Historic Timeline
1899
George E. Merrick (Founder of Coral Gables) comes to Miami from Duxbury, MA
Early 1900s
City Beautiful Movement
1921
Merrick amasses 3,000 acres of land, which he uses to create a unique suburb, featuring all the elements of the City Beautiful Movement.
1924
The quarry used for local projects is reconfigured as Venetian Pool by artist and designer Denman Fink and architect Phineas Paist.
1925
Coral Gables Congregational Church is dedicated; the University of Miami is chartered; the City of Coral Gables is incorporated; and the Chamber of Commerce is established.
1926
The Biltmore Hotel opens; Merrick’s $75 million home development project is blown away by the Great Miami Hurricane in september.
1936
Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden is established.
1940
Thousands of WWII soldiers occupy unused Coral Gables buildings, including The Biltmore Hotel, which becomes an Army hospital.
1947
The Miracle Theatre, designed by architect William H. Lee, is built.
1955
The commercial districtdesigned by Merrick is rebranded as Miracle Mile thanks to Albert H. Friedman’s work with the Miracle Mile Merchants Association.
1973
Coral Gables adopts its first Historic Preservation ordinance.
1974
Coral Gables City Hall is listed in the National Register of Historic Places
1981
Venetian Pool is added to the National Register of Historic Places, the only pool on the list.
2010
Coral Gables Museum and Coral Gables Art Cinema open.
2013
The City earns a silver from the United Nations’ LivCom Awards as one of the Top 5 Most Livable Cities in the World.
2018
The City wins first place nationally in the Digital Cities 2018 awards, in the category of Up to 75K Population.
2020
The #1 ranked Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce moves their headquarters to a state-of-the-art, new office located at 201 Alhambra Circle, 100
2020
The Coral Gables Chamber of Commerce is home to Coral Gables’ official Welcome Center
2025
In 2025, our Chamber celebrates a century of service to the Coral Gables community and beyond!
