The Nancy M. Graham Centennial Square is located at the end of Clematis Street in downtown West Palm Beach. On the brick plaza is a 6-foot, $15,000 tombstone-shaped monument that stands in tribute to Nancy Malley Graham. Engraved with a pineapple, the slab memorializes the public park as Nancy M. Graham Centennial Square, "She inspired us to sculpt a Capital City and her vision became our shared reality."
Nancy grew up poor in Tennessee and went on to marry, divorce, remarry, and have a couple of kids. She worked to put herself through college and law school and in her mid-30s she received her law degree from the University of Florida. She worked for several law firms never staying too long in any job or marriage. She started he political career in 1988 in West Palm Beach as a city commissioner but resigned after only two years because of a conflict of interest. She ran for mayor two years later and won with 56 percent of the vote. Her second term say her secure 76 percent of the vote. While she served she fought gender stereotypes from people who called her pushy and bitchy.
During her term as mayor, Nancy Malley Graham was known as the public official who sparked the city's massive downtown revitalization and who fought crime and drugs. She once told The New York Times: "I want to make West Palm Beach the downtown for the whole country." Newsweek magazine dubbed her one of the 25 most dynamic mayors in America. Under her guidance the city started" Clematis By Night," a weekly event named for the city's main street. Most every Thursday of the year, the area around the downtown plaza is filled with bands, artists and food. The outdoor festival draws thousands of people each week. In Florida Nancy swerved as a city commissioner, a mayor, a top redevelopment official, and a developer. While developing West Palm Beach Nancy met her third husband and married him next to her namesake fountain. Graham left office in March 1999, a few weeks after he monument was unveiled. After a falling out with Lois Frankel, her successor as mayor, she left for a job in San Diego.
The Nancy M. Graham Centennial Square features Centinnial Fountain. Kids use it as a splash pad and it is part of the light show during Sandi Land. The plaza also includes benches, tables and chairs. Street -side parking and garage parking is available nearby. This square is always a popular place for people to congregate during the West Palm Beach Green Market and citywide events. Nancy M. Graham's shadow still looms large over West Palm Beach. read more