Ed Leedskalnin – Tourism In Florida With A Twist
If you are traveling in southern Florida, and you are near the Miami area, you should stop by one of the most interesting tourist attractions that you will ever see.
This place is called the Coral Castle. It was built by one man over a period of 20 years. His name was Edward Leedskalnin. He dedicated his life to creating this 1100 tons structure of coral to a person that he loved who did not love him.
As the story goes, and Leedskalnin was engaged to be married to his sweetheart named Agnes Scuffs. Ed was infatuated with her and affectionately called her his “Sweet 16″. Ed called her this because he was 26 years old at the time and she was nearly 16.
Legend has it that on the day before the wedding, Agnes told Leedskalnin but she did not want to marry him. There are many conjectures regarding why. Some believe that it was because of his lack of education or money.
Heartbroken, this decision made Ed rethink his life. He decided to leave Latvia and journey to Canada in search of something better.
It is said to have wandered for many years, working at lumber camps throughout Canada and California. He ended up working on cattle drives which took Edward into Texas.
Those that have seen the Coral Castle and its megalithic sized stone structures can imagine that perhaps Edward Leedskalnin was a very strong man. This is in contrast to the fact that he almost died from tuberculosis before ever creating his coral home.
It only weighed 100 pounds and was a mere 5 foot in height. A realtor in the Florida city area actually helped him recover from tuberculosis. Afterwards, he purchased a single acre of land for $12 and began to make the Coral Castle.
One of the reasons that most immigrants come to America is that they believe that our country is the land of opportunity and that through hard work and determination you can create a successful life of your own. This belief, and his love for his Sweet 16, caused Ed to begin though they Coral Castle.
In this particular part of Florida, the coral is several thousand feet in depth. He had plenty of material to work with and he began right away. Dedicating this initial creation to his Sweet Sixteen, and began history into the miraculous creating domestic coral works of art such as chairs, beds, and tables, all weighing several tons a piece.
What is even more miraculous is that except for a few pictures but Ed allowed to be taken of him, no one ever saw him working. To this day, no one knows how Edward Leedskalnin extracted, carved, moved, and positioned the coral artifacts that you can see today.
It created many amazing coral pieces including what is called the Polaris telescope. It is a single piece of coral that is so perfectly carved and positioned that you can look through a triangular eyepiece and see the Northstar every night.
Although it is no longer with us, and his secret long forgotten or lost, his megalithic structure continues to be a topic of amazement with those that cannot understand how a 100 pound man with a fourth grade education could have made such an amazing structure.
For people traveling in the Miami area, the Coral Castle is a must stop must see tourist attraction that is the life’s work of one man who used his secret, a secret that has not been lost again.
Find out more information on the Coral Castle today
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