Print ArticleDowntown isn't the only neighborhood in town that's interesting. Here's eight facts about the beaches that you probably didn't already know.
6. Beach Boulevard was a railroad
The depot at Pablo Beach on June 18, 1909. Courtesy of the State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, https://floridamemory.com/items/show/268652 - See more at: https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/268652#sthash.OczWAhcH.dpuf
Today, transit advocates can only wish for a rail line that would efficiently move tourist and residents, back and forth, between downtown Jacksonville and the Beaches. Little do most know that, for 44 years, the congested mess we know as Beach Boulevard, was a rail line.
The rail connection between downtown Jacksonville and the beaches was initially established in 1888 by the Jacksonville, Mayport and Pablo Railroad. In 1899, Henry Flagler's Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) acquired the railroad and eventually extended it north to Mayport, transporting coal and tourists.
The FEC gave up on its beaches rail line in 1932. A lethal combination of the Great Depression and cars and roads becoming more popular, ultimately led to the railroad's demise. After abandoning the railroad branch, the FEC conveyed its right-of-way to the state of Florida. In 1949, the state completed its conversion of the old railroad into a new road now known as Beach Boulevard.
Flying over Beach Boulevard in 2012.
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