History
Rio Vista History: The Brickell Plat, C.J. Hector, the 1920s Boom and the 2023 Survey
By Glen Primak, GLEN PRIMAK GROUP · Updated
Timeline
This timeline follows the City of Fort Lauderdale’s 2023 architectural resource survey of Rio Vista, as presented to the neighborhood in January 2024, and the Rio Vista Civic Association’s own history.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1824 | Frankee Lewis receives a 640-acre land grant that takes in present-day Colee Hammock and Rio Vista |
| 1830 | Richard Fitzpatrick of Key West buys the land for a plantation |
| 1873 | William and Mary Brickell buy the land |
| 1916 | Mary Brickell records the first plat of Rio Vista |
| 1922 | After her death, C.J. Hector records his re-subdivision of Rio Vista and markets it as “River View”; Charley Rhodes begins dredging the isles |
| 1923 | The Fort Lauderdale Herald reports 5,000 feet of sidewalk, landscaping and streetlights along Rio Vista Boulevard |
| 1925 | The Rio Vista Isles are developed; Fort Lauderdale’s population reaches about 16,000 |
| 1926 | The September 18 hurricane strikes South Florida, ending the land boom |
| 1930s | “Distress homes” from the boom are advertised through receivership; the Garden Circle forms in 1936 |
| 1938 | The Lauderdale Yacht Club starts with about 100 members and becomes the neighborhood’s social center |
| 1940s | During World War II, Rio Vista becomes known as “Navy Row” for the officers from the Port Everglades naval base who live there |
| 1950s | Postwar building fills many remaining lots |
| 2022–23 | The City accepts a $50,000 state grant (Resolution 22-171) and surveys Rio Vista |
Brickell’s plat and Hector’s “River View”
The name means “river view” in Spanish. Mary Brickell, the Miami landholder, recorded the first plat in 1916. After her death, C.J. Hector bought the land and re-subdivided it in 1922. His C.J. Hector’s Re-Subdivision of Rio Vista is still the legal description for roughly 380 parcels in the county’s records. By early 1923, the survey notes, Rio Vista Boulevard had sidewalks, landscaping and streetlights, and Mediterranean Revival was the style of choice. Rio Vista became one of the most exclusive neighborhoods in 1920s Fort Lauderdale.
The Rio Vista Isles
Dredging of the isles began in 1922, and the Rio Vista Isles plats followed, with part of the sales going to the Woman’s Club of Fort Lauderdale. Units 3, 4 and 5 of the Rio Vista Isles cover about half of today’s parcels, along the canals that the City’s map names Rio Alcazar, Rio Carmena, Rio Cordova, Rio Granada and Rio Valencia.
Bust, war and boom again
The 1926 hurricane put South Florida into a depression three years before the rest of the country, and for a decade lots and houses changed hands through receivership. The Lauderdale Yacht Club, founded in 1938, gave the neighborhood a social center. In World War II, naval officers stationed at Port Everglades filled so many houses that the neighborhood was known as “Navy Row,” and many servicemen came back after the war.
The county’s year-built data shows the layers: of Rio Vista’s 857 single-family homes, 41 were built before 1930, 205 in the 1930s and 1940s and 160 in the 1950s, while 277 date from 2000 or later. The median house was built in 1966.
The 2023 architectural survey
In August 2022 the City Commission accepted a $50,000 grant from the Florida Division of Historical Resources (Resolution 22-171) for an intensive-level survey of Rio Vista and Riverside Park, carried out in 2023 by LW Associates, Inc. In Rio Vista the survey documented 29 potential individual historic landmarks and looked at possible historic districts.
A survey is a planning tool, not a designation. Rio Vista is not a designated historic district on the City’s historic-district map, and designating a landmark or district takes a separate application and public hearings. Check the City’s historic-preservation records for any individual property.
Back to the Rio Vista overview →
Sources
- Rio Vista Area: Intensive Level Architectural Resource Survey (History and Development of Rio Vista; 29 potential landmarks) — City of Fort Lauderdale (accessed Oct 24, 2026)
- 2023 Architectural Resource Surveys (Resolution 22-171; $50,000 Florida Division of Historical Resources grant; LW Associates, Inc.) — City of Fort Lauderdale (accessed Oct 24, 2026)
- Architectural Resource Survey of Rio Vista (presentation to the civic association, January 2024) — City of Fort Lauderdale / Rio Vista Civic Association (accessed Oct 24, 2026)
- Rio Vista Civic Association: About Us — Rio Vista Civic Association (accessed Oct 24, 2026)
- Parcel legal descriptions and year-built fields (tax roll 2026) — Broward County Property Appraiser (accessed Oct 24, 2026)
- City of Fort Lauderdale GIS: HistoricDistrict and Neighborhood_Associations layers — City of Fort Lauderdale (accessed Oct 24, 2026)