Speaking at the Atlanta world’s fair in 1895, W.C. Bibb, Jr., honored Henry Plant for constructing “a system of railroads, steamships and palatial hotels in the interest of commerce, travel and international development unsurpassed in the civilized world.” Explore rare artifacts from the Plant System in the Henry B. Plant Museum’s permanent installation Age of Rail and Steam.
 
In the decades after the Civil War, railroad construction created the national economy and determined the location of new towns and cities. Henry Plant built the largest railroad network in Florida. In 1879, he purchased the bankrupt Atlanta and Gulf Railroad, which he reorganized as the Savannah, Florida, and Western Railway. Through the acquisition of other lines and laying new tracks, Plant brought continuous train service to Tampa in January 1884.


 
Two years later, Plant’s first steamship the S.S. Mascotte began carrying people, cargo, and mail between Port Tampa, Key West, and Havana, Cuba. He commissioned the S.S. Olivette to expand service in the region. Henry Plant’s steamships became closely identified with the Cuban tobacco and cigarmakers that transformed Tampa from a sleepy village into an economic powerhouse. Simultaneously, he spurred the development of Florida tourism.


 
The impact of the Plant System upon the South was so significant, Plant was honored with Plant System Day at the Cotton States and International Exposition in Atlanta in 1895.  In 1898, Success magazine bestowed Plant with the title “King of Florida” because he had done more for Florida’s development than any other person at that time.
 

This exhibit depended on the generous financial support of the Henry B. Plant Museum Society, and it includes loans from J.C. Newman Cigar Factory, the Atlanta History Center, the City of Tampa Archives, City of Tampa Mobility Department, and Earl A. Smith, M.D. Experience the wonder of new forms of travel and learn why political leaders saw the Plant System as central to the economic development of the post-Reconstruction South.
 

Come learn about Plant's vast transportation empire!