Chinese Village, a complex of eight homes, is one of the six international villages created by land developer George Merrick. Under Merrick, real estate development was brought to an art form. He hired architects trained abroad to create neighborhoods, or villages, with a particular historical or architectural style.
Besides the Chinese Village, intended to resemble a traditional residential compound in China, Merrick developed French City Village, French Country Village, French Normandy Village, Dutch South African Village, Florida Pioneer Village, and Southern Colonial Village. The most exotic of Merrick's many creations, Chinese Village was designed by Henry Killam Murphy, an authority on Chinese architecture. He designed several structures in China. Bamboo ornamentation adorns the concrete wall that defines this block of Chinese-style residences. The houses have blue-tile eaves and roofs, elaborate window grills, and latticework on the balconies.
These residential villages stand in contrast to the Spanish influence seen almost everywhere else in affluent 14-square-mile Coral Gables. Merrick made the city what it is today. Dubbed "City Beautiful," Coral Gables was built in the 1920s as one of the first planned communities in the nation. Merrick, who owned 3,000 acres of land in the area, dreamed of building an American Venice with sprawling villas and canals. He studied the architectural styles of Mediterranean countries, including Spain, and envisioned a park-like city with a Mediterranean theme. Merrick realized his vision, which still stands today. Most of his buildings are meticulously preserved as historic landmarks.
Influenced by the City Beautiful movement of the early 1900s, Merrick developed Coral Gables with well-paved, tree-shaded boulevards emanating from ornate plazas, lots of green space, attractive lamp posts, and careful zoning laws assigning different elements of the community their own separate sections.
Known for his passionate devotion to aesthetics, Merrick developed the city's elaborate entrances, the award-winning City Hall, and the landmark Biltmore Hotel, as well as the strikingly different international villages.
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