Palm Beach Daily News: Cuckoo for coconuts at the Royal Poinciana
On a bright and sunny Saturday, The Royal Poinciana Plaza was the perfect setting for orange, brown and green coconuts sitting under umbrellas and children playing in a sea of green and pink.
At “The Coconut Carnival: A Celebration of Palm Beach’s History,” coconuts were front and center for both kids and adults.
The event was built around the story of how Palm Beach was settled. In 1878, the Providencia was sailing from Trinidad to Spain with 20,000 coconuts on board. When the ship was grounded near the area later to be called Palm Beach, the crew members and local residents planted the coconuts, which grew into palm trees.
The Young Friends of the Historical Society of Palm Beach County co-sponsored the event, with docents appearing in period costumes as settlers and swashbuckling privateers.
