Royal Palm Hotel was built by Henry Flagler and opened in 1897. It had 350 rooms and 200 baths, a grand ballroom, and a dining room for over 500 people, a veranda overlooking the bay, and a swimming pool. The hotel was declared a fire hazard and torn down in June 1930. The swimming pool was the first one in Miami. The 40-foot-wide and 150-foot-long pool was filled with salt water pumped in from Biscayne Bay. During the summer off-season, local residents were allowed to use the pool for a fee of 25 cents for adults and 15 cents for children. -- From "Miami in Vintage Postcards", by Patricia Kennedy, 2000.