WEST PALM BEACH, Fla— — A group of people living in the Old Northwood District of West Palm Beach is doing what they can to remember their roots, despite not having a historic designation.
“There is definitely a story to be told about this lost village or town whatever you want to call it,” said Carl Flick.
Flick says he’s planning to submit paperwork to the state of Florida to receive a historical designation marker to recognize what he calls “The Lost Town of Mangonia.”
However, West Palm Beach officials say they hired an archeologist in 2017 to dig on a property they bought in 2015 to try and recover any artifacts from that time period.
“We didn’t really find anything of significance on the site,” said Scott Kelly.
Kelly says the city’s historic preservation coordinator believes the property along N. Flagler Drive doesn’t warrant a historical marker for the time period dating back to the late 1980s.
“She did not think this rose to a level of doing something more than what we’ve already done,” said Kelly.
Currently, you can see a 3-ton steam engine on the property, visible from the street.
“What was originally thought to be a steam engine for a schooner turned out to be a steam engine for the marine railway of the boatyard,” said Flick.
Flick offers free tours to anyone interested in learning more about the Magnonia history.
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