Welcome to the Blue Hole Observation Platform and Nature Trail
History
The Blue Hole was originally excavated for use as a limestone quarry. Many of the original roads on Big Pine Key were built using the crushed limestone from this . . . — — Map (db m245812) HM
The first Overseas Highway, also known as State Road 4A (SR 4A), consisted of two roadway segments both completed by 1928. One spanned from Key West to No Name Key, and the other from Key Largo to Upper Matecumbe Key. Ferries transported cars . . . — — Map (db m127507) HM
The Florida Keys and South Florida residents are always aware of the danger and possibility of a tropical storm or hurricane striking the area from June through October of each year. They had been through hurricanes many times in the 50 years . . . — — Map (db m151503) HM
The Florida Keys Memorial, known locally as the “Hurricane Monument,” was built to honor hundreds of American veterans and local civilians who perished in the “Great Hurricane” on Labor Day, September 2, 1935. Islamadora . . . — — Map (db m3251) HM
Over the past several million years, the seas have risen and fallen many times. There were times when Florida became very small and even disappeared due to being covered by water. What we know as Florida is only the top of a larger area, known as . . . — — Map (db m225802) HM
In 1928 the Rustic Inn was built to serve enthusiastic tourists traveling the Florida Keys on the new rail and highway systems. The Inn was one of the few structures left standing after the "Great Hurricane" of 1935. It was later repaired and . . . — — Map (db m150490) HM
The veterans of World War I were promised a bonus but due to the Great Depression of the early 1930s the government was without funds.
Roosevelt was president and formed the Florida Emergency Relief Administration to create jobs for those . . . — — Map (db m116064) HM
After the 'Great Hurricane' of 1935, the Red Cross and the Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed 16 houses for Islamorada area families. Built to be 'hurricane proof,' they consisted of poured concrete and steel. Several hurricane houses . . . — — Map (db m151492) HM
The veterans of World War I, under the Florida Emergency Relief Administration, were building piers in channel 2, just below Lower Matecumbe, when the greatest storm ever hit this part of the Keys. The 200-plus mile per hour winds with a barometer . . . — — Map (db m151493) HM
Indian Key, an 11 acre island just offshore to the east, played an important part in Florida's history. An Indian village 1500 years ago, it was also the home of pirates roaming the Caribbean, and a ship wrecker's village during the 1810's. The . . . — — Map (db m176361) HM
Native Americans began occupying Indian Key by approximately A.D. 1000. It was visited by the Spanish during the 17th century, and a trading post had been established on the island by the early 19th century.
The island was acquired by Jacob . . . — — Map (db m224711) HM
These wells were surrounded by an Indian village over 1000 years ago. The Spanish used the wells to replace their water supply before crossing to the mother country.
This site was a salvage camp to recover the treasure from the Spanish galleons . . . — — Map (db m241229) HM
During the "Great Hurricane" of 1935, the Matecumbe Methodist Church was destroyed. It was originally located near the beach on the Atlantic side of Upper Matecumbe Key. In 1937 the congregation built a new wooden church adjacent to the Hurricane . . . — — Map (db m150491) HM
Juan Ponce de Leon was born in San Servas, Spain in 1460. He had served in the Spanish army and had accompanied Christopher Columbus in his second voyage in 1491. He was appointed governor of Haiti in 1511 and governor of Puerto Rico in 1512. . . . — — Map (db m83555) HM
When the Europeans arrived in America, two tribes of Indians were found in Florida, the Calusa and the Tequesta. These tribes emerged from the Archaic Period (the time when Florida became subtropical, around 5000 B.C.). The Calusa was the largest . . . — — Map (db m222295) HM
This cemetery memorializes the determination and vision of over 50 pioneer Anglo-Bahamian Conchs who labored to settle and organize the first community on Matecumbe Key. Descendants of three Islamorada pioneer families, the Russells who homesteaded . . . — — Map (db m150493) HM
Plantation Key was named for the many pineapple plantations in the early 1900s. Johnny Brush Pinder owned one of these containing over 100 acres. It was here on the beach in front of his home that he built the schooner "Island Home'. It was launched . . . — — Map (db m149435) HM
This plaque is in memory of the many Cubans who were desperate to leave Castros' communist Cuba. They left their homes and families trying to cross the 90 miles of sea in rafts, innertubes or anything that would float.
Not knowing what rough . . . — — Map (db m83553) HM
In April, 1926, Monroe County began construction of a road on the east end of Upper Matecumbe to connect with other islands. It eventually made it possible to drive to Key West by using a ferry.
The first car drove to Key West on Jan. 25 1928 . . . — — Map (db m83879) HM
The Vessel, San Pedro, was part of the Spanish colonial convoy system of the 1700s. These ships carried gold, silver and other goods from the new world back to Spain. After leaving Cuba on July 13, 1733, a hurricane forced the fleet towards the . . . — — Map (db m224717) HM
Established in 1934, during the Great Depression, Camp Three housed 250 Bonus Army veterans until September 2, 1935 when one of the worst hurricanes ever recorded destroyed everything there. The eye of the hurricane passed over nearby Craig Key with . . . — — Map (db m83592) HM
The south side of this property contained Robert's Grocery and the second post office. Today this is the site of the sixth post office. Across the highway, the original "Village of Islamorada" meaning "Island Home" was platted and named by William . . . — — Map (db m150460) HM
On Friday, July 13, 1733, the Spanish treasure fleet under the command of General Don Rodrigo de Torres Morales, sailed from Havana Harbor for Spain.
The fleet of 21 ships was loaded with gold and silver from the mine at Cartagena, Peruvian . . . — — Map (db m83550) HM
Indians lived on this island over 1000 years ago. In 1722, it was known as Boys Island. In Dec., 1838, Lt. Coste established a Naval base here and named it Ft. Paulding. This was the base for the West Indian Squadron used to blockade the coast to . . . — — Map (db m176362) HM
Like nearby Upper and Lower Matecumbe and Indian Keys, Tea Table Key was occupied by native Americans during prehistoric times. The early inhabitants settled here to take advantage of the abundance of maritime resources available in the area. . . . — — Map (db m224714) HM
Upper Matecumbe Key has been inhabited periodically since about 2000 B.C. Much has changed on the island, but the climate, the sea, and the relaxed lifestyle continue.
Island Natives
Long before European settlement of Florida, Upper . . . — — Map (db m224647) HM
The Florida Keys Memorial
The "Hurricane Monument" memorializes hundreds of American veterans and local citizens who died in the "Great Hurricane" of 1935. The cremated remains of approximately 300 veterans and local citizens were . . . — — Map (db m222363) HM
The "Overseas Railroad" was a masterpiece of engineering, proclaimed the "eighth wonder of the world." In 1904 Henry M. Flagler, oil magnate, hotelier, and owner of the Florida East Coast Railway, coined the battle cry for his engineers, "Go to . . . — — Map (db m224640) HM
The Spanish Treasure Fleets
From the time Columbus discovered the New World in 1492, the Spanish transported goods back to Spain. Gold, silver, emeralds, and other riches were now transported on Spanish ships across the ocean . . . — — Map (db m222237) HM
The Storm that Still Howls
With winds in excess of 200-mph, the Labor Day hurricane of 1935 was the most intense storm ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere and was the first known Category 5 storm.
The full force of the deadly . . . — — Map (db m224629) HM
The great Labor Day hurricane of Sept. 2, 1935 destroyed almost every building in the Matecumbes.
The W.P.A. and the Red Cross built hurricane proof houses for the families whose homes were destroyed. The walls are 12" thick with steel and . . . — — Map (db m151490) HM
1. North East end Lower Matecumbe Key - Ancient Water Wells - only fresh water on Upper Keys - Used by Indians, Sailors and Traders in XVII Century. Huge Indian Midden (Kitchen) near Wells.
2. Indian Key - Spanish Trading Post - established by . . . — — Map (db m83862) HM
The African Queen vessel was created in 1912 and is on the American National Historic Register. Her boiler is custom made and is historically correct and her steam engine is from 1896. She was restored in 2012 and has to be meticulously maintained . . . — — Map (db m83207) HM
A swing span bridge once crossed Jewfish Creek just beyond this location. Early in the construction of Henry Flagler’s Overseas Railway from the Mainland to Key West, Jewfish Creek was identified as a critical site along the route. In 1905, . . . — — Map (db m150853) HM
This magnificent sculpture "The Wreckers" at 18 feet long and 25 feet high captures the spirit of Key West as a bold, boisterous and bustling sea town out on the frontier of a young America. The early wreckers are depicted engaging in their work of . . . — — Map (db m243016) HM
"Western Union"
Built in the great tradition of the wrecking vessels that were used in Key West in the 1800's, the 130 ft. schooner Western Union has three distinctions.
She is
I. The last example of a traditional American coasting . . . — — Map (db m246073) HM
In 1873 Fort Jefferson's armament was modernized to include six 15-inch Rodman smoothbore cannon and four 300-pounder rifled Parrott guns. Of the 141 guns listed at the fort when the garrison left in 1874, only those 10 remain here today. The other . . . — — Map (db m193412) HM
On October 11, 1846, the worst hurricane in local memory struck. The storm surge flooded the streets with up to eight feet of water accompanied by Category 4 winds. The lighthouse and all but six of the city's eight hundred buildings were damaged, . . . — — Map (db m243688) HM
Key West experienced two major hurricanes in 1909 and 1910. Both hit in October and rated between a category 3 & 4 hurricane. In 1909, more than 400 buildings were destroyed. Many of the buildings were blown off their foundations, collapsed from . . . — — Map (db m243690) HM
In January of 1863, Col. James Montgomery of Kansas was authorized to raise a regiment of troops consisting entirely of free blacks and former refugee slaves. The following month, he arrived in Key West to recruit men for that regiment.
All . . . — — Map (db m224902) HM WM
The Raven House was built in 1889 after the Great Fire of 1886 destroyed the original structure. This beautiful home is considered one of the original Grande Dames of Key West. She was one of the first homes in Old Town to be restored and housed . . . — — Map (db m243888) HM
The Norvin Green Maloney House at 729 Truman Avenue is a splendid, three-story Queen Anne home built in 1904. Defined by its unique encircling wide wooden verandas and expansive front garden, the frame house is historic, distinguished by its . . . — — Map (db m243845) HM
A&B Lobster House was founded in 1947 by two fishermen, Alonzo Cothron and Berlin Felton, thus the name A&B. The pair were featured in Life Magazine and established a reputation for outstanding seafood fine dining — a tradition carried . . . — — Map (db m224457) HM
Maitland Adams began working as secretary for the Key West Box Company on February 21, 1914. The Box Factory, owned by Norberg Thompson, made cedar boxes for the cigar industry. When the cigar industry faltered as Americans started smoking . . . — — Map (db m222914) HM
Near this site lie the remains of 294 African men, women and children who died in Key West in 1860. In the summer of that year the U.S. Navy rescued 1,432 Africans from three American-owned ships engaged in the illegal slave trade. Ships bound for . . . — — Map (db m84722) HM
In memory of all who died because of this chemical.
And pray for those who are still suffering.
Remember Our Sacrifice
1967 Eternity — — Map (db m224878) WM
The cigar industry of Key West dates from 1831, when the first cigar factory was established. After the 1868 Cuban War of Independence, Key West’s cigar manufacturing industry boomed, reaching its zenith at the turn of the twentieth century. In . . . — — Map (db m127501) HM
Alfred Goldsboro Mayor, who studied the biology of many seas and here founded a laboratory for research for the Carnegie Institution directing it for XVIII years with conspicuous success, brilliant versatile courageous utterly forgetful of self. He . . . — — Map (db m9304) HM
In contrast with the soldiers' barracks, the three-story, 68-room officers' quarters that stood here was an island of civility and comfort for the officers, women, children, and slaves or servants. The complex was begun in 1848 and enlarged in 1863. . . . — — Map (db m240115) HM
These anchors sank with the ships Atocha and Santa Margarita in 1622. Each anchor weighs approximately 2,200 lbs. For almost 400 years, they lay on the ocean floor. The iron in the anchors survived, but the wood did not. The wooden . . . — — Map (db m245826) HM
Antipiracy Campaign
A major outbreak of piracy in the Caribbean began in 1815 after the end of the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812. By 1820, it had reached epidemic proportions. In that year, pirates robbed twenty-seven American . . . — — Map (db m224138) WM
Arnold Samuelson greatly admired the life and works of Hemingway. He majored in journalism and planned to follow in Ernest's footsteps. In 1934, however, Samuelson realized his chances of becoming a reporter were greatly diminished due to the . . . — — Map (db m246977) HM
Asa Tift, was the son of Captain Amos Tift, one of the early settlers of Key West. He arrived here with his sons in 1825. Amos built a store in Key West that was taken over by Asa and his brothers on the death of their father. They expanded their . . . — — Map (db m222701) HM
Notice the design of the fountain below. It was built by Asa Tift in 1862 and replicates the cutting edge warship design he and his brother, Nelson, developed for the Confederacy—the Ironclad Warship.
The Confederate Secretary of Navy, a friend . . . — — Map (db m246967) HM
Captain John H. Geiger, skilled pilot and master wrecker, built this house in 1830. It is typical of the era when, in 1832, the famed naturalist, John James Audubon, visited Key West to study and sketch the birds of the Florida Keys. On March 18, . . . — — Map (db m243863) HM
Welcome to the Audubon House & Tropical Gardens, named after the famous naturalist John James Audubon. (1785-1851) This historic house museum was established in 1960 to commemorate his 1832 expedition to the Florida Keys, during which time he . . . — — Map (db m243864) HM
Michael Mabelty was appointed Principal Lighthouse Keeper in 1826 for the first Key West Lighthouse. His wife Barbara was hired as the Assistant Keeper. Michael did not serve long - he contracted yellow fever and died. Since his wife was familiar . . . — — Map (db m232473) HM
Welcome to the oldest Roman Catholic Parish in South Florida. There is evidence that Spanish Jesuits serving in Cuba first attempted to establish a mission in Key West as early as 1724.The first Catholic Church on the island was dedicated February . . . — — Map (db m101385) HM
Battery Adair was designed in the early 1890s as part of the Endicott Period upgrades to
Fort Taylor. It added four 3-inch 15-pounder Rapid Fire Rifles on masking parapet mounts. Construction began in 1898 under the supervision of the U.S. Army . . . — — Map (db m240165) HM
Battery Osceola was added to the fort in 1898. It mounted two 12-inch long-range rifles on barbette carriages. The guns each weighed over 117,000 pounds and fired shells which could reach targets over 30,000 yards (or almost 17 miles). They fired . . . — — Map (db m240160) HM
This historic site is the last remaining of four battery fortifications built as part of Key West's coastal harbor defense system. The battery consists of two open-topped concrete reinforced mortar gun pits separated by a central magazine. Each of . . . — — Map (db m243933) HM
Built by Benjamin Curry, Jr., the brother of Florida's first millionaire, the property has remained in the family for well over a century. His grandson, Beniamin Curry Moreno, was a city engineer responsible for developing Key West's modern roads . . . — — Map (db m223264) HM
Bernie Papy was born the 13th of 14 children in a family of modest means. He left school in the 6th grade to help support his family. In 1924, he entered the real estate business. Later with Victor Moffat and Charles Perez he bought Saunders . . . — — Map (db m223711) HM
Model 1844 8-inch Columbiad
The original guns brought to the Fort in 1856. Two guns were recovered in the early 1980s from the base of the concrete foundation of Battery Osceola.
Model 1858 10-inch Columbiad
Later addition to Fort . . . — — Map (db m240184) HM
This building was its first office
On Oct. 28, 1927 Pan American flight No. 1 taxied down a runway in Key West bound for Havana. This was the first United States international air service in scheduled operation. — — Map (db m243865) HM
Other than bread, fish, shrimp, and turtles, most of the food—salted pork, salted beef, and beans—came from the mainland. Officers fared better than the soldiers and prisoners. "The bread was a mixture of flour, bugs, sticks and dirt," Lincoln . . . — — Map (db m246720) HM
In 1787, the HMS Bounty set sail from Tahiti fully loaded with sapling Breadfruit Trees headed for the Caribbean Islands to be planted as a cheap food crop for slaves. The tree produces a high energy, nutritious, cantaloupe-sized fruit. The . . . — — Map (db m243887) HM
Built as part of a Methodist educational complex at Hargrove Seminary, Bruce Hall featured a 600 seat auditorium with a roof garden. It served as part of the United States Navy Hospital during World War I through World War II. After 40 years of . . . — — Map (db m243689) HM
In 1863, during the height of the Civil War, Fort Jefferson was a bustling little city. Laborers, prisoners, and enslaved blacks swatted mosquitoes as they struggled in the broiling sun to complete this massive fort. Soldiers of the 47th . . . — — Map (db m240093) HM
Captain Harold Stanley Dexter was a highly respected shipwreck and salvage captain. He had sailed to KeyWest from his home in Massachusetts with a white six-toed cat named Snowball. They were both well-regarded on the docks of Key West.
Dexter . . . — — Map (db m246978) HM
Born in Key West, a Conch, "Bra" Saunders began his career as a commercial fisherman. As the demand for sport-fishing guides increased, he became a charter boat fisherman. In the 1930's he was fishing guide for Ernest Hemingway, taking him and his . . . — — Map (db m223742) HM
This is purported to be the second oldest house in Key West. Originally built as a two-room dwelling in 1834 by English merchant captain George Carey, who made his fortune in the wholesale liquor business, the home was enlarged in 1844 as a gift to . . . — — Map (db m222466) HM
Captain John Geiger arrived in Key West as a pilot for Commodore Porter's West Indies Squadron. Porter established the first naval base here in 1823. Captain Geiger remained in Key West after the navy moved to Pensacola. He was the first licensed . . . — — Map (db m222888) HM
Built by Captain Hellings, the manager of the International Ocean Telegraph Co. He married the daughter of William Curry, Florida's first millionaire. The Key West Woman's Club Purchased the home in 1940 and operated one half of the house as the . . . — — Map (db m224206) HM
Eddie "Bra" Saunders
Captain Eddie "Bra" Saunders took Hemingway to the Marquesas on his first fishing excursion in 1928. Bra gave Ernest his first lessons about deep-sea fishing in the Gulf Stream.
Charles Thompson
Charles Thomson . . . — — Map (db m246975) HM
This room was enclosed from the open sleeping porch about 1880. On an island where nothing went to waste, the panelling is recycled piano crate likely salvaged from a shipwreck at that time. After entering the room, look back over the doorway at the . . . — — Map (db m243925) HM
Carlos Manuel de Cespedes de Cespedes was the son of Carlos M. de Cespedes a lawyer and wealthy Cuban planter who first raised the cry of "Cuba Libre" at his home in Bavamo
Cuba on October 10, 1868. His father is known as the great Liberator and . . . — — Map (db m223681) HM
Built with bricks from Fort Taylor dating back to 1845, this building is one of Key West's first hotels. It featured a car dealership on the ground floor and hotel rooms on the upper two floors. Ernest Hemingway and his wife stayed here in 1928, and . . . — — Map (db m245852) HM
Key West got its name from a combination of cultures and languages. Early Spanish explorers named the island “Cayo Hueso” which translates in English as “Bone Island”. The Tiano of Cuba call a small island “cayo”. The English call it “cay” and the . . . — — Map (db m224197) HM
Charles Helberg, a successful Chicago realtor, first visited Key West for a fishing trip during World War I. During one of his many return trips he bought his first real estate in Key West, an abandoned cigar factory at the corner of Flagler Avenue . . . — — Map (db m223562) HM
Charley Toppino came to the United States shortly after the turn of the century. He served in the U.S. Army during WW I. He then worked in construction and stone cutting in New York and Virginia. Toppino returned to his hometown in Canale, Italy . . . — — Map (db m223758) HM
At it's peak in the 1890's, Key West had 200 cigar factories of all sizes and 2085 cigar rollers producing one hundred million hand rolled cigars a year. A skilled cigar roller could roll 300 cigars a day or nearly ninety thousand cigars a year. The . . . — — Map (db m245847) HM
In the middle of the night of January 13, 1861, three days after Florida had seceded from the Union, Capt. James M. Brannan, U.S. Army, marched his troops from their barracks on the northeastern side of the island to Fort Taylor on Key West's . . . — — Map (db m224146) HM WM
Following President Lincoln's order for a naval blockade of Confederate ports in 1861, the U.S. Navy established the East Gulf Blockading Squadron based at Fort Jefferson, Fort Taylor, and the port of Key West. The squadron's area of operations . . . — — Map (db m246010) HM
This monument represents two perspectives on how the Civil War affected the residents of Key West. The obelisk in the center of the memorial plot was erected by the Navy Club of Key West for the Union soldiers who lost their lives in Key West during . . . — — Map (db m85270) HM
After the USS Maine battleship was sunk in Havana, Cuba, in February 1898, the US military strengthened its operations in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean to protect strategically important shipping lanes. This concrete pad is all that . . . — — Map (db m225119) HM
Building #1 is the oldest brick structure in Key West. It was built by the U.S. Navy as a coal depot and storehouse. Navy servicemen coordinated refueling steamships at this location from 1856-1900. During the Civil War, the Union's West Indies . . . — — Map (db m223008) HM
In 1892, a hardware store was constructed to service the surrounding cigar and fishing industry. In 1914 Jack and Rosa Williams opened Jack's Saloon. The saloon was well situated to wet the whistle of sailors, fishermen, and workers. By 1923, the . . . — — Map (db m223374) HM
While serving in the Army during the Korean War, Coffee Butler performed for the troops. After his national service he played baseball professionally in Cuba and throughout the Caribbean until 1960.
Coffee gained recognition for sharing the . . . — — Map (db m243926) HM
Cold War
For the first time following a war, the military did not abandon Key West. As relations with the Soviet Union deteriorated, the Navy increased its shore-based and afloat organizations making Key West the largest anti-submarine . . . — — Map (db m224157) HM WM
(Front)
Dedicated to All Men and Women wounded in all our wars
My Stone is Red for
the Blood they Shed
the Medal I Bear
is My Country’s Way
to Show they Care
He who Sheds
Blood with Me
Shall forever be
My Brother . . . — — Map (db m224890) WM
David Porter went to sea in his youth with his father on merchant vessels. He entered the Navy in 1798 as a midshipman serving with distinction in the naval war with France and the war against the Tripoli pirates. He became a national hero during . . . — — Map (db m222905) HM
Built by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, a Canadian Order which first established a school here in 1868. Designed by William Kerr of Ireland, of Romanesque style, with dormered, mansard roofs and central tower. In the . . . — — Map (db m101297) HM
Here in Key West the separate cookhouse kept the heat away from the house and reduced the risk of fire. The cookhouse behind the Oldest House dates to approximately 1838 and is the last remaining original cookhouse in Key West. Emeline Watlington . . . — — Map (db m243923) HM
374 entries matched your criteria. The first 100 are listed above. Next 100 ⊳