The 1920s land boom built the city’s defining architecture in the space of a few years. James Deering’s Italian Renaissance winter estate rose on Biscayne Bay in Coconut Grove by 1916, ahead of the wave. The Freedom Tower opened on Biscayne Boulevard on July 26, 1925, modeled on the Giralda bell tower of Seville’s cathedral. And George Merrick laid out Coral Gables, the Mediterranean Revival planned city of 1925, with its coral-rock Venetian Pool of 1924 at the center. Boom Miami was building a fantasy of the Mediterranean on a tropical bay — and calling itself the Magic City with a straight face, because the growth really did look conjured.
Our Miami retro logo uses the Florida alligator motif over "Florida - Est. 1845," emphasizing the state’s wild heart and its statehood year. Black-and-white styling mirrors citrus crate labels and old highway signage — rugged, timeless, retro in style — bridging Miami’s layered heritage: the Tequesta’s bay, Julia Tuttle’s orange blossom, the Deco boom, and Cuban Miami’s cafecito century. On merchandise it reads authentic and vintage — an emblem of Magic City pride.
Why People Visit Miami Florida
- Walk Calle Ocho in Little Havana — order a cafecito at a ventanita, watch the domino games at Máximo Gómez Park, and pick up pastelitos from a Cuban bakery.
- Stand before the Freedom Tower on Biscayne Boulevard, the 1925 landmark modeled on Seville’s Giralda that served as the Cuban Refugee Center from 1962 to 1974.
- Tour the 1916 Vizcaya estate and its gardens on Biscayne Bay in Coconut Grove — the boom era’s Italian Renaissance fantasy, now a museum.
- Drive the Mediterranean Revival streets of Coral Gables, George Merrick’s 1925 planned city, stroll Miracle Mile, and see the coral-rock Venetian Pool of 1924.
- See the murals of Wynwood, the warehouse district turned open-air gallery north of downtown.
- Take a boat tour of Biscayne Bay from Bayfront Park or the Miami River — the skyline from the water is the city’s best portrait.
- Cross the Rickenbacker Causeway to Key Biscayne for beaches, the Cape Florida lighthouse, and bay views back toward the city — with the stilt houses of Stiltsville standing offshore on the flats.
- Day-trip west to the Everglades or south toward Biscayne National Park — the wild tropical frame around the metropolis.
- Time a winter visit for the height of snowbird season, when the bay is at its bluest and the café windows never close.