Key Largo

Key Largo is connected to the mainland of Miami-Dade County by two routes, the Overseas Highway (the southernmost portion of U.S. Highway 1, which enters Key Largo at Jewfish Creek near the middle of the island before turning southwest) and Card Sound Road, which connects to the northern end of Key Largo and runs southeastward, connecting with County Road 905, which runs southwest and joins U.S. 1 around mile marker 106. These routes originate at Florida City on the mainland.

Key Largo, a popular destination for many, has been dubbed the "Diving Capital of the World", as the living coral reefs, a few miles offshore, attract thousands of scuba divers, sport-fishing enthusiasts, and scientific researchers each year.

Key Largo's proximity to the Everglades also makes it an ideal starting point for scientists, kayakers, and ecotourists, among others. Automotive and highway pioneer (and Miami Beach developer) Carl G. Fisher built the Caribbean Club in 1938 as his last project.

Key Largo is situated between Everglades National Park to the northwest and John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, the first underwater park in the United States, to the east. The latter state park protects part of the Florida Reef, the only living coral barrier reef in the continental United States. Barrier reefs are critical to coastal communities and environments, as they are able to dissipate up to 97% of the oceanic wave forces exerted during hurricanes and other tropical storms, with the reef serving as a protective buffer against flooding further inland. The barrier reef itself provides over $675 million in storm surge protection annually.

History

When Europeans first arrived in the Florida Keys in the 16th century, the area was uninhabited or only sparsely inhabited by indigenous peoples such as the Calusa and the Tequesta. The earliest description of the area and its inhabitants was by Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda, a survivor of a shipwreck, who lived among the Calusa people from 1549 to 1566. The earliest reference to Key Largo is found on a map prepared in 1639 by Dutch cartographer Johannes Vingboons, on which it is named Caio des 12 Leguas (islet of 12 leagues). Some time later, it was named Cayo Largo — meaning long islet — by Spanish explorers.

In 1770, Dutch surveyor Bernard Romans reported that the area was uninhabited, although evidence was found that indigenous people visited the area from time to time. By the end of the Third Seminole War in 1858, the area was under the control of the United States government, though it remained largely uninhabited. In 1870, a post office was established at "Cayo Largo" (in the current Rock Harbor area). It closed and another was opened called "Largo" in 1881. Additional post offices opened in Planter in 1891 and Aiken in 1895.

The island gained fame as the setting for the 1948 film Key Largo, but apart from background filming used for establishing shots, the film was shot on a Warner Bros. sound stage in Hollywood. After the film's success, pressure from local businesses resulted in a change in the name of the post office serving the northern part of the island, from "Rock Harbor" to "Key Largo", on June 1, 1952. After that, every resident north of Tavernier had a Key Largo address and the postmark read "Key Largo".