Florida Historical Markers Programs - Marker Detail

Description: James Hilliard Nunnally, owner of the Nunnally Candy Company in Atlanta, founded the Bay Shore Investment Company in 1922. During the Florida Land Boom, the company platted and developed a large bay-front tract. Since the new Bay Shore subdivision was located outside of the Miami city limits, the company had to provide its own basic amenities such as water, gas, electricity, telephone, street lights, and sewers. Built in 1923, this water pump house included an 8,000-gallon tank that could provide up to 32,000 gallons a day. Constructed out of native coral rock and Dade slash pine, it featured an arched, recessed cathedral entrance with heavy wooden doors and large iron-strap hinges. A sales brochure touted Bay Shore’s “ample supply of pure drinking water not dependent on the city supply.” In 1925, the City of Miami annexed the Bay Shore neighborhood, and the pump house was no longer needed. Though it briefly served as a private residence, the pump house deteriorated, and by 1990 it faced demolition. Starting in 1995, the combined efforts of the City of Miami, Dade Heritage Trust, and individual contributors helped save and restore the building.