The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1946-12-03

3 O'CLOCK at the nome VI MI >,
Ted Canova, 3400 Avenue E.
Pigeon Key, little pocket-hand-
kerchief palm-studded isle with a
few tourist cottages, access to
which being attained by a steep
ramp for convenience of visiting
motorists.
Leaving Bahia Honda, one en-
counters one of the big thrills OF
/ the trip. The old railroad bridge
originally connecting this island
with Big Pine Key, and over
which the highway is routed, con-
sisted of several high trussed
spans, too narrow for the high
way and too lengthy to split, as
was done with the short bridge
at Lower Matecumbe. Engineers
solved the problem by routing
the highway over the top of the
bridge truSSes and now the pass
ing motorist rides for some dist
ance at a height of SIS feet above
the water with a wide eXpanSe OF
open sea on both sides.
Big Pine Key, the only island
on which native pine trees were
noted, was at one time terminus
of the ferry road running north
from Key West which was built
by the county commissioners OF
Monroe County after abandon
ment of the Overseas Railway
in a frantic attempt to keep the
Island City in close touch with
the mainland. From here at reg
ular intervals piled large ferry
boats transporting motor vehicles
to and from Lower Matecumbe
until completion of this gap in
the Overseas Highway.
Though theoretically for more
than a century part and parcel OF
this great country and at one time
county seat Of the mainland area
now known as Lee County, the
isolated city of Key West never
physically joined the United
States until completion of the
Overseas Railway. The wreckage
and abandonment of the railway
was a great blow to the city, and
as before stated, the Monroe
| County commissioners made a
frantic effort to restore cOmmun-
| ication by the construction of that
ferry road to Big Pine Key. 1t
was an heroic job involving more
than forty miles of harrow road
with hairpin turns and long
wooden bridges, but it served the
purpose until final completion of
the Overseas Highway.
One Dollar Toll
On Big Pine Key is the lower
toll station, at which point fee
of one dollar is collected from
northbound traffic. Farther on
at the right is noted the detour
leading to the old ferry road, now
abandoned. This island is very
large, but there is little develop
ment observed from the main
highway. From here on south
ward the islands come thick and
fast,-a regular bunch of keys.
With many you are no sooner on
one than you see the bridge ahead
leading to the next. Only on lit
tie inlets adjacent to the highway
do you see any signs of develop
ment, except that in several in
stances some plethoric WOuld-b
Robinson Crusoe has seized upon
an adjacent islet, built him a
causeWay thereto and mansion,
there living in isolated grandeur,
monarch of all he surveys.
In the next five intervening
islands there is practically no de
velopment, being almost as wild
as nature made them, but on en-
tering Boca Chica, some eight
miles north of Key West, a VERT
able little city looms ahead. 1t is
the coast guard base with it's
scores of buildings, large and
small, spread out over many acres,
scores of seaplanes lined up on
the beach and two gigantic fish"
(blimps) at their moorings Sen
tries patrol the highway frontage