A History of Hillsboro Inlet Park

A History of Hillsboro Inlet Park. . , One of the most historic locations in Pompano Beach, the Hillsboro inlet was given its name by surveyor William de Brahm in the early 1870's. The name honored British aristocrat Lord Wills Hill, the Earl of Hillsborough. It is not clear how the different spelling of the name came about., In 1885, when the government established a mail route along the beach, from Lake Worth to Miami, the inlet was one of the water barriers that the "barefoot mailmen” was required to cross by rowboat. In 1887, one of the mailmen, Edward Hamilton, found that his rowboat had been moved to the opposite side of the inlet. In his attempt to swim across, he lost his life. Edward Hamilton's body was never found. The beach mail route was discontinued in 1892, when a road was constructed between the two locations., In 1902, Congress appropriated funds to build a lighthouse at the Inlet. Five years later, the structure (officially known as the Hillsboro Inlet Light Station) began casting its light out to sea, Its light filled the 100 mile gap existing between the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse to the north and the Fowley Rocks Lighthouse to its south. It shines 27 miles out to sea. Over the years the lighthouse has been in continuous operation, with the exception of maintenance times and the "dark periods” during World War I and World War 2., The inlet was first bridged in 1925. With a swing span type structure. It was later replaced by the current bascule bridge in 1966., South Florida's earliest settlers knew the Hillsboro Inlet as a prime location for sport fishing. By the 1930s. several charter and drift boats were operating out of the inlet. As tourism increased, the charter boat fishing fleet expanded and has been home to many famous fishing guides over the years., In 1974, the lighthouse was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. In the early 1990s, the U.S. Coast Guard proposed deactivating the Lighthouse due in part to maintenance issues. Local lighthouse enthusiasts formed the Hillsboro Lighthouse Preservation Society and were able to come up with a plan to keep our lighthouse in operation and provide public access to the now historic structure., The City of Pompano Beach opened Hillsboro Inlet Park in 2005. The park's incredible scenic views of the inlet and lighthouse provide the perfect place for the perfect picture.