Located along the waterfront in downtown Miami, Florida, Bayside Park showcases the natural beauty and cultural significance of the area. However, the statues of Claude Pepper and Julia Tuttle that define an otherwise empty plaza in the park highlight what it can mean for monuments to cultivate an identity that resonates across an established landmark and beyond.
The “Mother of Miami” and “Grand old man of Florida politics”
Julia Tuttle moved to South Florida in 1891 when the area was little more than a collection of swamp land and orange trees. She envisioned a major city could take shape in this space and took steps to turn that idea into reality, as she personally gathered the 300 required signatures to apply for the city’s incorporation in 1896. These efforts enabled her to become recognized as the “Mother of Miami.”
A 10-foot-tall bronze statue of Tuttle was installed in 2010, on the 114th birthday of the city. Her skirt features images of local flora and fauna as well as scenes of American Indians and African Americans who were among the first settlers of the Miami area. Tuttle looks off to the horizon and holds a basket of oranges in one hand and an orange blossom in the other, symbolizing her belief in the crops that would support and define this new community.
Across from her is a statue of Claude D. Pepper, who served Florida as a member of both chambers of the United States Congress. A champion of the elderly and disadvantaged who became known as the “Grand old man of Florida politics,” his term in the Senate began in the 1930s and ran through 1951. In 1962, he was elected to the House of Representatives and served all the way through his death in 1989. He was the 26th American to lie in the Capitol rotunda with an open casket. His statue was installed in Bayside Park soon after.
The statues of Claude Pepper and Julia Tuttle are not the largest or oldest in Bayfront Park but have singularly transformed an area of it that the community can closely identify with, highlighting how such pieces can enable connection across the eras.
Celebrating Local Heroes
While Bayfront Park has numerous attractions, the statues of Claude Pepper and Julia Tuttle provide audiences with a specific means of connection to local heroes that have defined the city and region. They’ve done so in an area of the park that would otherwise be empty, highlighting the incredible power monuments have to provide an identity that resonates in a space and for an entire community.
