History We Call Home
In 2025 and 2026, a dozen cities across South Florida mark their 100th anniversaries — communities that rose quickly during the boom years of the 1920s and grew into the region we know today.
In History We Call Home: 100 Years of South Florida, WLRN reporters take listeners city by city — from Miami to Boca Raton, Hollywood to Jupiter— uncovering the stories that shaped these places, and the people whose contributions were often overlooked.
From historic churches and neighborhoods, to racetracks, schools, beaches, and cultural landmarks, this series explores how South Florida was built — and who was left out of the official histories.
Latest Episodes
-
Founded by aviation pioneer Glenn Curtiss, Miami Springs grew out of ambition, speed, and real estate speculation. This episode looks at the man behind the city — and the boom-era vision that helped shape South Florida.From Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, 11 cities are celebrating their centennials in 2025 and 2026. WLRN News' series "History We Call Home" spotlights the moments, ideas and people that made these cities part of our community's fabric over the past century. -
When Hollywood was founded in 1925, its developer imagined a glamorous resort city. In part one, we revisit the Hollywood Beach Resort Hotel — and how it shaped the early identity of Hollywood.Also in this episode: Before Hollywood existed, a segregated Black neighborhood called Liberia was already there. We explore how Jim Crow laws shaped life in Hollywood — and how Liberia’s legacy is remembered today.From Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, 11 cities are celebrating their centennials in 2025 and 2026. WLRN News' series "History We Call Home" spotlights the moments, ideas and people that made these cities part of our community's fabric over the past century. -
Long before the Town of Davie became known for its horses and rodeos, it was miles of wild, untamed Everglades. In the early 1900s, after the wetlands were drained, settlers came looking for new opportunities… to farm, to build, to start fresh. Those early pioneers learned to work the land and build a community from the ground up. At the center of it all was the Davie School, now known as the Old Davie School Museum.From Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, 11 cities are celebrating their centennials in 2025 and 2026. WLRN News' series "History We Call Home" spotlights the moments, ideas and people that made these cities part of our community's fabric over the past century. -
In the 1920s, the Hialeah Racetrack helped put the city on the map. As Hialeah turns 100, we trace how the racetrack shaped the city — and the labor of Black migrants who helped build it.Also in this episode: Before Hialeah was officially incorporated, Black migrant workers had already established a community called Seminola. This episode explores that neighborhood’s origins — and the fight by descendants to have their history recognized as the city marks its centennial.From Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, 11 cities are celebrating their centennials in 2025 and 2026. WLRN News' series "History We Call Home" spotlights the moments, ideas and people that made these cities part of our community's fabric over the past century. -
For Cuban exiles fleeing the 1959 revolution, Freedom Tower was a first stop — and a symbol of hope.The tower celebrated its centennial anniversary in 2025, marking 100 years as a symbol of resilience in its various functions for the people of Miami. In this episode, we revisit the Freedom Tower’s history and how it went from newspaper headquarters to refugee processing center — and what it represents to South Floridians today.From Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, 11 cities are celebrating their centennials in 2025 and 2026. WLRN News' series "History We Call Home" spotlights the moments, ideas and people that made these cities part of our community's fabric over the past century. -
Deerfield Beach, now home to nearly 90-thousand people, is the tenth-largest city in Broward County. But in the early 1900s, it was a quiet farming village with dirt roads, small wooden houses, and little over a thousand residents who were fiercely defensive of their seaside home.In this episode of History We Call Home: 100 Years of South Florida, we look back at Deerfield Beach’s journey from deer-grazing territory — to infamous mobster haven — to a thriving community.From Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, 11 cities are celebrating their centennials in 2025 and 2026. WLRN News' series "History We Call Home" spotlights the moments, ideas and people that made these cities part of our community's fabric over the past century. -
As Boca Raton celebrates 100 years, we turn to Pearl City — its oldest Black neighborhood. Sisters in their 90s share memories of growing up in a segregated farming community — and of building a life in a city that often overlooked them.From Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, 11 cities are celebrating their centennials in 2025 and 2026. WLRN News' series History We Call Home spotlights the moments, ideas, and people that made these cities part of our community's fabric over the past century. -
One of Coral Gables’ earliest buildings still stands — but its future is uncertain. As the city marks its centennial, we explore the history of a church at the center of a preservation fight — and how it’s redefining its mission for the community today.Also in this episode: Before the Venetian Pool became a landmark, it was a coral rock quarry. We uncover the often-overlooked role of Bahamian workers who helped build Coral Gables — and laid the foundation for one of South Florida’s most iconic cities.From Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, 11 cities are celebrating their centennials in 2025 and 2026. WLRN News' series "History We Call Home" spotlights the moments, ideas and people that made these cities part of our community's fabric over the past century. -
As the Town of Jupiter marks 100 years, we look at a stretch of coastline where rescue and tragedy once met. Near the Jupiter Inlet, a former life-saving station tells the story of a small agricultural town shaped by the sea — and by national events far beyond it.From Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade, 11 cities are celebrating their centennials in 2025 and 2026. WLRN News' series History We Call Home spotlights the moments, ideas and people that made these cities part of our community's fabric over the past century. -
It’s a once-in-a-lifetime moment in South Florida history.A century ago, the region experienced a land boom when investors and developers from around the country came down on trains and automobiles and started building cities where once there was swampland, farms and small settlements. Cities sprang up almost overnight. Thanks to a burgeoning post-war economy, entrepreneurial spirit and good old fashioned Florida glamour, the area’s population shot up to the hundreds of thousands.Now, 11 cities from Palm Beach County to Miami-Dade are celebrating their centennials in 2025 and 2026. In honor of this milestone, WLRN News will be bringing together stories from each of these communities that peer through history to give us a better understanding of the present and our shared future.The series History We Call Home: 100 Years of South Florida aired through 2025 and highlights locales across the region. Our reporters spotlight the moments, ideas and people that made these cities part of our community's fabric over the past century. We hope you'll join us on this journey.
