52 Deerfield Moments

Woman’s Club of Deerfield A Long History of Service The Woman’s Club of Deerfield was first incorporated in 1926. It grew from a club named The Bluebirds started by Mrs. JD Turner in 1919. One of its earliest and most important contribution to our community was the establishment of a library that has evolved into […]

The City of Deerfield Beach Is Born GE Butler Jr. First Mayor Originally named the Town of Deerfield, our city was incorporated on June 11, 1925. George Emory Butler, Jr. was elected as the first mayor. In the early 1920‘s, the town of Boca Raton was threatening to swallow up the little settlement of Deerfield.

Cracker Day Deerfield’s Big Festival What is now Pioneer Days, goes back to 1947. It began as a one-day picnic under the big trees in Pioneer Park. The Deerfield Beach Lions Club was the host back then serving up barbecued chicken, corn on the cob and homemade baked beans. It was held in the spring to

The Butler House Deerfield Beach’s Historic Home Deerfield Beach pioneers and civic leaders, James D. and Alice Butler built their new home from plans obtained from The Ladies Home Journal of September 1923. This Mediterranean Revival style building cost $10,000.00 to build and it is situated on almost four city lots. The house is built

Seaboard Railway The Orange Blossom Special The historic Seaboard Air Line Railway was built in 1926 during the Seaboard’s push into South Florida to compete with Henry Flagler’s Florida East Coast Railway. With new railroad came the promise of an increased tourist trade and  a greater market for the local crops. The building is a

Deerfield Is Devastated 1926 & 1928 Hurricanes The newly formed City of Deerfield, established in 1925, was was hit by two major hurricanes in 1926 and a category 4 hurricane in 1928. The first is referred to as The Miami Hurricane and hit the hardest south of Deerfield. It still caused considerable damage here and

Deerfield Goes Bankrupt The 1929 Crash Hits Hard Still struggling to recover from hurricanes in 1926 and 1928, when the stock market crashed in 1929, Deerfield was hard hit again. Still a farming community, Deerfield was able to grow crops, but there was no market to sell the crops. This eventually lead to the City

Kester Cottages Deerfield’s Pioneer Housing Originally from West Virginia, brothers Stuart and William Kester settled in Florida in the 1920‘s and began building their trademark cottages in the Pompano/Deerfield area in 1937. Their houses were build of Dade County Heart pine and were equipped with running water and indoor plumbing.  There were 1, 2, 3

The Riverview Deerfield’s Gambling Past In 1929, William Kester built a packing house for local farmers and fishermen on the Intracoastal in Deerfield. In 1938, he sold it to William Stewart, a casino operator from Wheeling, West Virginia. “Bill” quickly converted the packing house into a bar, restaurant and gambling casino. The emphasis was on

Capone Island The Legend Lives On The details can be debated but Al Capone plays a part in Deerfield’s history. Legend has it, the fish packing house that later became the Riverview Restaurant was used by Al Capone as a gambling casino, brothel and for shipping illegal booze. Across from this location is a little