VERO AT 100
LIVING HISTORY
15
SEXTON FAMILY COLLECTION
>aldo»s homestead as seen in the s after a second Åoor is added
Siblings Barbara Sexton, left, and Jacqueline Sexton, right, are with mom
Elsebeth behind the pony. Brothers Ralph, front, and Randy are on the pony.
island accessible only by boat ³ the first bridge wouldn·t be
built until ³ where he would create the 'riftwood ,nn
and 2cean *rill as well as build :aldo·s 0ountain.
THE WORK BEGINS
At the time :aldo arrived in 9ero, )lorida was neither a
retirement nor tourist mecca. <et :aldo saw the promise and
potential of it all. And the worN ahead did not intimidate
the sifootone, pound :aldo. ,n , for eample, he
claimed as one of his life·s accomplishments clearing and
grading ´the right of way from the old wooden bridge to A.B.
0ichael·s house >on 2rchid ,sland@ by manpower alone ³ no
mules, no tractors, no bulldoers.··
:aldo initially began worNing as a sales agent for the
,ndian 5iver )arms &o. ,n , he formed his own real estate
company. By , he went into farming for himself, planting
, citrus trees the first year and building a small house on
th Street that would become his homestead.
,n , he married Elsebeth 0artens of )ranNlin 3arN, ,llinois,
who decided to stay in 9ero after a visit with her father.
She and :aldo met at the Sleepy Eye Lodge. A graduate of
the University of &hicago, she was also the piano player at
the local silent theater in 9ero.
´She only Nnew two selections ¶Hearts and )lowers· and
¶-ohnny *et <our *un,· which she played alternately as the
scene dictated,·· Sean Seton wrote. ´She and :aldo married
and he tooN her to live in the small tworoom house on
his property >on th Street@ where she found he lived in one
room and Nept the other full of feed.··
:aldo and Elsebeth raised their four children at the home
that they epanded over time. 2n the business side, :aldo
continued to devote himself to ventures that would ensure
his family·s security. He had planted citrus groves and
opened 2slo 3acNinghouse in , and in founded his
9ero Beach 'airy.
:aldo·s creative period ³ the time for which he is best
Nnown for the buildings he created ³ lasted from the early
s through the late s when he finished his last proMects.
As the *reat 'epression approached and )lorida·s land
boom went bust, new estate taes forced the heirs of robber
barons in 3alm Beach to give up their mansions, with some
falling under the wrecNing ball. Sensing opportunity, :aldo
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