Julia Tuttle arrived from Cleveland, Ohio, in 1891 as a widow with two grown children and bought 644 acres on the north bank of the Miami River, including Fort Dallas, while her neighbors across the river were fellow early pioneers William and Mary Brickell. A visionary, she told a friend, “It is the dream of my life to see this wilderness turned into a prosperous country.” After the Big Freezes of December 24 and 28, 1894, and February 6, 1895, destroyed orchards farther north, she sent Florida East Coast Railway executive Henry Flagler orange blossoms and oranges to persuade him to extend his railroad south from Palm Beach to Biscayne Bay. In return, she provided Flagler with 100 acres for a railroad terminal and hotel and 263 acres in alternate city blocks for the future city of Miami. The first train entered Miami on April 13, 1896, and the city was officially incorporated on July 28, 1896. By the end of 1896, Miami Avenue was lined with stores, and its first laundry, bakery, and dairy were reportedly started by Julia Tuttle. She lived in the remodeled officers’ quarters of Fort Dallas and died unexpectedly at age 49 on September 14, 1898.