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A short history of the Village of NPB (HN) 10-5-07An aerial shot of North Palm Beach taken on Nov. 18, 2006. Photo courtesy of Wrights Helicopter Service of North Palm Beach 0 Ashort.history of the Village. of l�ortl� Palm- ..Beach rM ; f; 11 In -fit 11)"7C rn"idofl q,,r; million in I q -q -r; Park in 1919 for $100,000. He built an served as library director from 1984 t u, f1jullit'" L/It, F, V by the Village of North Palm Beach on the occasion of its 50th anniversary in 2006."The 50th Anniversary of the Vil- lage of North Palm Beach, an Official History," was compiled and written by Charlotte Chickering. .. Some of the information was also pre- viously gathered by staff writer Sarah Stover for other articles written in Hometown News. The Village of North Palm Beach was part of the land that was included in a trust the late Albert Sawyer received from Florida in 1892. The land changed hands a few times after Mr. Sawyer died. It was sold to Ralph Stolkin in 1951, however, he did not have any money and asked John D. MacArthur for a loan using the land as collateral. Mr. MacArthur loaned Mr. Stolkin $3 million, but Mr. Stolkin could not make payments on the loan. This made Mr. MacArthur the owner of land in North Palm Beach and Lake Park, but he did not want it, so through Mr. MacArthur's Bankers Land, the property was sold to brothers Richard and Herbert Ross for The Village of North Palm Beach was incorporated Aug. 13, 1956. When Pratt & Whitney, a technology company, built a rocket and jet engine development and testing facility 17 miles west of the village, people began to move to North Palm Beach. A parade of homes was held in October 1956, and many of the municipality's first resi- dents worked for Pratt &Whitney. The first three homes the village issued permits for were: 402, 406 and 410 South Anchorage Drive. Houses ranged in price between $16,000 and $38,000 in 1956, according to a pam- phlet for the parade of homes that was placed in the time capsule- created for the village's 25th anniversary in 1981 and unearthed at its 50 anniversary in 2006. With more people moving to the area, the Ross brothers donated 10 acres of land to the school board and North Palm Beach Elementary opened in 1958. As for recreation, a previous facility was already in the village. Harry Kelsey bought the deed to the land that became North Palm Beach and Lake 18 -hole golf course and a small wooden clubhouse on the area where the cur- rent North Palm Beach Library sits in 1924. However, the golf course was abandoned two years later in 1926. Another golf course and clubhouse, known as "The Winter Club," was built on the land where the North Palm' Beach Country Club is currently located in 1926. . The village purchased 145 acres around the club so it could build a new clubhouse and put in an Olympic -size swimming pool in 1961. Both opened in 1963, and the former "Winter Club" was torn down in 1984. The addition of the pool helped bring the village some indirect recognition. Former resident Ryan Berube trained at the country club for 10 years before winning an Olympic gold medal for relay swimming at the 1996 summer Olympics in Atlanta The club was also more than a recre- ation spot. The "Winter Club" housed the Village's first library in 1963. A group of residents, including Thel- ma Obert, who the library's Obert Room is named for, and Nancy Moore, who 0 2005, collected books from residents and fought to have a library in the town given the professions of its residents. Mrs. Moore was the only one who would work nights when the library was located in the "Winter Club" due to tales that it was haunted, she said. She worked part-time for 50 cents an hour, she said. The library moved to its current home in 1969, and is currently being renovat- ed. New furniture is being brought in and space is being made for more books, said children services manager Mary Ann Caruso. The country club and library are not the only places residents can gather in the village, thanks to a donation of $600,000 from late resident George Delacorte to build the Community Cen- ter, which is located on Prosperity Farms Road, in 1980. The Village Players, a group of local actors, perform plays there throughout the year, and the community holds its annual Village Garage Sale and other events there. Village From page 10 The Village's biggest event every year is the Heritage pest in April, which is usually a one -day event. lust year, resi- dents celebrated the village's 50th anniversary by unearthing a time cap- sule buried in 1981 on the occasion_ of the village's 25th anniversary. Some of the items in the first time capsule were transferred to the one buried as an end to the 50th anniver- sary celebration. They included: coins from 1981, information from the 25th anniversary, copies of building permits for the town's first apartment and office build- ings, a Rubic's cube key chain and copies of 1981 newspapers. Items included at the 50th anniver- sary included a photograph of the anniversary committee, a photo of Mr. Perube with his medal,- catalogs from J.C. Penney and Beall's department stores, two editions of Hometown News, the strategy plan for turning the golf course into a Jack Nicklaus signature course -and two 1990 cell phones. These items should be unearthed at the 75th anniversary in 2031. Photo courtesy of the North Pala' Beach Historical Society This is a photo taken of the North Palm Beach water tower when the village was getting started.