| Miami's Best Known Mystery Is A Tourist Attraction

Miami's Best Known Mystery Is A Tourist Attraction

Located at 28655 S. Dixie Hwy. in a little town called Homestead Florida not 35 miles south of Miami lies one of the strangest and most amazing tourist attractions not only in the state of Florida but in the United States.

Originally called “Rock Gate Park”, the Coral Castle is a complex built entirely of coral. Its builder, Edward Leedskalnin, constructed this structure over a 20 year period from 1920 until about 1940. Standing only 5 feet tall and weighing a mere 100 pounds, the mystery and the secrets behind the Coral Castle and its builder still confound experts today.

Edward Leedskalnin came to America after courting the love of his life in the country of Latvia. After being rejected before his wedding day, Ed left his homeland in search of something better. Although some say he was motivated to build the Coral Castle to prove his love to the woman that he had lost, there is more behind the mystery, something that borders on the fringe of reality and fantasy.

Just 24 hours before their betrothal, Ed received the bad news. Agnes no longer wanted to marry Ed. Though he loved her, she could not return his love in the same way. There are many possibilities as to the motivations that led Agnes to no longer want Ed in her life. It could have been his lack of education. It could’ve been his lack of money. Whatever the case, her rejection of him was firm and life-changing.

Whatever the reason was, this was a very life changing event for Ed Leedskalnin. It cost him to pack up and leave his hometown in Latvia and journey across the ocean to Canada to start his new life.

During his journeys, Ed Leedskalnin traveled throughout Canada, California, and eventually ended up in Texas. He worked in the lumber industry and also took part in cattle drives. The image of Ed is one of a rugged who would be able to tackle the greatest challenges. Unfortunately, his luck ran out after arriving in the state of Texas.

For the many thousands that have seen the Coral Castle, one might think that it was the creation of someone who is well acquainted with engineering and was strong enough to move and manipulate several thousand tons of coral. Edward sadly developed a near fatal case of tuberculosis, an illness that would lead them toward an oncoming destiny.

Ed’s small stature, standing only 5 feet tall and weighing a mere hundred pounds, may have been useful working on cattle drives and in the lumber industry, but it was no match for the tuberculosis that he found himself infected with. After being found near the dead in South Florida by a local realtor, through their kindness he was able to recover completely from this illness, something that was virtually unattainable in the latter stages of this disease. Once he was healthy enough, he purchased a single acre of land near Florida City where he began the construction of his monument to the woman that never loved him.

Ed had a very noble idea of what it meant to come to America. He believes that the United States was the land of opportunity and that a person could find their place and become famous by working hard and staying on task. Based upon this belief, and his love for Agnes, he began the construction of the Coral Castle with the coral that was only a few inches under the topsoil of the land that he had purchased.

Today, this 30 ton obelisk stands waiting for everyone to see in Homestead, Florida, the final destination of what we all now call the Coral Castle. Florida has many areas where the coral runs several thousand feet thick, and is easily accessible buying just a few inches beneath the topsoil. Although many of Ed’s earlier creations seemed to have a domestic appearance, the Coral Castle is much more than the potential housing for a wife and children that he would never have. It’s astronomical precision seems to hold a clue to its true purpose and genius.

Although it has been said that no one ever saw Edward Leedskalnin working, there are several pictures that can be seen that show Ed at work apparently using enormous tripods with a black box attached to the top of them. Enormous pulleys seem to be aiding in the excavation of the Coral at the Homestead site. Unfortunately, researchers such as Christopher Dunn have shown that based upon the photographic evidence, and the primitive tools left behind which can be seen at the Coral Castle today, there is no way that this is the answer to the 1100 ton question.

At the Coral Castle, you will see amazing works of art that are made of coral. One of the most amazing creations is a 9 ton gate, popularized by Leonard Nimoy’s “In Search Of” show during the 1970s and 1980s. It was on this show that the iconic Mr. Spock was able to move this 18,000 ton piece of coral with his finger. This chunk of coral is not symmetrical, yet Leedskalnin was able to find the exact center. He drove the whole to the middle of this door perfectly balancing it so that a child could push it with almost no effort at all.

This particular coral artifact stopped spinning during the 1980s and it took several engineers, several workers, and a 60 ton crane to try to repair the door. Today, it still pivots back-and-forth but even with the modern equipment and modern engineering techniques that we have today, the university of Miami Florida and its best engineers were unable to replicate what Ed did in just a matter of days with no help.

It is literally only a 30 minute drive from Miami. Take an hour out of your day to not only see one of the most amazing tourist attractions in South Florida. You will not be disappointed and you will be left completely amazed.

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