Celestial Railroad Marker

In 1885, the Town of Jupiter had to depend on the Indian River Steamboat Company to bring passengers and freight south from Titusville. When the passengers reached Juno Beach, they could board another steamer named the Lake Worth, to continue to Palm Beach or other points south. The rob; however, was making the connection between Juno Beach and Jupiter. The only transportation available between these two ports was a line of freight wagons pulled by oxen, called bull trains, that shuttled their passengers and freight over the 7.5 miles of rough and rutted road. Palm Beach and Broward counties were still part of Dade County at that time with a population of 861 residents and 134 Indians. By 1889, the only sizable settlements were on Biscayne Bay and Lake Worth; however, the citizens of the Lake area soon wrested the county seat of Dade from Miami and moved it to Juno. Soon afterward, Dade County had its first two-story courthouse in Juno Beach. With Juno the new county seat, the Jacksonville, Tampa and Key West Railroad Company saw the opportunity to open a rail connection that would link Jupiter to Juno.