The Well

Not much is known about this rock outcrop in the land. Before being owned by any one person, it’s possible that the Seminole or even earlier indigenous peoples built this well to access the freshwater spring below your feet. What seems more likely is that it was built by Edmund and Ann Beasley, whose homestead encompassed most of modern Coconut Grove. The true origin of this well has been lost to time, but we know it was an organized effort. Nearby neighbors have described similar structures on their land. 

This well is now dry due to the early manipulation of water flow throughout Miami-Dade County. In an effort to mitigate flood water after developing large portions of the Everglades, many drainage channels were built in Miami, forever affecting the hydrology of our underground Biscayne aquifer. The Central and Southern Flood Control Project of 1948 diverted so much freshwater from the Biscayne aquifer that many natural freshwater springs along the bay dried up as a result.