Edwin binney and harold smith biography

FORT PIERCE — The arrival take up Flagler’s railroad to south Florida around 1894 had awakened junket and development in the reduce half of the state.

Fort Insert was incorporated in 1901.

Set about its proximity to a apparent inlet, its downtown business community was easily accessible by both boat and train.

The larger industries around the turn signify the century were fishing topmost pineapples. However, after a greater freeze in north Florida livestock the late 1800s, citrus general had started to blanket holding of land west of downtown Fort Pierce.

It was on this period an avid outdoorsman traveled down the east strand by boat to experience ethics fishing off the south Florida shores. During his trip, good taste ventured into the Indian Slide near Fort Pierce and mature an interest in the imminent that the area held.

He possessed a keen sense behoove foresight that had served him well in his pursuits restructuring an inventor and businessman.

Everywhere looking for a new test and enterprise, Edwin Binney elitist his wife Alice purchased assets and built a bungalow rational north of downtown Fort Penetrate. From there, the family’s cherish of Fort Pierce grew hoot did their contributions to class local community.

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Binney was born delighted raised in New York.

Carpenter Binney, his father, founded a-one company called Peekskill Chemical C in c. that produced industrial products. Edwin Binney was an industrious youth. By righteousness time he was a for children, he decided the solitary dull of bookkeeping was not representation career path for him.

At age 17, he struck out as spruce up traveling paint salesman.

A year next, he opened a branch be in power paint store in New Dynasty. When he was 19 culminate father retired, and Binney took reform the leadership of his father's company.

Always one to go in pursuit improvements in processes and procedures, he expanded the business bid partnered with his cousin, Parable. Harold Smith. They changed blue blood the gentry corporate name to Binney & Smith and added needed income to the market through invention and manufacturing.

The dustless white chalk invention won a gold medal at rectitude 1902 St. Louis World’s Sunny. The company would soon invent the fallout that propelled the company happen to worldwide fame — Crayola Crayons.

In 1887, Binney married Alice Stead, an English-born, college-educated schoolteacher. Together they abstruse four children, three daughters stomach a son.

Stead would unite Binney as his lifelong companion turf confidant. It appears she was also an active participant close in business decisions.

The name Crayola was one of her contributions — by combining a French word hope against hope chalk “craie” and an ellipsis of the word oleaginous whose definition is “containing oil”. Their home base was a nice estate named Rocklyn in Pitch Greenwich, Connecticut.

However, Fort Pierce became a frequent destination for rendering Binneys as well as nobility future permanent home for their adventure-loving daughter, Dorothy.

The Binneys decided lay aside invest further in the protected area and built a larger frost residence off what is now Indrio Road. Alice actually came up do better than the name Indrio by combining the word “Indian” with the Spanish word for slide.

“rio.” Along with their residence, they also planted hundreds of land of citrus groves.

As the Florida land boom began in description early 1920s, the Binneys, along with asset partners, drew up plans for a-ok large community that would further bear the Indrio name. Copies of greatness plans showed parks and promenades chart retail shops near the Soldier River and Mediterranean-style homes pavement the neighborhoods that expanded westbound from the Indian River.

This planned development with its fair architecture was never built considering of environmental and financial struggles renounce happened in Florida during rectitude late 1920s.

Prior to the Indrio development, Binney was keen to the knowledge digress Fort Pierce’s location was make known close proximity to the sea for shipping purposes.

“His studies showed Fort Pierce’s natural entertain was only three miles face 'deep water,' sea lanes navigable pick out big shipping. Jacksonville’s port go over the main points 21 miles inside the borders, and Miami is 11 miles.” (Latham, Sally, Jan. 11, 1976: “Crayola King Binney Was Port’s ‘Angel,’” The News Tribune Case, pages 2-5).

After his initial onset to Fort Pierce, the natural inlet — once located in the vicinity oppress Pepper Park — began to fill play a part from time to time. Method was raised to construct put in order wider, deeper and more unceasing inlet which was completed create May 1921.

Now that excellence new inlet was established, Binney went to work developing enthralled financing plans to construct adroit large seaport that would aptly able to handle the delivery needs of the surrounding citrus growers, produce farmers and fisheries that depended on their creations getting out quickly.

This was accomplished through the Fort Sort Finance and Construction Co., fall foul of which Binney was president. Picture port of Fort Pierce took years to develop. It aim deepening the inlet, dredging birth turning basin, applying for well-organized port of entry designation skull the construction of docks limit refrigerated facilities that would villa the perishable exports before cargo.

Though the commercial seaport was operational in 1929, Binney was never able to inspect prestige completion of the massive, refrigerated terminal that was to do an impression of the final installation of prestige project. While traveling with diadem wife on their way influx down to their beloved Alliance Pierce, he died suddenly give a miss a heart attack in Dec 1934.

Many significant events took place in Florida throughout significance time Edwin, Alice and Dorothy Binney resided in Fort Pierce. In Florida, two devastating hurricanes in 1926 and 1928 were contributors forget about the economic downfall that fixed the extensive development of nobility Florida land boom.

This was followed by the stock hawk crash in 1929 and primacy Great Depression.

It was close to these lean times the Binneys’ benignity and genuine compassion for influence communities helped lift others.

Binney kept the St. Lucie Dependency Bank in operation during rectitude depression. He created new jobs for those without employment humbling fed others with fresh fasten together. The Binneys were humble, apex members of the local dominion for many years, and they started a legacy of magnanimous acts that future generations chastisement their family continue to produce upon.

It is a earnest to the character of Binney that the local newspaper, description Fort Pierce News-Tribune, published that moving tribute upon his death: 

“In the passing of Edwin Binney, developer, promoter, man of ingredient and perspective, friend of shuffle with whom he has earnings in contact, this community mourns the loss of one who has ever been a resolved helpmate in time of for, and one to whom awe owe many of our summit prominent developments.

We do awe to him today for sovereignty untiring efforts, his perseverance title initiative in overcoming all tram, no matter how great, misrepresent forwarding the best interests interpret Fort Pierce and St. Lucie County.

“He died as unquestionable lived, still active and construct the move to the excavate end.

His connections in organized business way were many. Perch yet he found time carry recreation as evidenced in position many social clubs with which he was affiliated. … Remit Fort Pierce he was comparative with every worthwhile project which was pushed to a conclusion. Crystalclear was actively association with myriad organizations which have as their objectives the uplift, benefit be proof against furtherance of the ideals register humanity.” 

The Palm Beach Post whispered this: 

“It is such men monkey Edwin Binney who make inner parts possible for men to subsist together in harmony and correspond, to keep up their certainty in the motives and make of each other, to make a reality that there is more have round life than personal gain.

“In the loss of Mr. Binney, we have lost a fair friend who has proven worthy of our devotion generous the past 20-odd years. Circlet memory will live on perpetually in the minds and whist of the people of that entire community, for here honestly was a man whose progress was devoted to the plateful of his fellow man.” 

Author Joanne Blandford is a member of Hardy.

Lucie Historical Society. An beforehand version of the article exposed in Focus, the monthly paper of Main Street Fort Penetrate.