THE FREEDOM TOWER - ARCHITECTURE - LEGACY 

                         & THE NEW WORLD MURAL 1513 

                                   Where architecture, history, and art converge to tell Miami’s earliest story

THE NEW WORLD MURAL 1513 — THE HEART OF THE FREEDOM TOWER

Inside the Grand Hall stands the New World Mural 1513, a monumental artwork created in 1987–1988 by a six-member fine-art team known as The Miami Artisans. This mural is a new and fully original artistic creation, painted on grand-scale canvases inside the historic Miami Coliseum and installed in 1988.

Artistic Team (1987–1988)

Principal Artists — Research, Design, Drafting, Composition

• Wade S. Foy — Lead Designer, Project Direction
• John Conroy — Historical Research, Design, Drafting
• William Mark Coulthard (Alter) — Historical Research, Image Development, Drafting

Supporting Artists — Painting, Lettering, Technical Execution

• Jerome Villa Bergsen — Lettering for Edwin Markham poem
• Ana Bikic — Supporting Painter
• Phyllis Shaw — Supporting Painter

Spanning 44 feet wide and 20 feet high, the mural depicts the first documented contact between Juan Ponce de León and the Tequesta chief of Miami, connecting the foundational moment of Florida’s written history to the origins of the city that would become Miami.

THE FREEDOM TOWER AND ITS VISION

Standing along Biscayne Boulevard since 1925, the Freedom Tower is one of Miami’s most iconic landmarks — a structure where architecture, identity, and history intersect.

Commissioned by James Middleton Cox, founder of The Miami Daily News, and designed by Schultze and Weaver, the tower’s Spanish Renaissance / Mediterranean Revival style draws inspiration from the Giralda Tower of Seville, linking Miami visually and symbolically to its Old World heritage.

Cox envisioned the building as a “lighthouse of the Americas”, a monument dedicated to communication, discovery, and civic identity.

At its summit, the bronze galleon weathervane honors Ponce de León’s 1513 voyage, when he entered Biscayne Bay, named La Florida, and described a region long known as Miami by the Tequesta, the Indigenous people who had lived along the river for centuries.

A SYMBOL OF DISCOVERY AND CULTURAL MEMORY

When the tower opened as the headquarters of The Miami Daily News, its presses and editorial rooms made it a center of communication for a fast-growing young city.

In the 1960s, the building took on a new identity as a processing center for Cuban refugees. For thousands, the Freedom Tower became a physical symbol of hope, safety, and the beginning of a new life.

Thus, the tower unites two journeys:
the early exploration of Florida and the modern migrations that shaped Miami’s cultural soul.

THE TOWER THROUGH TIME

After the refugee era, the building fell into disrepair. Preservation efforts protected it through its listing on the National Register of Historic Places (1979), followed by its designation as a U.S. National Historic Landmark (2008).

A major restoration in the 1980s by architect Richard J. Heisenbottle revived the building. During this restoration, the New World Mural 1513 was commissioned to restore a monumental artistic presence to the Grand Hall, replacing the mural lost in the 1920s.

The building was later restored by the Mas family as a memorial to the Cuban exile community and eventually donated to Miami Dade College, which continues to use it for cultural, historical, and educational programming.

ART AND ARCHITECTURE UNITED

The Grand Hall unites the tower’s many lives — Spanish exploration, American journalism, Cuban exile history, and modern Miami — with the mural as its symbolic core.

Through imagery of maps, ships, Tequesta figures, and European explorers, the mural visually binds Florida’s earliest recorded history to Miami’s cultural evolution.

Public figures, dignitaries, and national personalities have stood before this mural, including Celia Cruz, Michelle Obama, and visiting Spanish royalty.

MODERN RECOGNITION AND PRESERVATION

Today, the Freedom Tower stands as:

• A U.S. National Historic Landmark
• A symbol of Cuban exile and American freedom
• A cornerstone of Florida’s cultural heritage
• A museum and educational space for Miami

The building continues to host exhibitions, community programs, and cultural events, ensuring that its meaning remains alive for future generations.

ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS (FOR VISITORS & RESEARCHERS)

Official Name: Freedom Tower (Miami)
Address: 600 Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, Florida 33132, USA
Height: approx. 255 ft (78 m)
Floors: 17 stories
Built: 1925
Architects: Schultze and Weaver
Architectural Style: Spanish Renaissance / Mediterranean Revival
Historic Status:
— National Register of Historic Places (1979)
— U.S. National Historic Landmark (2008)

 SOURCES & FURTHER READING (FOR RESEARCHERS)

These sources help visitors continue exploring the history:

• Freedom Tower — Miami Dade College Museum
• National Park Service — U.S. National Historic Landmark information
• Historical articles about Ponce de León’s 1513 voyage
• Tequesta and Indigenous South Florida research archives
• Early Florida maps and 16th-century navigation charts
• Architectural history of Schultze & Weaver
• Freedom Tower historical timelines and records
• Public records on the 1980s restoration

(These sources can include Wikipedia articles, but your page remains ORIGINAL.)

 FEATURED INTERVIEW — MIAMI ART REVIEWS

Read the latest interview with artist and muralist Ana Bikic, discussing her art, history, ecosymbolism, and her role in the New World Mural 1513.
→ Read the Interview on Voyage Miami
(Insert your Voyager link here.)

 VISIT THE FREEDOM TOWER

We invite you to experience the Grand Hall in person,  to stand before the New World Mural 1513, view its details, and explore the building’s exhibitions, architecture, and cultural history.

Sources

1. National Park Service – Freedom Tower

(Official U.S. government source)
https://www.nps.gov/places/freedom-tower.htm

2. National Register of Historic Places – Official Nomination File (PDF)

(Primary historic record, legal documentation)
https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/NRHP/79000671_text

3. Miami Dade College – Freedom Tower

(Current official owner and cultural institution)
https://www.mdc.edu/freedomtower/

4. Wikipedia – Freedom Tower (Miami)

(General public reference + widely used academic quick reference)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_Tower_(Miami)

5. Giralda Tower – Architectural Inspiration

(For architectural accuracy and context)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giralda

✔ National Park Service — The strongest, most legitimate source.
✔ National Register Historic Nomination PDF — A primary historical document that meets academic standards.
✔ Miami Dade College — The building’s actual caretaker and authoritative institution.
✔ Wikipedia (curated) — Acceptable as a public reference when paired with stronger sources.
✔ Giralda Tower — Supports the architectural comparison used in your page.

No clutter. No obscure pages. Nothing questionable.
This is the cleanest, strongest academic foundation.

 CONTACT US

For comments, questions, historical inquiries, or academic research requests, please write to:
📩 freedomtowermiami@gmail.com

We welcome your thoughts, stories, and historical insights.

 CONTINUE

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