The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1938-04-12

| the steel rails SaIVaged Tor use as
guard rails.
Here the motorists is required
to place implicit confidence in the
reliability and engineering abil-
ity of those responsible for this
/ project-as the water below has
| the appearance of being very
deep and very wet 1t was COM
| pletion of this stretch of highway
that made possible elimination Of
use of ferry in reaching Key
West from Miami.
! "A few miles further along the
route is the Bahia Honda bridge.
more than a mile long, where the
roadway reaches an elevation of
( rs feet above the water-and on
which even ordinarily reckless
drivers are inclined to move
along cautiously For this piece of
roadway the entire steel super
structure of the old railroad
bridge was utilized, which &C
counts for the unusual height
reached.
Pouring concrete on this
bridge, and erection of guard
rails, marked the final steps be-
fore opening of the entire road TO
traffic.
much road improvement work
yet remains to be done-and 1t
will be July before the new high
way is formally dedicated--but,
in case you're down this way, you
can now drive your car all the
way to Key West. Our trip on
the overseas highway was just
few days before the Bahia Honda
bridge was finished.
''On Key Largo, just few rods
from the highway. is an attrac-
tive home built entirely of the
pink coral rock abundant in this
vicinity. The story of how this
house CHANGED TO be built is in
teresting. Around 1924 Chicago
dentist-Dr. George l.. Engel--
was in such poor health that he
was given up to die. He found this
spot on Key Largo-fronting on
the Atlantic. For something 10 do.
he started gathering coral rock
TO use as the foundation of a
home. Surprisingly. his health
began to improve and he con-
tinued work on the home, which
was finally completed and which
he and his family now occupy
Just to keep busy he adds little
something TO the house each year
or 10 Identification Of the sur
roundings. He seems to have
given up any idea of dying-and
his home. known as the rock
house. has become a show place
Of Key Largo.
Further along the route. on
Matecumbe key. has been erected
a fine coral rock memorial TO the
hundreds Of civilians and war
veterans who lost their lives
while at work on the keys during
the hurricane that devastated that
region on September 2, 1898
Even more ambitious than
completion Of the motor high
way 10 Key West is the ides
of William n, Porter. preSi
dent Of The First National
Bank in Key West. who wis
ions this as q link ia what
viii eventually be a msgnifi
cent Pan.AneTican highway
I4.oo0 miles long. stretching
from Maine 10 South Amer
ca. with ferries to handle
traffic aeroxs the ninety miles
Of wafer from Key West 70
Havana ard across the Yucca
tan channel thus bringing
New York and Busnos Aires
LOO miles closer tossshsF IS
against The route through La
redo. Texas. 10 Mexico City.
Federal interest in completion
Of the new rad - ky Wegt Is
beng interpreted IN some quart
ers as meaning thai This might
eventually become 81 important
military highway - the Psnama
canal II 1t least seems worth
noting thst improvements are -.
sng made ~ Key Vests old Fort
TayIor. which haS recently been
manned with modern coast de-
Tense guns and that IRE strstsEie
value q KEY West. - TIC sveat
81 war. Is not being dazregarde1
TIL e A CONTR p