Miami’s first black millionaire: D. A. Dorsey

Dana Albert Dorsey was born in Quitman, Georgia in 1872.  As the son of former slaves, it is believed he attended a Freedmen’s Bureau school, which was established after the Civil War for Blacks.  Before moving to Miami, Florida, Dorsey lived in Titusville, Florida employed as a carpenter for the Henry Flagler Florida East Coast Railroad.  As he arrived in Miami in 1897, a large number of Blacks came to help with the building of a new railroad on Biscayne Bay.  Dorsey observed the critical need for housing in Colored Town where Blacks were relegated to live in tents near their work sites.  Since he had a background in carpentry, he began to practice real estate.  On the land he purchased in Colored Town, currently known as Overtown, he developed small single-family homes on $25 lots that eventually skyrocketed.  His strategy was to never sell the homes; he rented them to newly arriving blacks who were in high need of housing.

Photo: Public Domain

Dorsey used the rental income to purchase new property and homes as far north as Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  His empire flourished and amassed the largest real estate profession by a Black man in the history of Miami-Dade County.  Dorsey designed and built his home at 250 Northwest Ninth Street in 1913. It is reported that he used scrap lumber from railroad cars for some of the interior.  The home was recently restored by the Black Archives, History and Research Foundation of South Florida, Inc.

Due to racist laws, blacks were forbidden to go to public beaches. In 1918, Dorsey purchased twenty-one acres of what is now Fisher Island near Miami Beach, so blacks could enjoy the oceanfront.  He owned this property very briefly. Because of the 1925 “land boom” and in addition to the rapidly increasing property values, he was forced to sell.  After he sold his island holdings to the Alton Beach Realty Company, owned by Carl Fisher, blacks living in the Miami unbearable summer heat were denied access to the ocean for another twenty years.

Dorsey understood economic empowerment and the value of the black dollar.  In 1916, he organized and developed the Negro Savings Bank so blacks could have a place for their banking needs.  Originally, this was successful, however due to the Great Depression of the 1930’s, the bank encountered a financial disaster.  Although he lost thousands, he made sure none of his depositors lost their money.  Despite the bank’s failure, his vast real estate holdings provided him with considerable income during the Depression.  Dorsey also ventured into the hotel business by building the Dorsey hotel, which was the first black-owned hotel in Miami.  The hotel was advertised in both black and white newspapers and was well established throughout the city.

Dorsey is also best known for his contributions to education.  He donated a large parcel of land for black schools.  In 1937, Dorsey High School opened in Liberty City.  For the first time, black children in this area of Miami went to school in their own neighborhood.  Through these efforts, as well as his fortune, Dorsey gained the respect and admiration of everyone.  We are proud to honor Miami’s first black millionaire and famed philanthropist.