Besides their speed and shallow draft many of these boats contained devices to ditch a cargo into the Florida Strait. In 1927, the Coast Guard introduced a thirteen million armada of new, faster ships, and much of the smuggling was curtailed.

Still, some areas of Florida were havens for violations. Tampa, with its large Latin population, Miami, and Palm Beach were filled with speakeasies and gambling. It did not help Florida's image that Al Capone, the kingpin of organized crime, selected Miami as his winter home. Al decided Miami would be an "open crime city" so he wasn't blamed for every criminal offense in Dade County.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rum-running

Rum-running is the business of smuggling or transporting of alcoholic beverages illegally, usually to circumvent taxation or prohibition. The term usually applies to transport of goods over water, over land it is commonly referred to as bootlegging.

The term most likely originated at the start of Prohibition in the United States (1920–1933), when ships from the nearby island of Bimini transported cheap Caribbean rum to Florida speakeasies.

Greyhound was founded in 1914 as the Mesaba Transportation Company in Hibbing, Minn. The company was renamed the Motor Transit Corporation (1922) and Northland Transportation Company (1926) before incorporating under the Greyhound name in 1930. The current Greyhound Lines was organized in 1987 after it purchased the United States bus holdings of the former Greyhound Corporation (now known as Viad Corp.) Greyhound Lines was acquired by Laidlaw International, Inc. in 1999.

So, for our purposes, the Transit system will be known as the Northland Transportation Company. (Sounds better than Motor Transit Corporation.)



http://www.miamidade.gov/trans..._famous_families.asp
The Tatum Family

In April 1906, only 10 years after Miami was formally incorporated, the City Council passed an ordinance granting three members of the pioneer Tatum family and several associates the exclusive right to operate a railway over Miami's streets.

July 25, 1906--a single car began running from the old FEC depot near Avenue B and Sixth Street, down Avenue B to 12 Street, then out 12 Street to the FEC crossing at the courthouse. Avenue B is the present NE 2 Avenue, and 12 Street is Flagler Street; so the line served the purpose of linking downtown Miami, such as it was, with the then-outlying FEC station.

On September 3, 1907, the company superintendent announced that service would be suspended so the line could prepare for the coming winter season. Although repairs were supposed to take only a month, the line had carried its last passengers. Miami's first trolley line lasted just one year.

Early in 1915, the Tatums again decided to venture into a field of public transportation. Again, the streetcar was to be the vehicle, and the route would basically be the same. Work on the new system began in 1915, but it was late in 1917 before cars were running the length of the line. This line, unlike its predecessor, used battery-powered cars rather than an overhead trolley system for power.

The car barn was also located near the ball park, standing at Ninth Street and Avenue U. It accommodated the six cars that comprised the system. Early in 1920, the barn was the scene of a disastrous fire that wiped out the entire fleet. Faced with the prospect of an expensive re-equipping of the line, the Company managed to stall for a year before it officially decided to leave the transportation field.

During 1920, the Miami Beach Electric Co. with Carl Fisher  as president, built a single-track line across the County Causeway to Miami Beach. Ten small streetcars, known as Birney safety cars and seating 28 passengers, were delivered to the Electric Company in September 1919. The car barn was situated near the east end of the causeway where the power house now stands.

Early in December the company began running tests at various points over the line, and on December 13, 1920, the first car completed a round trip between Miami and Miami Beach. Shortly before noon on December 18, regular electric railway service was incorporated between the two cities.

Meanwhile, on the west side of the bay, Miami's city fathers were not blind to the success of the Miami Beach Electric Railway Co. Miami had been without local trolley service since the demise of the battery line early in 1920. Late in 1921, the city began negotiations to buy the franchise of the Miami Traction Company. The city ordered eight new streetcars similar to the ten operated by the Beach Company. On January 3, 1922, the agreement was signed, and the city of Miami now owned a trolley system.

Local streetcar operation in Miami proper returned to the city on January 7, 1922 with two safety cars running on a 20-minute headway. In March, 1924, the Miami Beach Electric Railway Company and its rail subsidiary were sold to the American Power and Light Company.

By 1925 the Florida boom was wide open. Miles of new track were built both in Miami and on the Beach. In 1924 and 1925, the city bought 27 more streetcars, now owning a total of 39. The original single-track line across the causeway had been double tracked in 1925-26, and 12 large deluxe cars arrived just in time to inaugurate service on the improved lines.

In 1925 and 1926, the Miami Railway Company was operating 50 buses on a less heavily traveled line.

On April 30, 1924, William Jennings Bryan, the silver-tongued orator, made a speech extolling the streetcar as "the apostle of democracy."

Seaboard Depot Line--Service for this line began on January 4, 1928 and ended on May 20, 1928, less than five months after it opened with such high hopes.

One final route, which lasted somewhat longer, operated along Ponce de Leon Boulevard in Coral Gables to the University of Miami, then south along the present Magnolia Street to Sunset Drive in South Miami. This service, which began on November 18, 1926, and was operated principally for students at the university and at old Ponce de Leon High, lasted until 1931.

By 1935, the Coral Gables Municipal Railway was operating only the Coral Way high-speed line, and even this line was only a shadow of its original glory. Only four of the 20 trolleys the city owned were required to maintain service on the line.

On November 4, 1935, an unexpected hurricane touched down in Miami. Much of the overhead wire on the Coral Way line was destroyed. The city of Coral Gables, which had contemplated replacing its last trolley line with buses anyway, decided that the estimated $7,500 for repairs was too much.

By the '30s the city had begun to spread beyond its original boundaries, and now buses and jitneys were siphoning off the long-haul traffic. School cars were still popular, carrying students to Miami High in the morning and home in the afternoon.

Early victims of the depression were the local beach lines on Alton Road, Washington Avenue, and Sheridan/Pine Tree. By 1933, the last of these had been replaced by buses, and only the original intercity causeway line still operated between Miami and the Beach.

In 1934, the Kiwanis Club spearheaded a campaign to rid Miami of streetcars and modernize the city transit system. The newspaper took up the cry. On the afternoon of October 17, 1939, only hours after receiving official permission, the last trolleys rolled across the causeway, ending the service that had begun nearly 20 years before. In the rush hour the next morning, 30 buses seating 23 passengers each were required to handle the loads that the 12 trolleys, carrying 48 passengers each, had handled the morning before.

On October 8, 1940, a special election granted the Miami Transit Company the authority to run buses throughout the city. The final conversions were set for November, and on the afternoon of November 14, a gala parade, celebrating the passing of the trolley, rolled through downtown Miami. On the unusually cold night of November 16, 1940, the last trolleys rolled along Miami's streets.

Finally, it is interesting to note that initial proposals for the present-day Miami-Dade County Metrorail system called for early construction of a line across MacArthur Causeway through south Miami Beach, following almost the identical route taken by Carl Fisher's little trolleys that morning of December 18, 1920.


http://www.miamidade.gov/transit/history_1930.asp
1933 - George B. Dunn made a proposal to the city of Miami Beach to operate the local streetcar lines.

1935 - The Coral Gables high-speed service had lasted nine years. Damage to electric overhead power lines during the storm of 1935 was so extensive that the line was permanently shut down and the city of Coral Gables went to an all-bus system.

1937 - Voters rejected a ballot which attempted to unify all transit services in Miami except the jitneys.

1939 - A second attempt to have the public approve a new unified transit franchise was successful.

1939 - October 17: Miami Beach Railway abandoned its three streetcars in favor of 15 new "twins." This company continued as a subsidiary of Florida Power and Light until it was sold to William D. Pawley in 1941. Miami Beach became a military training base during World War II.

1939 - Miami discontinued using its streetcars. The city granted an exclusive franchise to Miami Transit Company.
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:49, Wed 11 Oct 2006.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M...nternational_Airport
Miami International Airlines was opened to flights in 1928 as Pan American Field, the operating base of Pan American Airways Corporation, on the north side of the modern airport property. After Pan Am acquired the New York, Rio, and Buenos Aires Line, it shifted most of its operations to the Dinner Key seaplane base, leaving Pan Am Field largely unused until Eastern Air Lines began flying there in 1934, followed by National Airlines in 1937.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P..._Airways_Corporation
Pan American Airways Incorporated was founded on March 14, 1927, by Major Henry H. "Hap" Arnold and partners. Their shell company was able to obtain the U.S. mail delivery contract to Cuba, but lacked the physical assets to do the job. On June 2, 1927, Juan Trippe (Yale '21) formed the Aviation Corporation of America with the backing of powerful and politically-connected financiers William A. Rockefeller, Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney, and others; Whitney served as the company's president. Their operation had the all-important landing rights for Havana, having acquired a small airline established in 1926 by John K. Montgomery and Richard B. Bevier as a seaplane service from Key West, Florida to Havana. The Atlantic, Gulf, and Caribbean Airways company was established on October 11, 1927, by New York City investment banker Richard Hoyt, who served as president. The three companies merged into a holding company called the Aviation Corporation of the Americas on June 23, 1928. Richard Hoyt was named as chairman of the new company, but Trippe and his partners held forty percent of the equity and Whitney was made president. Trippe became the operational head of the new Pan American Airways Incorporated, created as the primary operating subsidiary of Aviation Corporation of the Americas.

http://www.crazedfanboy.com/npcr/laflapcr192.html
Miami's Airports:
Up to thirteen airports or air stations operated in the Miami area from the late 1920's to the advent of World War Two. This partial listing is of the most notable of these historic fields.

Glenn Curtiss Aviation School (a.k.a. Glenn Curtis Field) /Miami Municipal Airport
Although Orville and Wilbur Wright are credited for inventing the airplane, the one person who probably did more than any other human being for the growth of the world of aviation as we know it today was undeniably Glenn Curtiss. A native of Hammondsport, New York, and dubbed "The Henry Ford of Aviation", the Wright brothers issued Curtiss Pilots License Number One.

Originally built in 1911 near downtown Miami abutting "Bay Biscayne", Curtiss later moved the facility to a cleared field that was formerly Saw Palmetto and Dade County Pine located between 105th Street and Gratigny Road east of LeJeune Road. General aviation, airmail, and scheduled passenger service began to operate out of this field, and in 1927 Curtiss deeded the field to the City of Miami which brought about the name change to Miami Municipal Airport.

The All-American Aerial Maneuvers mentioned above in this article took place annually at this field from 1929 to 1941. And lastly, on June 1, 1937 famed aviator Amelia Earhart began her ill fated around the world trip after her Lockheed Electra lifted off from the runway of this airport. As a result, the field was lastly renamed to Amelia Earhart Field, a title that it was given in 1947. The field was shut down many decades ago. A nearby municipal park bearing her name is located immediately south of the Gratigny Parkway adjacent to the Opa-Locka Executive Airport.

Dinner Key
Many of the Caribbean and Central and South American countries did not have ground based landing fields due in many cases to mountainous terrain or thick jungles. As a result, flying boats were the most logical choice of reaching these exotic locations and the New York Rio and Buenos Aires Airline (or NYRBA) of New York was quick to capitalize on this, utilizing the most luxurious flying boat of them all at that time, the Consolidated Commodore. In 1929 it began to use a portion of Biscayne Bay in the Coconut Grove area of Miami that would later be called Dinner Key (see PCR Issue # 136 at http://www.crazedfanboy.com/no...d02/laflapcr136.html ).

On February 20, 1930 NYRBA pilot Ralph A. O'Neill landed at Dinner Key bringing with him the first ever airmail from South America. A hostile take over by Pan American forced cessation of the NYRBA, the actual first airline to serve Dinner Key. Regardless, Pan American would indelibly leave its history on the Dinner Key facility, making it one of the most significant airports in Florida.

From here its fleet of Sikorsky S-40's, S-42 and Consolidated Commodore flying boats (fourteen of them acquired from the NYRBA in the hostile takeover) carried passengers to Cuba, the Bahamas, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. The first flight from this port to the Panama Canal Zone was on November 19, 1931 with Charles Lindbergh as pilot, and aircraft designer Igor Sikorsky riding as a passenger. Even President Franklin D. Roosevelt flew into Dinner Key on Pan American Boeing 314 Clipper "Dixie", becoming the first President to fly while in office. This flight was in preparation of his meeting with Churchill and Stalin in Casablanca.

By the end of the Second World War, the flying boats days were numbered as improved land fields began to populate points south, and Pan American shut down the Dinner Key operation shortly thereafter. The once world class terminal still exists as Miami City Hall (see PCR issues 136 and 190 (http://www.crazedfanboy.com/npcr/laflapcr190.html)

36th Street Airport/Pan American Field
Pan American Airways founder Juan Terry Trippe determined that he could make his fledgling airline more money by hauling mail on U.S. contracts on a per mileage basis than on a per weight basis. As a result of this, in the fall of 1928 Trippe moved his Key West operation from Meacham Field to a cleared area adjacent to 36th Street, west of Le Jeune Road next to Glenn Curtiss's developments of Miami Springs and Hialeah.

This move would in essence be the catalyst for the creation of one of the world's greatest airports, Miami International Airport. A 120-acre tract of land, the 36th Street Airport was built in 1927 and on September 15, 1928, Captain Edwin Musick gunned the engines of his Pan American Sikorsky S-38 loaded with 340 pounds of airmail bound for Key West becoming the first scheduled flight to leave that field.

On January 9, 1929 famed aviator Charles Lindberg dedicated the main terminal, possibly the first modern prototypical air terminal in American history. The terminal was designed by Delano and Aldrich, who also designed the terminals at the Dinner Key location and at LaGuardia Airport in New York City.

In 1932, Eddie Rickenbacker moved his Eastern Air Transport operation from Miami Municipal Airport to the 36th Street Airport, while yet another South Florida aviation player, George T. Baker, made the 36th Street Airport a destination in 1937 and moved the base of operations for his National Airlines Systems from Jacksonville to Miami International Airport in 1946. Also in the fray was of course Glenn Curtiss who designed and built the Aero-Car on a an aircraft frame to ferry passengers from the 36th Street Airport to Miami's hotels and connecting flights at Dinner Key. The Aero-Car would in large part inspire the Airstream camper.

Now officially known as Wilcox Field, in honor of a South Florida proponent of commercial aviation, Miami International Airport is today number one in air cargo in the United States, number one in scheduled flights to South America from the United States, and has more airlines than any other airport in the country. The airport and its support industries now employ over 40,000 people.

Venetian Causeway Seaplane Base/Viking Field
Located on the Venetian Causeway's Biscayne Island, Viking Field featured both land and amphibious aircraft. Initially constructed in 1928 as the Venetian Causeway Seaplane Base, its name was changed in 1931 to Viking Field. Although shut down many decades ago, this field was Miami's first true downtown and waterfront airport.

Opa-Locka Field
Located north of the Gratigny Parkway and immediately west of LeJeune Road, this airport was yet another brainchild of Glenn Curtiss and like the 36th Street Airport was built in 1927.

It was the home of the U.S. Naval Training Command during World War Two and the home of six naval training bases. Curtiss's other airfield, Miami Municipal/Amelia Earhart discussed above, was located almost immediately south of the Opa-Locka Field and during the Second World War the two airports were connected.

Most notable about Opa-Locka was its gigantic blimp hanger, which housed such notable dirigibles as the Graf Zeppelin and the ill-fated U.S. Navy dirigible, the Akron. In 1967 Opa was touted as being the world's busiest airport with over 650,000 flight operations that year.

It currently houses general aviation, a U.S. Coast Guard auxiliary, aircraft recovery services (scrapping and disposal of retired and inactive aircraft) and possibly the last cargo versions of operable piston aircraft such as the DC-3, DC-4, DC-6, DC-7, Convair Twins and Beech 18 left in the lower 48 states.

From a historical perspective, this is probably the best preserved of Miami's original airports, although regrettably the blimp hanger, which was featured in a 1985 episode ("Evan") of the NBC series "Miami Vice", was destroyed by the end of that decade.
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:23, Wed 11 Oct 2006.

I have found some information about the area that covers current as well as past info about the Miama area. Instead of stripping out current info, I am leaving it in for now. So ignore any references after 1925. But this gives you a feel for the genuine impact that the time period had on how Miami is today as a result of how it was back then.

This way you can truly appreciate what that period in time meant and what it will be like to play in it. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I will enjoy setting up the playground for you.

Keep in mind that the South Beach area today has become a playground for the rich and famous, mostly models and the party people. Back then, Miami was a place where people went to get rich and make their mark in society. There was a land boom and we are in the thick of it. Prohibition was in full swing and people found themselves on both or either side of the law.

Enjoy!

Miami Beach

Both the sun and the moon shine brightly today over the playground called Miami Beach. The round-the-clock excitement is reflected on the covers of national and international glamour and travel magazines where the trendy South Beach district -- or SoBe -- is displayed like a model newly emerged from a makeover. Not far from the truth… It's the revitalizing of this area's definitive art deco architecture that has put Miami Beach on the map.

Encompassing 17 islands in Biscayne Bay, Miami Beach has enchanted visitors with its incomparable beaches and social scene since the 1920’s. It was during the boom time of the ‘20’s and ‘30’s that the scores of small art deco hotels were built to accommodate pleasure-loving hordes from colder climates. Beginning in the late 1950’s these modest tourist digs gave way to grand resort complexes (like the fabulous Fontainebleau). It is in SoBe’s Art Deco District where today's action is -- from Ocean Drive's magnetic stretch of restaurants, clubs and lovingly renovated art deco hotels to the trendy shops, restaurants and cafes on Washington Avenue, to the cultural nexus taking shape on Lincoln Road. Art Deco Weekend (January 16-18, 2004) is the big beach blowout, but there's almost always something special going on.

Today, the art deco-fueled renewal is certainly packing them in, but it's a diversity of attractions that keeps the crowds happy. Of course there are the fabulous beaches, and all the recreation that goes along with them, but, increasingly, there are also world-class cultural draws, such as the New World Symphony (305-673-3331), Miami City Ballet (305-929-7000), the Art Center South Florida (305-674-8278), and a visible community of dancers, actors, artists and designers.

This cultural side of South Beach is a prominent part of what Lincoln Road has to offer. Once one of the most elegant shopping streets in the country, Lincoln Road was redesigned in the 1960’s by legendary architect Morris Lapidus as America's first pedestrian mall. Now it is envisioned as the center of the new Miami Beach -- a kind of link between South Beach and the mainline attractions, such as the Miami Beach Convention Center (305-673-7311), the Jackie Gleason Theater of the Performing Arts (305-673-7300) and the Bass Museum of Art (305-673-7530) among others.

South Beach

Occupying less than two square miles on the southern tip of Miami Beach, South Beach's subtropical sandbar has an identity all its own as the American Riviera. Here, life is celebrated as one chic, 24/7 street party in an art deco playground.

South Beach 's beautiful architecture makes it a favored location for films, music and television shows, as well as a backdrop for fashion shoots. The Art Deco District boasts the largest concentration of 1920’s and 1930’s architecture in the world, earning a listing in the National Register of Historic Places. –It is also globally recognized as one of Miami 's unique attractions.

South Beach sightseers will want to start out at South Pointe Park for a close-up view of ships heading through the deep-water channel, known as "Government Cut", to the Port of Miami . Across the channel are the Mediterranean-style buildings of Fisher Island , accessible only by ferry.

Next, check out Lummus Park , a green expanse bordering the wide beach. Once there, note how the pastel pinks, bright aquas and canary yellows of Ocean Drive ’s hotels fight for space on the South Beach skyline. Visitors can join a walking tour or check out South Beach 's other attractions, including the Wolfsonian/FIU collection, the Botanical Gardens and the Holocaust Memorial.

This is also a key stop for shoppers with an eclectic mix of intriguing boutiques, bookstores, art galleries, and home design shops. Don’t miss the Spanish-style Espanola Way featuring stores that sell New Age and retro items.

Food is another big draw in SoBe with dozens of restaurants lining the streets creating a culinary meca of sorts for so many different types of cuisine. And in a town that never sleeps, the restaurants are always busy until the wee hours of the morning.

South Beach also stays alive late into the night as visitors and locals dress up or down to hit South Beach’s trendy clubs, pubs and daiquiri bars. No matter your style, a visit to South Beach will redefine how you look at style!

Downtown Miami

No exploration of Miami would be complete without spending some time downtown. There's plenty of shopping here, but you'll also find the center of county government, a wealth of cultural opportunities and some of the city's most famous architecture. Nearby is Biscayne Bay , with Bayfront Park, Bayside Marketplace, a marina, and views of the Port of Miami , which is the world's largest cruise port.

Historically, this is the oldest area of Miami . In the 16th century, a Spanish mission was established near the mouth of the Miami River . It was succeeded by an army outpost built in the 1840’s to protect settlers.Development later fanned out from this point. This is obvious from city maps: The intersection of Flagler Street and Miami Avenue downtown marks the convergence of the city's N.E., N.W., S.E. and S.W. quadrants. Not very interesting, but crucial to knowing where you are in Greater Miami. From this point, numbering begins for streets (running east/west) and avenues (running north/south).

For shopping, the action centers on the Central Business District (CBD), the core of which is bounded by N.E. First Avenue, N.E. Fifth Street, Biscayne Bay and the Miami River . More than 3,000 retailers are located here, from department stores to specialty shops to 300-plus restaurants. Busy Flagler Street is a logical place to start, but don't miss the Jewelry District, on N.E. First Street between N.E. First and Miami Avenues. Bayside Marketplace, a shopping, dining and strolling mecca, takes full advantage of its site on the bay. The waterside ambience and many fine diversions make this the most visited attraction in South Florida .

Downtown has plenty of cultural interest, from the Gusman Center for the Performing Arts (305-374-2444) to the James L. Knight Center (305-284-5137) and the Miami Arena (305-530-4400). The Metro-Dade Cultural Center with its inviting central plaza is the setting for the Miami Art Museum , the Historical Museum of Southern Florida and the art-filled Miami-Dade Public Library. Here, also, is the mammoth sculpture “Dropped Bowl with Scattered Slices and Peels”, perhaps Miami 's most famous public artwork. South of the CBD, across the Miami River , is the Brickell Avenue area sometimes called "the Wall Street of the South" for its concentration of national and international banks.

Coral Gables

Appropriately named the "City Beautiful" by its designer, George Merrick, Coral Gables is an utterly charming community of gracious Mediterranean architecture, monumental gateways, streets shaded by huge banyans and ficus trees, plazas, fountains, and miles of waterways and canals. Merrick grew up here, in a gabled plantation house built of coral rock and pine, which is now open to the public. Call (305) 460-5361 for information. In the 1920’s, he spent more than $100 million to create this dream city on some twelve square miles of former Florida scrub and citrus groves, 4 miles south of Downtown Miami.

Merrick's plan also included "international villages" styled Normandy , Colonial, French Country and City, Dutch South African, Chinese, and Italian. These pockets of thematic architecture punctuate the city like quirky comments on their traditional surroundings.

One of the grander attractions in Coral Gables is the Venetian Pool (305-460-5356). Formerly a quarry from which oolitic limestone (coral rock) was taken for architectural uses, the huge municipal pool is a fantasy of caves, waterfalls, arched bridges, and Mediterranean-style buildings.

On the natural side, there's Matheson Hammock County Park (305-665-5475), a mangrove forest fronting Biscayne Bay , edged with beaches and a boat harbor, and just south is Fairchild Tropical Garden (305-667-1651), a lush hothouse of tropical plantings.

Today, Downtown Coral Gables is a thriving business community, especially along the major shopping thoroughfare known as Miracle Mile ( Coral Way , between S.W. 42nd Avenue and Douglas Road ). Home to more than 130 multinational corporations, plus eleven consulates and foreign trade commissions. Coral Gables also offers some of the top chefs in the city, with more than 120 restaurants the choices are rich and varied.

Be advised, you'll need a map to explore Coral Gables . The curving streets can be confusing and the street signs are small. Drop by City Hall (305-446-6800), which is the imposing Spanish Colonial building complete with a tower and colonnade, for maps and information.

Coconut Grove

If any neighborhood in urban Miami could be termed a "village" it has to be Coconut Grove. On Biscayne Bay , south of Downtown and east of Coral Gables , the Grove has been a diverse community since its settlement in the late 19th century. Sailing yacht designer Ralph Munroe, originally from New York , and the Peacock brothers, from England , settled the area along with the families of Bahamian seamen who salvaged treasure from wrecked vessels offshore along the Great Florida Reef. Munroe's unusual 1891 home, called The Barnacle (305-448-9445) for its conical shape, is a wonderfully preserved slice of old Florida .

On the other end of the architectural spectrum, but built just a decade later, is Vizcaya (305-250-9133), the Italian Renaissance-style estate of millionaire industrialist James Deering. This opulent 70-room palace on Biscayne Bay is the jewel in the city's crown, with its art treasures, formal gardens and preserved natural setting.

But perhaps what comes to mind most often for Miamians when they think of the Grove is shopping, entertainment, good food, and fun. Locals come from all over to dine at the many restaurants, from sidewalk eateries to candlelit dining rooms – all featuring a culturally diverse selection of food. The Grove is also a favorite haunt for locals when it comes to its art galleries, interesting shops and clubs – all of which you will find at CocoWalk, a one-stop entertainment complex in the heart of the Grove. Visitors will also find a wide selection of street artists and entertainers at Cocowalk.

It's never more obvious that the Grove is among the happening spots in the city than during one of the many festivals. A few include, “A Taste of the Grove” (January), the “Coconut Grove Arts Festival” ( February 14-16, 2004 ), the “Italian Renaissance Festival” ( March 19-21, 2004 ) at Vizcaya, the “Goombay Festival” ( June 5-6, 2004 ), a celebration of Bahamian heritage, and the “King Mango Strut” (December 28), which is a spoof on Miami 's Orange Bowl extravaganza.

Many of these events take place outdoors in Coconut Grove's lovely Peacock Park (305-416-1300), but any day of the year is good for enjoying the views of the bay and the marinas from one of the area’s waterfront parks. Bicycling, roller-blading, jogging, picnicking, tennis and more are all here on the water. When you tire of walking the Grove’s tree-lined streets, hop in your car and admire the area’s architectural points of interest -- from old houses of coral rock and gracious homes with expansive grounds to cottages and historic churches.

Key Biscayne

Just across the Rickenbacker Causeway, 2 miles south of downtown Miami (yet a world away, according to residents), is Key Biscayne. This 7 mile long and 2 mile wide barrier island is known for its spectacular beaches and many other recreational opportunities, as well as its relaxed, small-town lifestyle.

The Village of Key Biscayne is little more than a square mile of the island, which includes 1,800 acres of natural parkland. On the southern end of Key Biscayne is Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Recreation Area, home of the 95-foot-tall Cape Florida Lighthouse.

On the east side of the Key is Crandon Park (305-365-2300). It’s 3.5 mile white sand beach has been rated one of the 10 most beautiful in the United States by CondÈ Nast Traveler magazine. There are two outstanding sports sites here: Crandon Park Golf Course (305-361-9129) and the Tennis Center . Crandon Park Golf Course, with its lush tropical setting and great views of the Miami skyline, hosts the annual Royal Caribbean Classic (February), kickoff to the U.S. Senior PGA Tour. Not to be outdone, the Tennis Center hosts the annual NASDAQ-100 Open (March 24-April 4, 2004). The Marjory Stoneman Douglas Biscayne Nature Center (305-361-6767) with a marina, bike paths, concessions and more, round out the many family offerings in Crandon Park .

Key Biscayne is fabulously situated for water sports. Windsurfing is especially popular from Hobie Island , just 200 feet off the mainland. Scuba diving into offshore reefs and wrecks is also possible, along with sport fishing, snorkeling, jet skiing, and sailing.

Nearby Virginia Key is home to the Miami Seaquarium (305-361-5705), a center for research and conservation, housing some 10,000 creatures of the deep, and the University of Miami 's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science (305-361-4000), a leader in oceanographic research. After a visit to these hospitable islands, so close to the bustle of urban Miami , you too will find yourself in the swim.

Little Havana

The official name of this area is Southwest Eighth Street , but everyone knows it as "Calle Ocho."

Cubans who fled from Cuba in the 1960’s recreated their community west of Brickell Avenue , imbuing it with nostalgia for their homeland. This vibrant neighborhood, home to many residents from Central and South America as well, has a distinct Latin flavor. Everything is authentic, from the fruit stands and cigar factories to the eat-at windows of the cafeterias where patrons drink Cuban coffee and passionately discuss politics.

You'll want to visit the area's quaint shops, where you'll find embroidered guayabera shirts, hand-rolled cigars and Latin music, or explore gift shops offering unique items and Cuban memorabilia. And at Little Havana to Go (305-381-7884), you'll find regional crafts, souvenirs, art and more.

Cultural activities are blossoming here, along with art galleries, studios and theaters. Cultural Fridays take place on the last Friday of every month along Calle Ocho and feature dance, music, poetry, visual arts, and theater. The historic Tower Theater is alive with performances, cultural and educational programs, and multi-cultural films, while Teatro Ocho is home to theater productions in Spanish.

Last, but not least is the food. Little Havana is one of the best places to experience Latin cuisine. Latin flavor takes center stage during Carnaval Miami, a week-long celebration of Hispanic culture culminating with Calle Ocho (a street festival that's often referred to as "the world's largest block party"), which attracts more than a million people each year.

Aventura

After becoming a city in 1995, Aventura, located at the northern end of Miami-Dade County , has established its niche as an enclave of tropical landscaping and water, surrounding sleek high-rises and luxurious single-family homes.

Majestic palms and shade trees line the roadways, and colorful flowers cover the medians of Aventura Boulevard and Country Club Drive , which sweeps around the golf course in the heart of the city.

Aventura Founders Park , located in the center of the city, features a bayside path, tennis courts, a children's playground and a multi-purpose athletic field. Nearby you’ll find the 4.3-mile long Don Soffer Aventura Fitness Trail, a popular spot for walkers, runners, cyclists, and rollerbladers.

Aventura is also synonymous with world-class shopping. The Aventura Mall, set among lush landscaping, includes an interesting array of shops and restaurants, as well as a large movie theater inside. The nearby Waterways replicate a village set around the marina. You can wander around the shopping areas, boutiques and galleries, meander down to the lighthouse, and then enjoy a meal in one of the area’s distinctive restaurants. With a selection of cuisine ranging from sophisticated to casual, Aventura will definitely entice you.

Bal Harbour

This may be one of the smallest municipalities in Miami-Dade County , but it is also one of the best known. Covering a third of a square mile, the village has long been a favored hideaway of the rich and famous where celebrity spotting is easy. Here the main street, Collins Avenue , becomes a wide boulevard graced by stately palm trees and greenery. To the east, against a backdrop of the Atlantic Ocean , you'll find the village's 2 luxury resorts and gleaming condominium towers set amid flowers and fountains. On the west side of Collins Avenue , low-rise apartment buildings stand next to the gated entrance to Bal Harbour 's single-family homes. Heading north out of this tiny oceanside city, the road rises to a crest over the Haulover Bridge . On the other side you’ll find Haulover Park where you can enjoy the beach, water, picnic area and more.

Bal Harbour shops are the village's crown jewel. The upscale mall is open to the sky, but designed to protect shoppers from the elements in a tropical garden setting, swathed in scarlet and purple bougainvillea. Here you can browse the collection of internationally renowned boutiques and stores that evoke style centers in New York , Paris , Milan , and London . The latest designer fashions and accessories, precious gems and fine, decorative objects may be found here.

When it comes to dining, you can choose from an array of elegant cuisines -- continental, international, Italian, Latin, seafood, steaks, sushi, and New Miami World cuisine served by the restaurants or the village's two resorts. But whether you dine indoors or outdoors, in a cafe or bistro, or on a terrace overlooking the Atlantic Ocean , you'll savor the ambience of Bal Harbour.

Sunny Isles Beach

The scene is changing in this lively resort area, as funky 1950’s motels and small beachfront hotels give way to luxury apartment towers and hotels. But little has changed on the Newport Fishing Pier, where you can drop a line and fish from shore.

For the thrill of deep-sea fishing, just head south to the charter boats docked on the Intracoastal Highway at Haulover Beach Park – a park split down the middle by the main road, Collins Avenue. (THIS SHOULD BE ONE COMPLETE PARAGRAPH W/THE NEXT PARAGRAPH.) On one side, bordering the Intracoastal Waterway, ocean breezes cool the 9-hole, par-3 golf course and the tennis courts, making the park a perfect spot for kite flying. Across Collins Avenue, a one-mile long stretch of pristine beach gives you the obvious surf and sand choices, plus shaded picnic areas where you can enjoy a day of fun or a quick oceanside lunch or dinner.

Surfside

One of the attractions of this quiet, family-oriented town is the wide, secluded beach that is bordered by a path through the dunes.

Rejuvenated hotels and luxury high-rise condominiums are changing the style of Collins Avenue , but Harding Avenue retains the feel of an old-style main street with small shops, a 1950’s corner drugstore and a soda fountain.

Small bistros welcome strollers for a casual meal, while the oceanfront Surfside Community Center and Tot-Lotpresent various shows and events year round in an art deco-style outdoor stage that is reminiscent of a miniature Hollywood Bowl.

Just south of surfside, the North Shore State Recreation Area offers an unspoiled beachfront nature preserve and picnic area that also caters to families.

Off topic a good bit and unrelated, but for our Amber friends, this was provided as well.

Not related to 'this' game but might make for interesting reading material.

At ACNW they were running a second installment on a street level Chaos game called "Pulp Chaos." It's basically an attempt to imagine what life is like for the non-Lords in Chaos while still using the Merlin series as canon. There's info on his site at:  http://www.bolthy.com/pulpchaos/

A place to post information about 1920's cars.
http://www.skygaze.com/content/facts/automobiles.shtml

d20 Pulp games
http://paratime.ca/d20/pulp/

Dime Hero Character

http://www.deep7.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv? Screen=PROD&Store_Code=deep7&Product_Code=D71PG008
(copy paste into browser)

Adventure!
http://www.white-wolf.com/Games/Pages/Adventure.html

GURPS: Cliffhangers
http://www.sjgames.com/gurps/books/cliffhangers/

Zeppelin Age
http://www.zeppelinage.com/

Danger Quest
http://www.torchlightgames.com/TLG_DQ_P1.html

Pulp Cthulhu
http://www.chaosium.com/cthulhu/d20cthulhu/8800.shtml

Savage Worlds
http://www.peginc.com/SavageWorlds/index.htm

Final Fantasy:

FFRPG 3rd ed.(beta)
http://www.returnergames.com/wiki/

Returner Games Homepage
http://www.returnergames.com/

FFRPG Rules(.hlp File)
http://www.returnergames.com/ffrpg.hlp

Pulp Links:

The Internet Guide to Jazz Age Slang:
http://home.earthlink.net/~dlarkins/slang-pg.htm

Pulp Character Archetypes:
http://www.chill.uk.net/eon/ch...ulperaarchetypes.php

...and Pulp Villain Archetypes:
http://www.chill.uk.net/eon/ch...villainachetypes.php

Jess Nevins' superb directory of Pulp and Adventure Heroes of the Pre-War
Years:
http://www.geocities.com/jjnevins/pulpsintro.html

The Pulp Avengers: Game Mastering Pulp Adventures in the 1930s and 1940s.
http://www.fantasylibrary.com/lounge/pulpavengers.htm

Crimson Skies:
http://www.crimsonskies.com

Lester Dent (creator of Doc Savage) published a master template for writing
a pulp story:
http://dept.english.upenn.edu/~rbarrett/mc/dent.txt

More than 300 e-books featuring The Shadow:
http://www.spaceports.com/~deshadow/

Steampunk links:

Detailed game system and adventure modules in a variety of steampunk settings.
http://www.forgottenfutures.com/game/index.htm

Resource on use of robots, Victorian era.
http://bigredhair.com/robots/index.html
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:47, Fri 08 Dec 2006.

Chris-Craft Powerboats
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris-Craft_Industries

Boat types:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Boat_types

Rum Running:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rum-running
http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-cp/hi...ion_Photo_Index.html
http://www.providenceri.com/na...bay/rum_runners.html

Motorboats:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speedboat

Yachts
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yacht

Launch (boat)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Launch_%28boat%29
http://www.working-boats.co.uk/
(A selection of Launches, the styles that could have been used in Rum Running, for speed against Coast Guard ships)
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:23, Wed 01 Nov 2006.

Only Yesterday - An Informal History of the 1920's - by Frederick Lewis Allen

I also found the book available on the web! The full text is available.
That makes it easier to capture and make available for news stories if they look interesting.

The book is here:
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~hyper/Allen/Cover.html

It is a very informative and interesting book!

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~YP/yppop.html
This site has a wealth of information.

Probably one of the most dramatic decades in United States history, the 1920s had it all.
Women's rights, political scandals, crimes of the century, and economic upheaval. This was a time where the old and the new clashed, and that clash caused some of the most sensational events in our history.
ILLINOIS TRAILS Welcomes You To The 1920s!
http://www.usgennet.org/usa/il/state/alhn1920.html




Check out the British perspective of America in the 1920's.
The USA was one of the victors in the First World War and it enjoyed a period of great prosperity in the 1920's, though there was a darker side to American life even then.
http://www.schoolshistory.org.uk/america/index.htm




The Emergence of Advertising in America: 1850 - 1920 (EAA) presents over 9,000 images, with database information, relating to the early history of advertising in the United States. The materials, drawn from the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library at Duke University, provide a significant and informative perspective on the early evolution of this most ubiquitous feature of modern American business and culture.
http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/eaa/


A comprehensive directory that covers all facets of the 1920's & 1930's.
http://users.snowcrest.net/jmike/20sdep.html



Descriptions and illustrations of 1920's flapper fashions.
http://www.rambova.com/fashion/fash4.html



American Popular Songs in the form in which they were originally published, beginng with the 1920's.
http://digital.library.ucla.edu/apam/



From the Library of Congress, Dance Instruction Manuals 1490-1920.
An American Ballroom Companion.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/dihtml/dihome.html



Free to Dance--Dance Timelne 1619-2001
From PBS.org
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/freeto.../timeline/index.html



American Variety Stage: Vaudeville and Popular Entertainment 1870-1920
Included are 334 English- and Yiddish-language playscripts, 146 theater playbills and programs, 61 motion pictures, 10 sound recordings and 143 photographs and 29 memorabilia items documenting the life and career of Harry Houdini.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/vshtml/vshome.html



And there are even more links at:
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~YP/yppop.html



More Links can be found at:
http://www.trailend.org/main-links.htm
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:24, Thu 16 Nov 2006.

http://news.scotsman.com/inter...al.cfm?id=2434192005

Stalin's half-man, half-ape super-warriors
CHRIS STEPHEN AND ALLAN HALL

THE Soviet dictator Josef Stalin ordered the creation of Planet of the Apes-style warriors by crossing humans with apes, according to recently uncovered secret documents.

Moscow archives show that in the mid-1920s Russia's top animal breeding scientist, Ilya Ivanov, was ordered to turn his skills from horse and animal work to the quest for a super-warrior.

According to Moscow newspapers, Stalin told the scientist: "I want a new invincible human being, insensitive to pain, resistant and indifferent about the quality of food they eat."

In 1926 the Politburo in Moscow passed the request to the Academy of Science with the order to build a "living war machine". The order came at a time when the Soviet Union was embarked on a crusade to turn the world upside down, with social engineering seen as a partner to industrialisation: new cities, architecture, and a new egalitarian society were being created.

The Soviet authorities were struggling to rebuild the Red Army after bruising wars.

And there was intense pressure to find a new labour force, particularly one that would not complain, with Russia about to embark on its first Five-Year Plan for fast-track industrialisation.

Mr Ivanov was highly regarded. He had established his reputation under the Tsar when in 1901 he established the world's first centre for the artificial insemination of racehorses.

Mr Ivanov's ideas were music to the ears of Soviet planners and in 1926 he was dispatched to West Africa with $200,000 to conduct his first experiment in impregnating chimpanzees.

Meanwhile, a centre for the experiments was set up in Georgia - Stalin's birthplace - for the apes to be raised.

Mr Ivanov's experiments, unsurprisingly from what we now know, were a total failure. He returned to the Soviet Union, only to see experiments in Georgia to use monkey sperm in human volunteers similarly fail.

A final attempt to persuade a Cuban heiress to lend some of her monkeys for further experiments reached American ears, with the New York Times reporting on the story, and she dropped the idea amid the uproar.

Mr Ivanov was now in disgrace. His were not the only experiments going wrong: the plan to collectivise farms ended in the 1932 famine in which at least four million died.

For his expensive failure, he was sentenced to five years' jail, which was later commuted to five years' exile in the Central Asian republic of Kazakhstan in 1931. A year later he died, reportedly after falling sick while standing on a freezing railway platform.

The Time magazine archive

http://www.time.com/time/archive

This is a free online database of the nearly 300,000 stories published since
the magazine's launch in 1923. It allows users to read articles not in
retrospect from today, but as the events unfolded.

The archive is organized into collections, but readers can also search
by date or keywords.

Collections are hand-picked covers and excerpts from the best articles on a wide variety of subjects. Use them as chronological guides to TIME's past coverage of a person, event, or topic.

Contents of May 25, 1925
http://www.time.com/time/magaz...3,7601250525,00.html

Contents of June 1, 1925
http://www.time.com/time/magaz...3,7601250601,00.html

Contents of June 8, 1925
http://www.time.com/time/magaz...3,7601250608,00.html

Jack found some good background stuff for 1920's clothing.

Men's fashions:
http://www.murrayonhawaii.com/nolan/index.html
http://www.murrayonhawaii.com/...istory_1920mens.html

Women's fashions:
http://www.murrayonhawaii.com/...tory_1920ladies.html

Dept. of the Army Regulations For Operation Of (Aeroplanes) Aircraft - Commencing January 1920

01. Don't take the machine into the air unless you are satisfied it will fly.

02. Never leave the ground with the motor leaking.

03. Don't turn sharply when taxiing. Instead of turning sharp, have someone lift the tail around.

04. In taking off, look at the ground and the air.

05. Never get out of the machine with the motor running until the pilot relieving you can reach the motor controls.

06. Pilots should carry hankies in a handy place to wipe off goggles.

07. Riding on the steps, wings, or rail of the machine is prohibited.

08. In case the engine fails on takeoff, land straight ahead regardless of obstacles.

09. No machine must taxi faster than a man can walk.

10. Never run motor so that blast will blow on other machines.

11. Learn to gauge altitude, especially on landing.

12. If you see another machine near you, get out of the way.

13. No two cadets should ever ride together in the same machine.

14. Do not trust altitude instruments.

15. Before you begin a landing glide, see that no machines are under you.

16. Hedge-hopping will not be tolerated.

17. No spins on back or tail sides will be indulged in as they unnecessarily strain the machines.

18. If flying against the wind and you wish to fly with the wind, don't make a sharp turn near the ground. You may crash.

19. Motors have been known to stop during a long glide. If pilot wishes to use motor for landing, he should open the throttle.

20. Don't attempt to force the machine onto the ground with more than flying speed. The result is bounding and ricocheting.

21. Pilots will not wear spurs while flying.

22. Do not use aeronautical gasoline in cars or motorcycles.

23. You must not take off or land closer than 50 feet to the hanger.

24. Never take a machine into the air until you are familiar with it's controls and instruments.

25. If an emergency occurs while flying, land as soon as possible.