In May of 1901, a devastating fire razed the town of Jacksonville, destroying 2,368 buildings and killing seven. This disaster was quickly met by a rebuilding effort that inadvertently created the ideal location for film production companies. Before long, 15 major studios, including Fox and Metro Pictures, had studios in Jacksonville, and the local government began offering tax incentives to Hollywood studios willing to move their companies east. Jacksonville flourished in its new role as film hub, catering to both sides of the film industry's racial issues. While Hollywood remained virtually untouched by the effects of the war, however, Jacksonville suffered greatly. Between the near monopoly the military held on railroad use and the flu epidemic's toll on theater attendance in the Northeast and South, Jacksonville was unable to survive the crippling effects of the war.

In The First Hollywood, Shawn Bean traces the rise and fall of the silent film industry in Jacksonville, Florida.