Remembering Haulover pier (w pics)

Just got done looking at an old copy(1977) of the Fin fishing magazine that use to be put out annually by the MIAMI HERALD and in it i found an ad for the Haulover fishing pier.That old wooden piling pier was the longest fishing pier in south Florida(1103 ft iong) and the second longest in the entire state of Florida. Allthough most of my pier fishing was at South Beach pier and Newport pier a few miles north of Haulover, many memories are still fresh in my mind of times spent fishing on Haulover pier.This old pier was built on the north side of Haulover inlet back in the 1950's and was in operation until 1992 when Hurricane Andrew pretty much swept the entire pier into the raging surf.I remember during the summer months the biggest barracudas i've seen anywhere were right under that pier,,,some were 5 to 7 foot long with barnicles and scars on there backs.Back in the early 1960's the shark fishing was so hot out there that the guys started what was known as the Haulover Shark and Tarpon Club.I was too young back in the 60's to have recollection of that Shark and Tarpon club but i used to hear stories of the big sharks that were caught up on that old pier.During my high school years we would cut classes on fridays it was called national skip day and we would go to Haulover pier or the beach and hang out.The wall just south of the old pier that ran all the way to the inlet was where all the hippies use to gather during the weekends.If you have any old pictures of Haulover pier please share them with us.Thanks.

SOME HAULOVER BEACH HISTORY

Location:Baker’s Haulover
County: Miami-Dade
City: Miami
Description: Two sided marker: The originally known Lighthouse Dock, once at this site, marked the beginnings of this area’s fame as a sportsman’s paradise. Folklore and history relate that a man named Baker (c. 1810) "hauled over" fishing boats from the bay to the ocean. In 1926, Captain Henry Jones (1883-1968) built the first dock with a permit from the War Department. By 1937-1939, the Lighthouse Restaurant and the Ocean Bay Trailer Park shared this property. These early docks served as the foundation of an international sport fishing tourist industry as charter boat fisherman searched for marlin, sailfish and other big-game fish in Miami’s abundant Gulf Stream waters. Adjacent to these docks was an official weighing station of the Metropolitan Miami Fishing Tournament, the oldest and largest fishing contest in the world. Many record catches were certified here. Captains navigated their charters beneath the hazardous Haulover Bridge with its treacherous currents. They also contended with the threat of enemy submarines, just outside the Inlet, from 1942 to 1943. Some captains assumed duties as sub-spotters. A Coast Guard vessel was moored here during World War II to ensure civilian safety, making this a strategic military site at that time. In 1944 the Lighthouse Dock became part of the Haulover Beach Park. The Dade County Parks Department assumed management and changed the name to Haulover Beach Docks. In 1951-1952 the docks were replaced by a marina, built farther to the north. Calling these docks home were the captains, their boats, and the only women working as mates for their husbands. The earliest pioneer captains at these docks were: Henry Jones, Henrietta; George Hamway, Popeye; Joe Reese, Ethel Lee; Slim Caraway (Marjorie) Lady Luck; John Sacon (nee Saconchik), Martha Mary; George Helker, Gremlin; Ralph Nemire (Iris), Seacomber; Harry Stone, Oke Doke; Ira Gregory, Lucky Strike; Elsworth Stone, Anhow; W.D. Murphy, Pat; Charles Smith (Mary), Interim; Harold Alford (Jeannette) Privateer; Otto Reichert, Restless; Robert Paterson, Huskee; Frank Kurek, Sportsman; Ernie Luebbers, Mystery; B.C. Millard, Surf King; and Paul Goerner, Vee Gee. Other individuals contributing to the success of the Haulover fishing fleet: Official Dock Photographer, Doris Barnes; Dock/Weigh Masters, Norton/Waggoner; and Taxidermist, Al Pflueger. They recorded the feats of tourists and such celebrities as Hollywood superstar Robert Mitchum and TV host Arthur Godfrey.

Here’s another........
In the early 1900s an old fisherman by the name of "Baker" built a shack on a narrow strip of land between the ocean and Biscayne Bay north of Miami Beach. For a small fee, Baker assisted fishermen in hauling their skiffs over this narrow portage and the area got its odd name – Baker’s Haulover. Barnes incrementally acquired 177 acres of this park between 1935 and 1942 for $766,000. With the purchase of these lands the park department became proprietor of the Lighthouse Restaurant (which burned down in 1967), a trailer park and a charter fishing boat dock. There was also a small restaurant located on the bayside dock area. In 1944 the county took over the trailer park area and ran it. Tenants paid $20 a month each for rental of space. The dock restaurant, which was later demolished in 1950 was leased out for $40 a month. The 14 charter boats paid 10% of their gross receipts in return for dockage. With the coming of World War II, Haulover Beach Park development and all others were postponed until 1945. In 1953-54 a lease agreement was entered into to construct a fishing pier out into the ocean

the Haulover pier as it was in the 1950's when it was first built

The Haulover Pier ad as it appeared in the 1977 Fins magazine.

A 1950's brochure of Haulover pier,,,,notice the bathing suits.

My brother Jorge and i weighing a dusky and a mako shark at the Haulover pier scale in 1984.

The dusky tipped the scales at 239 lbs.Tony Lopez and William Fundora.