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54-723: The island is mainly occupied by the Virginia Key Beach Park, Miami Seaquarium , Miami-Dade's Central District Wastewater Treatment Plant, and the University of Miami 's Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science . Other facilities include the former Miami Marine Stadium , the National Marine Fisheries Service Southeast Fisheries Science Center, and an office of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . What

108-528: A "colored-only" beach in Miami , which was part of the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, fueled the anger of patriotic black servicemen who fought the racism of Nazi Germany only to return to a segregated America. Among the protesters was Attorney Lawson Thomas who later became the first Black appointed to Judge in the post-Reconstruction South. Lawyer Thomas remained on the beach, holding bail money for those who anticipated arrest. The NAACP had notified

162-531: A 1999 interview. Reeves called the conflagrations “rebellion” and “protests” in The Miami Times as he believed they spoke to the community’s frustration after years of continuing police brutality. He even called for the removal of politicians and imbued social causes and candidates with his imprimatur. “For many, the Miami Times became the conscience of the black community,” Dorothy Jenkins Fields,

216-611: A Wednesday. He and his friends filed suit for access to the fairways, basing their claim on taxes paid in upkeep and maintenance of the courses. Their suit was successful after a court case that lasted seven years. This led to the desegregation of the Miami Springs golf course in 1959. While not subscribing to the non-violence philosophy of Martin Luther King Jr. during the run up to the March on Washington ; he reported on

270-657: A female orca from an ancestral site in the Penn Cove area of the Salish Sea bioregion. They viewed her as a member of their " qwe lhol mechen ," which "'translates to ‘our relative under the water,’” according to former Lummi tribal chairman Jay Julius. Lolita was viewed as a member of the Lummi Nation's family, and they believed that she should have been returned to the Salish Sea bioregion. The Lummi gathered at

324-474: A meeting with white officials in an effort to integrate Dade County beaches. “We’re law-abiding, tax-paying citizens,” they said, “and we’re going swimming this afternoon at Crandon Park.” When the men arrived at the beach, they were met by angry policemen lining the beachfront, but the black men were eventually unmolested for testing the waters in a brief dip. “From that day we swam at all the beaches,” Reeves later recounted. Reeves developed his writing voice in

378-491: A research support and administrative staff of 250 comprise the academic community. The Maritime and Science Technology (MAST) Academy public magnet school is located on Virginia Key. Several hundred high school specially-selected students from Miami get their education at MAST Academy. A mountain biking park is located on the northern end of Virginia Key. Constructed by the Virginia Key Bicycle Club,

432-525: A sleep-away scouting jamboree for blacks in Jacksonville. The only job Reeves ever had, other than his stint in the segregated Army during World War II, was at the one sheet tabloid for the black community started by his father in 1923. He worked at the paper from high school until his retirement in 1994. Reeves graduated from the historically black college and university , Florida A&M University , before enlisting. After returning from Europe at

486-472: A troubling pattern of discounting Native American knowledge and relationships which are "part and parcel of the possessive nature of settler colonialism." The Miami Seaquarium announced on March 30, 2023, that Lolita was expected to be returned to her natal waters in the Pacific Northwest and reside in a semi-wild sea-pen in the Salish Sea for the remainder of her life. She would be joined in

540-518: Is a long strip of bay front popular with windsurfers and sailors, called Hobie Beach after the Hobie Cats that set sail from the shore. It's also the only Miami-area beach that allows dogs. Nearby rest rooms and a great view of the curving shoreline make this an ideal place for tailgate parties. The Miami Seaquarium is a marine park on Virginia Key that has one of the world's largest collections of marine animals; some 10,000 specimens. Open in 1955,

594-531: Is a part of the US Department of Commerce (DOC) and is located in Miami, Florida. AOML's mission is to conduct basic and applied research in oceanography, tropical meteorology, atmospheric and oceanic chemistry, and acoustics. The research seeks to understand the physical characteristics and processes of the ocean and the atmosphere, both separately and as a coupled system. Along the causeway onto Virginia Key

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648-522: Is now Virginia Key was the southern end of a barrier island that extended from the New River inlet in Fort Lauderdale to just north of Key Biscayne . Early accounts by Spanish explorers indicated the existence of one or more inlets somewhere on the long spit of land enclosing the northern end of Biscayne Bay, but such inlets open and close over time. At the beginning of the 19th century, there

702-597: Is one of the oldest oceanariums in the United States. In addition to marine mammals, the Miami Seaquarium houses fish, sharks, sea turtles, birds, and reptiles. The park offers daily presentations and hosts overnight camps, events for boy scouts, and group programs. Over 500,000 people visit the facility annually. The park has around 225 employees, and its lease payments and taxes make it the third-largest contributor to Miami-Dade County's revenue. The park

756-530: Is the Dean of the Rosenstiel School [1] . Located on a 16-acre (65,000 m) campus on Virginia Key in Miami, it is the only tropical applied and basic marine and atmospheric research institute of its kind in the continental United States. The Rosenstiel School conducts a broad range of research on local, regional, national and global levels. More than 100 Ph.D. faculty members, 150 graduate students and

810-737: The overt racism he and others faced helped to shape the activist he became during the Civil Rights Era . Recalling his time in the Boy Scouts in Jim Crow 1935, he articulated not being able to advance in the Scouts, due to the lack of facilities for blacks to take swimming lessons or take the practical tests for the required badges. There were no public pools for blacks in the south at the time and public beaches were restricted. He and his friends sold newspapers and candy to raise funds for

864-575: The 1980s, picnicking families mingled with gay couples and nudists using Virginia Key Beach. In 1982, the County transferred the former colored-only park to the City of Miami with a deed restriction that it only be used as a park and that the City continued the level of services and maintenance. The City closed the Park shortly thereafter citing high maintenance costs. Shuttered for two decades, Virginia Key Beach

918-416: The 38-acre (150,000 m) park provides marine life exhibits and several daily marine mammal shows. It is famous for its captive orcas , dolphins , and sea lions . Manatee and shark exhibits are also present. The Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science , founded by F.G. Walton Smith, is the University of Miami 's graduate school of marine and atmospheric science. Dr. Roni Avissar

972-1005: The Animal Welfare Act. The report cited inadequate veterinary care, animal handling, facilities, employees and/or attendants, and critical separation of animals. Miami-Dade County has the option to terminate the Seaquarium’s lease and has considered that option as they have ongoing concerns about care of animals. In January 2024, the USDA was satisfied that the operators had addressed issues related to their notice of intent to confiscate to remove certain animals. The lease requirements mandate certifications from both Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums and American Humane . Local media reported in February 2024 that they had lost their accreditation from American Humane. The Dolphin Company

1026-495: The Atlantic Ocean. The leadership at City Hall appointed an official community-based civil rights task force to provide a public forum for the park's future. In time, the civil right's task force developed into a trust that was given the charge of re-opening the park as an open green space for a multi-cultural society. The restoration process was divided into two major areas: environmental and historical. The trust undertook

1080-552: The Incarnation. His calls to action matched his editorials as printed in the Times . It was he who secured the family ownership of the Times as it evolved into the current digital edition helmed by his grandson, Garth Basil, whom succeeded his daughter, Rachel, who also passed in 2019. She had been the latest publisher of The Miami Times , assuming the mantle of leadership from her father and grandfather in 1994. He retired from

1134-496: The Jim Crow policies of the south. Garth held every job at one time or the other at the paper and the energy he devoted drove the Times to grow during the 1950s and 1960s. Reeves fought against laws upholding segregation with acts of civil disobedience. In 1949, blacks were not allowed to play at the public golf courses during the week, but were allowed on Monday, the one day the sprinklers were on. Garth brought friends to play on

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1188-696: The Key Biscayne School. High school students are zoned to Coral Gables Senior High School . The magnet school MAST Academy is in Virginia Key. The University of Miami 's Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science is located on Virginia Key. Miami Seaquarium The Miami Seaquarium is a 38-acre (15 ha) oceanarium located on the island of Virginia Key in Biscayne Bay , Miami-Dade County, Florida located near downtown Miami . Founded in 1955, it

1242-655: The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) Hall of Fame he was for the latter half of the 20th century an African American voice in Miami, Florida, having taken over his fathers duties as publisher after WWII. Reeves was born in Nassau, Bahamas to Rachel (née Cooper) and Henry Ethelbert Sigismund Reeves . The family immigrated to the United States when Reeves was 4 months old and he grew up in Miami’s Overtown and Liberty City . Reeves memories of

1296-506: The Rickenbacker Causeway in 1947 connected Virginia Key and Key Biscayne with the mainland and vehicular travel began. The new Park enjoyed instant popularity. For a time, county government honored the "separate but equal" status of Virginia Key Beach with its white counterpart, Crandon Park on Key Biscayne. The original temporary buildings were replaced by permanent construction, a miniature railroad carried beachgoers around

1350-554: The Seaquarium also had the Miami Seaquarium Spacerail , which was the first hanging monorail in the United States. In 2014 Miami Seaquarium was bought by Palace Entertainment. In 2022, the Miami Seaquarium was acquired by The Dolphin Company, which said that any negligence in animal care preceded their arrival. A 2023 U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Inspection Report found several violations of

1404-637: The Seaquarium numerous times to ask that Lolita be returned. In 2018, Seaquarium Curator Emeritus Robert Rose responded to Lummi protests, saying that the Lummi "should be ashamed of themselves, they don’t care about Lolita, they don’t care about her best interests, they don’t really care whether she lives or dies. To them, she is nothing more than a vehicle by which they promote their name, their political agenda, to obtain money and to gain media attention. Shame on them." In response, environmental scholars and Julius have argued that such statements are representative of

1458-686: The breezes on Virginia Key Beach turned sour, the water clouded with effluents. The long-term environmental impact has yet to be fully determined. Still, Virginia Key Beach remained a popular, even sacred place within Miami's Black community. Segregation of Miami-Dade beaches finally ended in the early 1960s with another protest led by the late Rev. Theodore Gibson, Garth C. Reeves , Oscar Range and others. Crandon Park and Virginia Key Beach would no longer be used exclusively by one race or another, but open for all to enjoy. When beaches closer to historically Black residential neighborhoods desegregated, Virginia Key Beach gradually declined both in use and upkeep. By

1512-438: The business, at 98, I feel good,” he told The Miami Times . “These valiant soldiers without swords not only excelled in their chosen field, they also brought others along with them. We stand on their shoulders,” Sarah Glover, NABJ president at the time, said in announcing the award. City and county leaders in 2017 designated Northwest Sixth Street as Garth C. Reeves Way. In 2019, the City of Miami Commission honored Reeves on

1566-436: The course of 10 years, judging by his behavior, it was clear that Hugo didn't adjust to his life in captivity. Hugo would regularly bang his head against the walls of the tank. On March 4, 1980, Hugo died of a brain aneurysm after a history of repeated self injury. From 1963 through 1967, eighty-eight episodes of the 1960s TV show Flipper and two movies starring Flipper were filmed at the Miami Seaquarium. From 1963 to 1991,

1620-579: The daunting task of removing all exotic vegetation from the park while replenishing the landscape with native vegetation. In August, 2002 the site was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and given a Florida Historical Marker. On February 22, 2008, the Virginia Key Beach Park Trust re-opened the park to the public. Today, it is known as an ecological treasure which contains the largest mangrove wetland in

1674-521: The day to day operation and assumed the mantle of elder statesman, active in civic affairs into his 98th year. In 2017 he was inducted into the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) Hall of Fame. “I have admired the organization since it started. Black journalists and the black press are up against formidable foes and we have to keep fighting and not give up. It makes you feel good when you are recognized by your peers and, being in

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1728-461: The downtown clique perceived as the litmus test of civic involvement. He inherited the paper when Henry died in 1970. The paper was the basis of Reeves’ small fortune. He invested the profits in bank stock and real estate, owning a 5 percent share of Miami’s Bayside Marketplace, located in the thriving downtown. Reeves became a life member of the NAACP and founding member of Miami’s Episcopal Church of

1782-492: The end of World War II and encountering racism at home he became dispirited, giving his mother a list of places other than Miami he felt were more accommodating to African-Americans. Reeves had returned to Miami in 1946, his father Henry E. Sigismund Reeves was running The Miami Times which was a ' race ' tabloid, catering to the black community. A strict disciplinarian and teetotaler, the Episcopalian church elder Reeves

1836-656: The exception that did not include Lolita as part of the ESA-listed Southern resident orcas that live in Washington and British Columbia waters. Activists, who proposed such an action to the NMFS in 2013, were hopeful that this might lead to a healthy retirement in a seapen and possibly an eventual release and reuniting with her pod which is believed by some to include her mother. The Lummi Nation of Washington State referred to Lolita as Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut, or

1890-527: The founder of the Black Archives, History and Research Foundation of South Florida, wrote. “He was not afraid and he was not intimidated. He was dedicated to uplifting the race and he was not afraid to throw rocks and hide his hands to get the power structure’s attention to the difficulties and the inequalities of the black community. He dedicated his life to that,” said Fields in a statement. In 1957, Reeves and other black leaders took their tax bills to

1944-486: The island north of Key Biscayne had no name, and had not existed as an island until 'Narrows Cut' had broken through "ten or twelve" years before (i.e., the hurricane of 1835 or 1838). He described Virginia Key as three miles (5 km) long and one mile (1.6 km) wide (later, as five miles (8 km) long and one and a half miles (2.4 km) wide), with a fine Atlantic beach, but mostly covered with mangroves . In May 1945, seven civil rights activists supported by

1998-549: The local NAACP chapter staged a "wade-in" at the whites’ only Baker's Haulover Beach in Dade County Florida. Five men and two women protested Jim Crow era laws that denied access to recreation based on race. In a Miami emerging from World War II this meant "colored" people could not share with whites the legendary beaches along and in the waters of Biscayne Bay and the Atlantic Ocean . The struggle for

2052-412: The local press and police of the time and place, hoping for arrests that would be central to a court challenge of local discrimination laws and policies. On instruction from local government representatives, police refused to cite the protestors, telling Thomas to contact County Commissioner Charles H. Crandon. Local businessmen and government officials had privately conceded something had to be done about

2106-546: The middle of the civil rights era when he ascended to managing editor of The Times . Under his tutelage, the Times pressed the power of the black voter. He also came to understandings with the white business establishment in the downtown Miami, joining the mostly white Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce in 1968. He also courted various charities like the United Way, the Boy Scouts and other philanthropic endeavors that

2160-455: The movement in the periodical faithfully. Fighting against inequality was his passion which he pursued with his pen using the Times as his platform. ‘CONSCIENCE OF THE BLACK COMMUNITY’ is how his editorials were described, he consistently used very different wording than other papers to describe the riots that swept into Florida after police shootings, calling them 'protests' instead, as Reeves later described The Miami Times ’ editorial policy in

2214-560: The park features novice, intermediate and advanced trails. It is located just past Virginia Key Outdoor Center, just down the road from the former Jimbo's location on Arthur Lamb Jr. road on the north point of Virginia Key. Miami-Dade County Public Schools serves Virginia Key. The Key Biscayne K-8 Center in Key Biscayne serves Virginia Key. Middle school students may attend Ponce de Leon Middle School in Coral Gables instead of

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2268-692: The park's first orca, Hugo. Hugo died in 1980 after injuring himself along the walls of the tank. Animal rights activists argued that the tank didn't meet federal minimum requirements under the Animal Welfare Act , and the USDA made statements in 2017 supporting the activists' argument. On January 24, 2014 the National Marine Fisheries Service proposed amending the Endangered Species Act to remove

2322-436: The park, and a seaside merry-go-round whirled riders of all ages. Still, Crandon Park was over 800 acres (3.2 km) with two miles (3 km) of beachfront and Virginia Key 82 acres (330,000 m) with a half-mile of beach. When Crandon Park got a zoo, Virginia Key Beach got a pond with ornamental plants and so things began to change. When residents of Key Biscayne needed a place to dump their garbage and pump their sewage,

2376-554: The race problem. The economy was – and is – heavily reliant upon its good reputation with tourists. A decision was made to compromise race restrictions on recreation by designating a "colored-only" beach on Virginia Key. Crandon and Thomas negotiated the establishment of the "Virginia Key Beach, a Dade County Park for the exclusive use of Negroes," (today, the Historic Virginia Key Beach Park). It opened on August 1, 1945. There are several urban myths about

2430-494: The relocation efforts by the park's companion pair of pacific white-sided dolphins : Li'i and Loke. Loke and her offspring Elelo were instead transferred to Shedd Aquarium in Chicago on August 3, 2023. On August 18, 2023, the death of Lolita was announced, from what was believed to be a renal condition. On September 25, 2023, the Seaquarium announced that Li’i, the remaining 40-year-old, male Pacific white-sided dolphin that

2484-442: The selection of Virginia Key by county officials, each with a kernel of truth – but there was an historic connection of at least several decades’ standing. A 1918 survey map of the "Abandoned Military Reservation" on Virginia Key located a "Negro Dancing Pavilion" on the island's southeastern shore of the "colored-only" beach. From 1945 to 1947, Miami's Blacks traveled to the beach exclusively by boat – public and private. The opening of

2538-535: The state. Historic landmarks such as the bathhouse, concession stand, carousel house, train tunnel, and picnic pavilions have all been renovated and opened for public use. The beach is open for wading only. The Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) is one of the Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) Facilities of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). NOAA/AOML

2592-469: Was also behind on its rent payment according to the county’s parks department. In March 2024, Miami-Dade County sent a lease termination notice to The Dolphin Company, giving the Seaquarium's owner until April 21 to move out. In the notice, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava cited a "long and troubling history of violations." As of June 25, 2024 , the Dolphin Company, operator of the Seaquarium,

2646-624: Was cast in the mold of an old-fashioned leader. His paper was printed on a hand press in single pages in a room set aside for it. Henry opposed the bus boycotts the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was promoting to fight for civil rights in Montgomery, Alabama . He disapproved of Bus boycotts for Miami in his column as they placed church people in jeopardy. His son was on the opposing spectrum, having fought for freedom in Europe and not being as patient with

2700-461: Was eroded by storms, its buildings damaged and vandalized, and park lands invaded by exotic plants and animals. Beset by declining revenues, some City officials began to speculate over schemes to sell off the development rights on Virginia Key. As plans leaked, a local coalition formed among Miami's grassroots activists protesting any commercial development and asking for a complete restoration and re-opening of Miami's largest park and only public park on

2754-540: Was expected to be moved with Lolita, was relocated to SeaWorld San Antonio and reunited with family members and other Pacific white-sided dolphins to avoid remaining in solitary following Lolita's death. Garth C. Reeves Garth Coleridge Reeves Sr. (February 12, 1919 – November 25, 2019) was the Publisher of the Miami Times from 1970–1994, when he was then named Publisher Emeritus. Inducted in 2017 to

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2808-483: Was fighting the eviction. One of the Miami Seaquarium's attractions was Lolita, who, at the time of her death in 2023, was the second oldest orca in captivity after Corky at SeaWorld San Diego . She was the park's last captive orca. Lolita was captured on August 8, 1970 during the Penn Cove capture in Puget Sound , Washington state . She arrived at the Miami Seaquarium on September 24, 1970, where she joined

2862-533: Was founded by Fred D. Coppock and Captain W.B. Gray and was the second marine-life attraction in Florida. When it opened in 1955, it was the largest marine-life attraction in the world. The park's first orca was Hugo, named after Hugo Vihlen . Hugo was captured in February 1968 in Vaughn Bay. Shortly after his capture, Hugo was flown to the Miami Seaquarium where he was held in a small pool for two years. Over

2916-547: Was no inlet through the barrier island between the New River Inlet and Bear Cut, at the northern end of Key Biscayne. Hurricanes in 1835 and 1838 opened a new inlet, Narrows Cut (now known as Norris Cut), separating Virginia Key from what is now Fisher Island at the south end of Miami Beach . The island was named by Frederick H. Gerdes of the United States Coast Survey in 1849. He noted that

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