Hialeah Seaboard Air Line Railway Station Building

I’m sure and willing to bet not many people, if any, that travel using the train on the Hialeah Market Station know that the decrapitating abandoned building to their north is an historic building here in Hialeah. No seriously. I’m not just saying that. That building that is slowly falling apart, to my knowledge, is only one of two structures here in Hialeah added to the National Register of Historic Places. Hialeah Park being the other.
The documented date for this building being erected is 1926. Depending on what historical document you read, this may vary by, give or take, a year. Harvey and Clarke, also responsible for many of the original buildings in South Florida, are credited as the architects. That year, 1926, is the year one of the most damaging hurricanes hit South Florida.
By the time the hurricane hit, South Florida was already suffering a slight downfall from the land boom that had occurred in the early «Roaring 20s» down here. The hurricane was just the icing on the cake. Many of the original structures from the beginnings of Miami-​Dade were lost forever. This is important information for later. Pay attention.
Hialeah is so congested these days that you probably can’t imagine it but, Hialeah was nothing but Everglades back in 1926. Other than Hialeah Park, farms, a small «downtown,» a few homes and warehouses, there was nothing here. It wasn’t even until the late 70s to early 80s that many of the empty fields by my house were developed.
So, you’re probably asking yourselves, «why the Hell would a train go to the middle of the Everglades in 1926.» That’s a very good question. If you asked that, that means you’re paying attention to this extremely long Unilocal.Keep-​up, I’m almost done here.
See, even back then, Hialeah was the last frontier. There was plenty of land for sale here and fairly cheap. The fact that we stole the land from the many Native American-​Indians that were already living here, is besides the point. Just like today, reaching Miami from this point is easy and centrally accessible. Like they say, «all roads lead to Hialeah.»
This station was built in part for, famous in its own right, The Orange Blossom Special train. This train would bring vacationers, potential buyers and investors, in luxury, to the «newly discovered» Hialeah with access to Miami from up north. Other famous trains would later follow. This is where the documented construction date of 1926 is «iffy.» Some records don’t show The Orange Blossom coming into Hialeah until 1927. The devastating hurricane and the financial collapse being the other reasons.
So, for possibly all these reasons, a now abandoned structure, was added to the Historic Register in 1989. I don’t care «why» or by «who.» I’m just glad it was preserved. We don’t have much preserved history here. If you do know that information, I don’t, I encourage you to get an Unilocal Account and write a review with that information. I’d love to know.
At some point in the mid-​90s, the Hialeah Market Station, run by Amtrak/​Tri-​rail, was added to its immediate south on an already existing train track. You know what’s cool? If you walk around the area, you can see where all the old train tracks once crossed. Now, part of them have gravel on them or grass. Yeah, trains were once the sign of progress. Many of the warehouses that were once in that area of East Hialeah were supplied by train.
Why did they name it Hialeah Market Station? Well, at one point they tried. You can still see the signs for the Fish Market they once tried running there. So much potential for «something» and it’s just sitting there rotting away. What a shame.
Things to note and blah, blah, blahs:
* This is located adjacent to an active Amtrak train track. Be careful if you go onto the tracks to take a picture.
* If you’re really a real photographer, you’ll have a field day taking pictures here. I was surprised to find many of the original architecture in place.
* This building has the same construction style as Hialeah Park.
* I didn’t pay for parking because I was only here a few minutes to take pictures BUT, parking here is not free. Amtrak/​Tri-​Rail fees are required to park here.
* It is very hidden from the main roads. Accessible but hidden. I had to use my GPS to find it. The last time I was here, neither the Home Depot across the street nor the Hialeah Market Station were built. Yeah, I know. I’m old.
#SaveOurBuildings #Hialeah