Franklin Sirmans, Executive Director of Perez Art Museum Miami; (c) PAMM
Miami Trivia
Miami-Fort Lauderdale Metroplex has been the nation’s 4th largest African-American and Afro-Caribbean migration destination since 1990.
Miami-Fort Lauderdale Metroplex has over 1.2 million African-Americans and 20,000+ black businesses.
Miami-Fort Lauderdale Metroplex can boast of an inordinately large 6,000 restaurants.
Post-COVID, the cruise industry in Miami and Fort Lauderdale is returning to normal levels in the world’s largest combined cruise ports.
Despite South Florida’s proximity to the yearly path of hurricanes, it is amazing that the vast majority skip northward towards the Carolinas or southward towards the Gulf of Mexico — sparring South Florida.
Years of hurricane experience have taught locals to heed evacuation warnings and to build high-capacity drainage systems and hurricane-resistant structures.
Famous Residents
Natives of South Florida or those who made a major impact while living here include:
Ebenezer Stirrup – Among the earliest homeowners in Miami
Dana A. Dorsey – Early entrepreneur
Franklin Sirmans- Executive Director of Perez Art Museum Miami
Ray Lewis – NFL middle linebacker
Gedar Walker – Entrepreneur, built the Lyric Theatre
Joseph Caleb – Famous union leader and martyr
Edwin Holland – Dance company founder
H.T. Smith Attorney – activist who led the Miami tourism boycott that triggered officials to consider a Black developer to rebuild the Royal Palm Hotel
Donohue Peeples – Builder of the Royal Palm Resort
Dorothy J. Fields – Founder of Miami Black Archives, History & Research Center
Leona Collins – South Florida educator and hospital founder
Andy Ingraham – Founder and president of the National Association of Black Hoteliers & Hotel Developers (NABHOOD)