The History of Singer Island
The
first record of a settlement on Singer Island dates back to
1906 with Inlet City. Inlet City was a spontaneous community
of fishermen and squatters, most of whom came from nearby Riviera
Beach and the Bahamas. Fishermen were attracted to the island
as a place to dry the cotton nets that they used in those days,
and for its proximity to the fertile Gulf Stream (the waters
of the Gulf Stream are closer to land on Singer Island than
any other place in North America!).
Singer Island was named for Paris Eugene Singer, the famous developer of Palm Beach and 23rd child of Isaac Singer, the sewing machine magnate (Paris also fathered a son with legendary dancer Isadora Duncan in 1910*). In 1920, he visited Palm Beach and met Addison Mizner. He agreed to pay the architect a $6,000 a year retainer for life if his work was confined exclusively to the Palm Beach area. With Mizner, he created the Palm Beach we know today with its Spanish architecture, picturesque streets and exclusive shops. Singer often took his friends on picnics to the beautiful island directly north of Palm Beach. In anticipation of the Florida real estate boom, he and Mizner planned to develop a luxurious resort (the Paris Singer Hotel) on the south end of the island and a modest hotel (the Blue Heron) on the north end with a 36 hole golf course between the two structures. The
estimated price was four million dollars - a fantastic amount
in those years. Mizner was to design the hotels, but it is said
Singer was so eager to start, construction of the Blue Heron
was begun before the drawings were started. The opening date
was set for 1926. The hotel's service wing was the first and
the last to be completed. Singer's original plan was to finance
the building from the sale of lots throughout the island. The
Florida land boom was already slowing down in 1925, and the
combination of 1928 hurricane and 1929 stock market crash dealt
a mortal blow to Singer's finances. The shell of the Blue Heron
remained for 14 years, until Paris Singer's dream finally came
to an end when the the abandoned, incomplete hotel was razed
in 1940 (the Hilton Hotel stands there now). John D. MacArthur, born in poverty as the son of a preacher, became one of the greatest financiers of his day through the building of Chicago's Banker's Life and Casualty Insurance Company. By purchasing over 100,000 acres in this part of Palm Beach County, MacArthur became the largest landowner in the area. MacArthur ran his billion dollar empire from a booth in the Colonnades Hotel's coffee shop. In 1976 he suffered a stroke and died 14 months later in the hotel. The hotel was razed in 1990 and the Marriott Corporation began construction of its time share resort, Marriott's Ocean Pointe Resort, on the land. MacArthur also owned many acres on the north end of Singer Island and he donated a large section of that land for a state park. The MacArthur Beach State Park opened in 1989 and his foundation provides funds to improve the facilities. In
the 1950's Palm Beach County enjoyed tremendous growth and Singer
Island evolved into a resort area of hotels and condominiums
for winter residents. In 1952, Phil Foster Park was opened,
named after one of Riviera Beach's pioneer citizens. In 1976,
to accommodate this growth and ease the access to the island,
the two lane draw bridge was replaced with the current four
lane Blue Heron Bridge.
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In 1940, the City of Riviera purchased 1,000 feet of beach on
the Island for $40,000. This led to the growth of tourism in
Riviera and eventual incorporation of the island north of Palm
Beach Shores. In 1941, the city of Riviera changed its name
to Riviera Beach. The Town of Palm Beach Shores was developed
in 1947 when A. O. Edwards, a railroad and hotel tycoon, bought
240 acres on Singer Island for $240,000 and invested $500,000
in improvements. He laid out a city plan with parks, walkways
and roadways (Palm Beach Shores' northern boundary originally
extended 300 ft. north of Blue Heron Boulevard). In 1948 Edwards
built the Inlet Court Hotel which was later renamed The Colonnades.
A year later the wooden Sherman's Point Bridge was replaced
with a steel and concrete two lane structure with a drawbridge
which permitted passage through the Intracoastal Waterway. The
first Sebring style race was held on the island in 1950 and
ended at the Colonnades. Edwards became the Singer Island's
first mayor in 1952. When he died in 1960, his estate sold the
Colonnades Hotel to John D. MacArthur in 1963. 
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