Henry M. Flagler first visited Florida in 1878 and, recognizing the state’s potential for growth, developed railroads and hotels that transformed the eastern seaboard. The Florida East Coast Railroad reached Miami in 1896 and soon was completed to the Homestead area. Years of planning went into determining whether the F. E. C. Railroad could be extended to Key West, a project called “Flagler’s Folly.” Construction began in 1904 under Joseph C. Meredith, and after his death in 1909, William J. Krome guided the work. Viaducts, trestles, and bridges were built under harrowing conditions as thousands of workers battled insects, hurricanes, intense heat, and shortages of food and water. On January 21, 1912, the Oversea Extension of the Florida East Coast Railroad was completed, and the next day Henry Flagler’s special train arrived in Key West. Flagler died in 1913, but the line continued to carry visitors to Key West until 1935, when the Labor Day hurricane damaged it beyond repair. A portion of the Oversea Extension near Tea Table Key was among the surviving remnants of this engineering project, which helped open the Florida Keys to tourism.