What an interesting find, located right near the park parking lot and fenced city machinery yard…read more It's the first schoolhouse built in Palm Beach County. You can't walk in, but you can walk around it, admiring the garden and redwood structure.

I happened on this by building chance and when I saw the sign on the side of the road and I stopped…read moreto take a look. The schoolhouse was founded in 1886 as the first school house in southeast Florida. The first students were taught by the reverends 16 year old daughter Hattie Gale. It was originally located one mile north of Royal Poinciana Bridge and it served the children of Lake Worth. During the height of it's enrollment in the 1890's 35 students attended at one time. It ceased to operate as a school house in 1901 and was used instead as a tool shed where it fell into disrepair. The Gardener's Society of Palm Beach rehabbed it in 1960 and moved it to where it resides today in Phipps Ocean Park. Today the school house is used as part of a living history program which was started in 1990's. Fourth grade classes in the surrounding counties can come to visit for a free field trip to see what a school day was like at the turn of the century. On the day I came by the schoolhouse was closed and I believe it is only open to school children which I think is a shame because as a teacher I would really like to visit. I wish they would consider opening it to the general public on a weekend once in awhile. There is a screen over the windows making it difficult to see inside but from what I could make out there were desks and displays on the walls. I love history so I enjoyed seeing this building even if i couldn't look inside. I think it is wonderful that this piece of history was preserved for the school kids of today.

The founder of the City of Palm Beach Gardens was John D. MacArthur…read more When he created his new community he wanted it to have a garden theme with streets named after flowers and trees. In the late 1960's MacArthur heard about someone who was going to cut down a banyan tree that was damaging her home. MacArthur arranged to have the tree moved to his new city new and pl;anted at the intersection of Northlake Boulevard and MacArthur Boulevard, formerly Garden Boulevard. Since the tree weighed 75 tons and was 60 feet high the city needed six months to prepare the tree for the move to its new location. On the morning of April 26, 1961 the tree was ready to be transplanted. Two cranes on two cargo trailers were sent to bring the tree to it's new home five miles away. Unfortunately disaster struck when a feed mill truck burst on the road cleared for the tree. Ten thousand gallons of molasses were dumped raising the height of the roadway. As it traveled the tree snapped several railway signal lines causing crossing gates to close. While the tree was crossing the train tracks one of the cables supporting it snapped. Workers had to saw off limbs of the tree to allow the blocked 1:30 train to get back on it's way. Just after 2 PM the tree was dropped into it's prepared hole. The Rev. A. P. Snyder of St. John's Evangelical Church said a prayer over the tree and MacArthur threw the first shovel of dirt over the roots of the tree. The entire process cost $30,000 and 1,008 hours of manpower. One year later, a second forty ton tree was moved from Lake Park next to the first tree. When people criticized Mr. MacArthur for spending so much to move the tree he replied "I can buy anything but age. This tree will be the centerpiece of our entrance, and while we could plant a little one there, I wouldn't be around 80 years from now to see it as it should be." Moving the tree gave MacArthur the nickname Banyan Mac. Although he was a developer, MacArthur was able to claim that "I built Palm Beach Gardens without knocking one tree down, I moved the biggest tree ever moved in Florida." MacArthur would go on to eventually move more than 200 trees including a sixty foot Norfolk pine that he replanted at the Colonnades Hotel on Singer Island and four more banyans which he floated on a barge from West Palm Beach. Today the landmark banyan trees have a limb span of half an acre. The trees are featured on the Palm Beach Gardens city shield. In 2007 Alexandre Renoir, a great-grandson of artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir, presented the City of Palm Beach Gardens with a painting of the trees. A historical marker was installed across from the trees in 2011.

I have been staring at the back of this colorful building during the last couple of street painting…read morefestivals. The outside has a stage and a wide lawn for hosting events. It was time to find out what was inside. The building sits on the site of Lake Worth's first school built in 1912. It was torn down in 1916 and replaced with the concrete building that served as a school and city hall that stands here today. The building had to be rebuilt after the hurricane of 1928. In 1989 the building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The building contained city hall until 1973 when it was moved to 7 N. Dixie Hwy. It now houses the city hall annex on the first floor and the Lake Worth Museum on the second floor. The main purpose of my visit was to see the museum. As you go up the stairs you have to pass Miss Helen's desk. She was the best part of my visit. She is a Lake Worth treasure and pioneer by marriage as her husband likes to remind her. She gave me a brief tour and made herself available to answer any questions. The rooms are set up by themes such as World War 2 and Finland, Poland, and Lithuania in tribute to the heritage of the pioneers of Lake Worth. They had a nice display of dresses and I found the photographs of the devastation wrought by the Hurricane of 1928 fascinating. Miss Helen showed me the first census taken in the city in 1912 that listed 876 chickens in the city. Then someone got hungry and there were 875, just kidding. There were only 7 automobiles in the entire city in 1912. Although small I loved my visit to the museum and especially meeting Miss Helen. As I was leaving a firefighter was meeting with her to find historical records and pictures for the firehouse. If you live in the area and have a history question she is the person to see. Admission to the museum is free so make time for a visit the next time you are in the area.

Hidden gem! Beautiful garden right in the heart of downtown west palm beach by the intercostal. So…read morepeaceful and beautiful in here. The garden grounds were nicely kept.

This place is a sleeper. It's hidden in a cool little neighborhood. Great little walk-through…read morelittle surprised they ding you for 15 bucks but it's only 15 bucks is worth it. Nice to walk so cool. The walk is actually cooler than the statues. Honestly, I don't know who the artist is they're OK I don't love them. I don't hate them. They remind me of some cool Monuments from Aztec, but they're not as cool as the Aztecs but they're well positioned the nature walk is just relaxing except for the planes coming in for a landing but aside from that it's a cool thing. It's a nice little place to hang. It could be great for like cocktail hour cocktail parties

USA Today calls Thursday evening from 6:00 until 9 o'clock the best outdoor concert series…read more Tonight we enjoyed David Michael & Twisted Cypress on Clematis at night. It is going strong here with a lot of seating, food vendors & a live band at the waterfront. The colorful Adirondack chairs were inviting & the music was great. WPB.org/events posts all of the bands performing here.

We took the family out for a great fun night Downtown we had ice cream pizza saw all the costume We…read moregot these really cute balloons on clematis Street on Halloween for $10

Henry Morrison Flagler Museum -- it's truly one of my favorite museums…read more The building itself is breathtaking. The atmosphere feels grand and almost surreal -- high ceilings, intricate hand-crafted details, beautiful paintings, and original interiors that have been preserved so carefully. Walking through the rooms feels like stepping back in time. The closets, bathrooms, and living spaces are all still there, untouched, which makes the experience even more special. One detail that really surprised me was the shoes -- they were incredibly tiny, almost like doll shoes. It's amazing to see how different things were back then. On my recent visit, I noticed they opened a new section on the second floor that I hadn't seen before. It's a mix of contemporary art and historical fashion elements -- including clothing details, vintage shoe boxes, and personal items from the original residents. I especially loved the miniature handbags and a wall art piece featuring delicate gloves -- so small, elegant, and made from very fine leather. There are so many unique details to take in. There's also a gift shop on the first floor with a great selection -- we even picked up a Monopoly game themed around the museum, which was such a fun find. They also have books, coloring items, posters, jewelry, accessories, and even small unique souvenirs -- something for everyone. Another highlight is the separate glass building . They recently opened a café there that serves breakfast on weekends. The view is stunning -- overlooking the water with the historic train nearby. The space is bright, clean and very peaceful. The only inconvenience I experienced was when my kids were younger -- strollers are not allowed inside, so keep that in mind if you're visiting with small children. Luckily, I had a baby sling with me, which helped a lot.

Spent the day here as part of our anniversary celebration and it was a bit of a mixed bag…read more - The museum / estate tour was great. Learning about the history of the game and the grounds was good, and our charming docent was a wealth of knowledge which made it even better. - The staff and servers were all very friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful. - But... - The "high tea" designed to replicate a luncheon of the gilded age failed to live up to expectations. * I understand it's "tea" and not an AYCE buffet but when you pay almost $100 per person, you should reasonably assume you won't be leaving hungry. Au Contraire! * 2 finger sandwiches and mini tarts per person, plus 1/2 a deviled egg? My daughter's tea parties have more food than this... Plan on stopping for lunch after you eat here.

Oh how I miss being home. It is so wonderful to see the many upgrades made to this marina since I…read morewas a kid swimming here. Today, is an absolutely stunning and amazing day to be out on the water. It is choppy and windy but not too bad. There's a beautiful cool breeze in the air with the sun hitting perfectly on my skin. No matter how nostalgic I'm feeling, I can't help but think about how expensive these older homes are, making me reconsider a move back. But it is gorgeous to just sit by the water and enjoy the view.

A Beautiful site to see! The warmth from the Sun and h cool breeze from the water, brings a nice…read morebalance of the two.