Biltmore Hotel Before…an Enduring Legacy
The Biltmore Hotel has been revered as an iconic structure in the City Beautiful since the 1920s, when the visionary George Merrick created his vision of “Castles in Spain.” His dream was to take the “romance of the Mediterranean” and combine it with South Florida’s lush tropical ambience.
George Merrick came to Florida with his family in 1899, who immediately purchased 160 acres in the City of Miami. Merrick’s humble beginnings began selling guava and vegetables and planting grapefruit groves with the hopeful promise of bearing fruit to sustain them in the future. George was the youngest of the six Merrick children and from an early age, he decided that he wanted a future that involved more than farming the land; he aspired to be a poet. As a young man, George Merrick was encouraged by his father to attend law school in New York City and ultimately returned to South Florida in 1911 when his father died and left the now prosperous groves in George’s care. But George Merrick was not content and had dreams that were bigger and bolder. His dreams were to transform the groves into a residential community like no other, which is how the City Beautiful was born – Coral Gables “The Miami Riviera on 40 miles of waterfront.”
The concept of the City Beautiful movement included creating a city with a magical ambience including the treasured banyan trees forming canopies, wide boulevards with foliage in the medians, lots of green spaces, fountains all while mimicking the Mediterannean flavor of Italy and Spain. In fact, many of the streets throughout Coral Gables are named after cities in Spain.
To house the ever-increasing number of visitors to Coral Gables in the 1920s, several small hotels were constructed including the Inn at Coral Gables, the Cla-Reina, the Antilla and the Casa Loma. Although they were charming and beautiful in their own right, this was merely a segway that paved the way for the crown jewel of Coral Gables – what was originally known as the Miami Biltmore Hotel.
In May 1922, the creation of the Westchester-Biltmore Country Club in Rye, New York foreshadowed the unveiling of the the Miami-Biltmore Hotel that was built in January 1926 during an era of affluence and optimism; before ultimately surviving an economic downturn. Fast forward to the 1940s, the Biltmore Hotel played an unexpected role in World War II and the “once-luxurious tourist destination” transformed into a military hospital caring for thousands of soldiers and nurturing them back to health. Interestingly enough, the hotel also served as work grounds for prisoners of war under the same roof. The POWs could frequently be seen in the kitchen cleaning pots and pans. Also during that time, the Biltmore Hotel served as a stage set for a patriotic movie called “The Marines Came Through”….and indeed the marines did come through! Many local residents recognized the “19th Hole” of the Biltmore Country Club in some of the scenes.
While the “glitz and glamour” were gone from the hotel during World War II, the Biltmore Hotel was kept in the limelight and served a greater purpose for the community during these years. It also set the stage for the hotel to resume the glory of its yesteryears in the future and as we know it now.
After a round of golf at the 18-hole championship golf course, Biltmore guests today can visit the Cascade restaurant and sip on a refreshing mojito poolside or relax with a deep tissue massage at your “ultimate spa escape.” You can top off your day with a refreshing swim in the world famous 23,000 square foot Biltmore pool and top off your experience by renting a poolside cabana to lounge in.