Post 12 West Palm Beach, Florida

Post 12

West Palm Beach, Florida

Post 12 West Palm Beach, Florida

About This Post

Post Namesake

Palm Beach

What Makes this Post Unique

    In May 1919, a group of ex-service men of Palm Beach County met and established a Post of the American Legion. A building fund was started soon after and a Post Home was purchased in December 1919. The new Post Home was a mansion in the center of downtown West Palm Beach. In 1922 the post successfully hosted the Department convention and raised enough funds to pay off the mortgage of the Post Home.  

    Boxing exhibitions were in style at the time 1922, so Post 12 opened the Athletic Arena. The arena had seating for over 1,000 people, a weather proof box office and a 500 watt light over the ring. Behind the arena was a farmers market that the post managed. 

    In June 1922, an idea was conceived by the members of the post for a Public Library as a memorial to the men and women who served during the World War. The Memorial Library was completed two years later.

    Also in 1922 the Superintendent of Schools of Palm Beach County met with Post 12 to ask for help for funding the kindergarten classes. For four years Post 12 raised the monies to support the salaries of three instructors plus equipment and supplies for one hundred and fifty children.

    In 1925 the post sold the mansion and bought a larger property on Datura Street. In 1926 the members negotiated with the County for a vacant parcel of land, which they improved and the title was given to the post in 1927. The property was leased for income and was sold in 1937.

    The post formed a Drum and Bugle Corps in 1926, which attended all the Department Conventions as well as the National Conventions, in Paris, France and Louisville, KY. It was successful in being designated State Department Champions in 1928 and 1929. 

    Ten thousand coconut trees were donated to the post in the summer of 1927, if the members would plant them along Federal Highway. After a year of hard work, nearly fifteen miles of coconut trees were planted fifty feet apart on both sides of the highway. 

    The post hosted the State Department Convention again in 1930. The post entertained over 275 delegates and over 2,000 conventioneers. One of the features of the convention was the dedication of Junior Recreational Park. The park covered over 13 acres of ground , with 4 regulation baseball diamonds, 2 cub ball fields, a regulation football field and a junior gridiron.  Today the park that Post 12 so thoughtfully planned, maintained and designed is known as Howard Park and is maintained by the City of West Palm Beach. 

    In 1931 the post began sponsoring a junior baseball team. Post 12 has hosted many State Tournaments and Regional Tournaments, and has played in the State Tournament 43 times in which they won 12, played in 2 Regional Tournaments in which they won 1, and also played in the American Legion World Series. Many of the players for Post 12 have gone on to play for theMLB    

    During and after WWII Post 12 opened the Post Home for waste paper drives, contributed to the Florida Defense Force, the Defense Council Car Sharing and issuing War Ration Books.

 

 

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