By A Treasure Coast essay by Paul Janensch
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wqcs/local-wqcs-944544.mp3
Fort Pierce, FL – The House of Hope - which provides help to those in need in Martin County - is launching a fund-raising series of five presentations by authors. It begins with Arthur T. Vanderbilt II, author of "Fortune's Children: The Fall of the House of Vanderbilt." Do you know a Vanderbilt once owned Fisher Island off Miami? The Vanderbilt dynasty was begun in the 19th century by Cornelius Vanderbilt, who built a steamship and railroad empire. His great-grandson, William Kissam Vanderbilt II, known as "Willie K," sailed the globe on luxury yachts and served as president of the New York Central Railroad. In 1925, he traded the yacht "Eagle" to developer Carl Fisher for Fisher Island. For this winter retreat, Willie K installed a mansion, docks, tennis courts, a swimming pool, a golf course and a seaplane hangar. After Willie K's death in 1944, the island changed hands until it became a luxury community. Arthur Vanderbilt will speak at 7 p.m. Thursday, January 13, at the Chastain Center of Indian River State College in Stuart. For more about the author series, go to the House of Hope website at hohmartin.org. That's h-o-h-martin-dot-org. For 88.9 FM, this is Paul Janensch.
Treasure Coast essayist Paul Janensch was a newspaper editor and taught journalism at Quinnipiac Univer