In 1880, Irving R. Henry from North Carolina, homesteaded 130 acres of land which he purchased for $1.00 an acre. Captain O. S. Porter purchased the land from Henry and then sold it to Henry Morrison Flagler, the founder of Standard Oil and the Florida East Coast Railroad, for $30,000 dollars.

Flagler desired to keep his resort of Palm Beach free from commercialism. On February 4, 1894, he moved the businesses which dealt with his railroad operation from the Royal Poinciana Hotel in Palm Beach to the 48 block area he had purchased on the west side of the lake.

The town to the west was to be the living quarters for his beach employees, the commercial center for the area, and the terminus of his railway. Canvas tents and shanties were erected for the workers. Because these structures caught fire easily, the first public service organization developed in the area was the "Flagler Alerts," a group of volunteer fireman under the direction of J. E. Phillips, President. The pumping station and the few fire hydrants installed did little for fires a month apart which burned down the buildings on the south sides of Banyan and Clematis Streets.

On November 5, 1894, 78 people met at the "Calaboose" (the first jail and police station located at Clematis St. and Poinsettia, now Dixie Hwy.) and passed the motion to incorporate the Town of West Palm Beach in what was then Dade County. The town council quickly addressed the building codes and the tents and shanties were replaced by brick, brick veneer, and stone buildings.

On incorporating the town, the council provided for an elected Town Marshall who was charged with keeping the peace and acting as tax collector. At the incorporation meeting, W. L. Torbert was elected Town Marshall over J. D. Ross, with a salary of $60.00 a month, an upper income for the times.

In the 1890's on Banyan Street (1st Street for many years before its original name was restored), numerous saloons, gambling houses, and "dens of iniquities" flourished day and night. By law, saloons in West Palm Beach had to close from twelve midnight until four-thirty, and all day on Sunday. The saloon owners of Banyan Street petitioned the town council to allow the saloons to remain open twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. W. L. Torbert, the only Town Marshall, found it difficult to enforce the law on a street where open gambling and ladies of easy virtue were the main attractions..

Marshall Torbert was assisted in his efforts to control the activities surrounding the saloons on Banyan Street by the many Churches built in West Palm Beach during this time. Union Congregational Church was built at Datura and Olive, two blocks to the south. Saint Ann's Catholic Church was built at 3rd Street and Olive, two blocks to the north. Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, a Methodist Church, and the first two black churches, Tabernacle Missionary Baptist and Payne Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church, were built within a few blocks of the area. The church bell in the Methodist Church was used as an alarm for the Town Marshall and the "Flagler Alerts" in case of a fire.

On the corner of Banyan and Olive was a saloon run by two Englishmen named Blythe and Papworth. Working as a bartender at the saloon was a man from Texas known as Sam Lewis. Lewis reportedly had killed several men and came to this area to escape detection. Blythe and Papworth sent Lewis to work another bar they owned in Lemon City, now part of North Miami, on Biscayne Bay. John F. Highsmith, former Dade County tax collector, frequented the saloon and had a bad habit of playing poker. Highsmith was reportedly an honest and honorable tax collector, never losing a dollar of the county's money.

On one occasion, Highsmith and his nephew had a quarrel with Sam Lewis. Highsmith, unarmed, and Lewis, carrying a rifle, went into the street. Heated words were exchanged and Highsmith extended his arms at full length, telling Lewis to shoot if he thought it was an honorable thing to shoot an unarmed man. Lewis shot, killing Highsmith instantly. Highsmith's nephew began to run and Lewis shot him in the back, killing him instantly. Lewis fled to the Bahamas.

Florida authorities contacted the Bahamian authorities to have Lewis arrested. Lewis threatened to kill the Bahamian authorities, so they turned him loose. Lewis returned to Florida to the Biscayne Bay area where a woman took him in and gave him shelter. A sheriff's posse discovered Lewis' hiding place and ordered him to come out and surrender.

The posse knew that Lewis was heavily armed. Lewis called out that he would surrender without trouble if a deputy came out alone to meet him. A deputy sheriff named McGregor answered this offer. Lewis killed the deputy without provocation when he approached. The posse later captured Lewis alive.

Many people wanted to lynch Lewis when he was captured, but he was safely transported to the old Dade County jail located in Juno Beach. Friends of Lewis at the West Palm Beach saloons made plans to rescue him. They knew he would be found guilty when the circuit court convened in six months.

The night before they planned to free Lewis, a lynch mob formed on the streets of West Palm Beach. The mob, consisting of 12 heavily armed men, left by boat on Lake Worth. Arriving at a dock in Juno Beach, they walked north on the railroad tracks to the courthouse yard. The lynch mob exchanged gunfire with the jailor and a deputy, killing the jailor while the deputy fled. The mob pulled Lewis out of the jail, carried him to a telegraph pole in the courthouse yard, and lynched him. They then riddled the body with bullets.

On the way back in the boat, the lynch mob made a solemn oath that no one reveal the names of those involved in the lynching. The leader of the lynch mob was reportedly a leader in the community and well known to C. C. Chillingsworth, a pioneer and attorney in West Palm Beach.

In 1895, things were better for the town. The population was now 1,228 residents. With population growth came a rough and tough mixture of newcomers. The Town Marshall's salary was increased to $75 a month. A night policeman, who received $45 a month, was added. The night policeman's duties were to light the lanterns on the lamp posts and check businesses for open doors and windows. During this time, the Mayor, Town Clerk, and Treasurer received additional bonuses in their salaries based on the convictions in Police Court.

In 1896, J. D. Ross was elected Town Marshall with a salary rolled back to $50 a month. A 10 percent salary reduction was imposed for all unserved warrants, which totaled $5. Ross was allotted a bounty of 25 cents for each impounded dog and bonuses, on a percentage basis, for all convictions in the Mayor's court. The population was now 1,928 people and property in the town was valued at $133,926.

Continue on: 1900's