What was known as a modern day marvel

A great railroad that crossed over sea

It defied all the whitecaps and the deep coral bed

And linked the whole world to the keys
Who should take on this lofty endeavor?

But a man who they said was obsessed

Who'd made millions of dollars refining crude oil

Now his focus was on reaching Key West



Skeptics and cynics who used pens as their lances

Took cheap shots at him and asked what were the chances

That the railroad you're building make good on the quest

Of rolling over the ocean right into Key West?



The Last train to paradise

They'd dubbed Flagler's folly for the use of a knife

Undeterred by their antics Henry went on with life

And drew up the plans for the last train to paradise.



It all started when he first came to Florida

His friends told him that he should retire

You could live off your wealth till the end of your days

But inside Henry still had his fire.



He said this place aint what it could be

With the weather so nice all year round

So I'll buy up the Halifax/ Jacksonville rail

And track it south from town to town.



We'll track over rivers and track over streams

We'll track over farmland and other mans dreams

We'll track it through mangroves and track it through the fields

And were we can't track we will dredge for the fill



We'll build the last train to paradise

New towns and new hotels where the weather is nice

Right on to Fort Dallas where they suffer no ice

He continued to build the last train to paradise.



When the railroad got as far south as Homestead.

They thought Henry, had then done his best

But in the back of his brain a notion remained

To take the railroad right on to Key West.



Where Deep water awaited the liners

and shipping trades to the canal.

But what stood in his way was the great Biscayne bay

And an inlet that spanned 7 miles.



Faced with the fact that he had to cross ocean

He put all his engineers minds into motion

Devising a plan to extend the great line

By building a sea bridge one arch at a time.



The last train to paradise

Rolled over the ocean against all advice

Almost in defiance he didn't think twice

He had completed the last train to paradise.



Mother nature had dealt him some losses

Hurricanes in 0 6 9 and 10

But his vision stayed strong and he vowed to go on

In the memory of the losses men

After 7 long years to completion

He rolled south in his car 91

He enjoyed every mile with a big eager smile

Because impossible things had been done



And the skeptics and cynics who had used pens as their lances

Were in awe of the man who had met their advances

Henry answered all questions and passed all the test

When the conductor yelled now arriving key west?



The last train to paradise

Built with muscle and sweat and a vision precise

Unparalleled by what he accomplished in life

A divine inspiration. The Last train to paradise



Artist notes:



This song is meant to showcase the determination of one man

to the fulfillment of his vision to build a railroad to Key West.

Henry Flagler was not only an oil magnet but a visionary

who redefined the face of Florida and made it accessible to all.

Very few people are ever taught what an impact he had on Florida's

development. Henry's motives to build the railroad began with

commerce in mind but one gets the sense while researching

the events of the building of the railroad that toward the end

of the project it was his personal desire and not a

monetary one to see his railroad cross the ocean.

One might have the belief he built it as a monument to himself.

Others might believe that he had the obsession to prove all

of his critics wrong. Either way, it stood as a testament to a

mans shear will and determination to accomplish the impossible.

Although the railroad was never a money maker and was

destroyed in the labor day hurricane of 1935, It was not the

focus of my song. It was not the railroads peril that was the story,

but rather the ingenuity of man and the desire to overcome

incredible odds in the face of heavy criticism.