| Overseas Highway | |
Overseas Highway highlighted in red | |
| Route information | |
| Maintained byFDOT | |
| Length | 106.5 mi[1][2] (171.4 km) |
| Existed | January 5, 1928 (1928-01-05)–present |
| Tourist routes | Florida Keys Scenic Highway |
| Major junctions | |
| South end | |
| Major intersections | |
| North end | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Florida |
| Counties | Monroe County |
| Highway system | |
TheOverseas Highway is a 113-mile (181.9 km)[1][2] highway carryingU.S. Route 1 (US 1) through theFlorida Keys toKey West. Large parts of it were built on the formerright-of-way of theOverseas Railroad, theKey West Extension of theFlorida East Coast Railway. Completed in 1912, the Overseas Railroad was heavily damaged and partially destroyed in the1935 Labor Day hurricane. The Florida East Coast Railway was financially unable to rebuild the destroyed sections, so the roadbed and remaining bridges were sold to the state ofFlorida for $640,000.
Since the 1950s, the Overseas Highway has been refurbished into a main coastal highway between the cities ofMiami andKey West,[3] offering travelers an exotic roadway through a tropical savanna environment and access to thelargest area of coral reefs on the U.S. mainland. Many exotic animals such as theAmerican alligator,American crocodile, andKey deer inhabit the tropical islands of the Florida Keys.

The Overseas Highway begins at aT intersection between US 1 andSR A1A, from which it heads east.[4] After crossing toStock Island and forming the boundary between theeponymous district and incorporated Key West, US 1 proceeds through unincorporated Monroe County onBoca Chica Key,[5] pastNaval Air Station Key West, andRockland Key, where the Overseas Highway drops down to a two-lane road. It then crossesEast Rockland Key,Big Coppitt Key (and itscongruous district),[6]Saddlebunch Keys,Sugarloaf Key,Park Key,Cudjoe Key (and itscongruous district),[7][8]Summerland Key,Ramrod Key,Middle Torch Key,Little Torch Key,Big Pine Key (and itscongruous district),[9][10]Scout Key, andSpanish Harbor Key. The highway expands to four lanes as it crosses theBahia Honda Bridge, then reduces to two lanes as it traversesBahia Honda Key,Ohio Key,Missouri Key, andLittle Duck Key. After Little Duck Key, US 1 entersKnights Key,Boot Key,Key Vaca, and the town ofMarathon[11] via theSeven Mile Bridge, thus leaving the lower Keys.[12][13]
US 1 runs through Marathon as a four-lane road. After Key Vaca, the road becomes two-lane once more and runs throughFat Deer Key, where it forms the northern boundary of the city ofKey Colony Beach.[14] It then continues wholly in Marathon throughLong Point Key,Crawl Key, andGrassy Key.[15] The road then crosses toLittle Conch Key and thenConch Key, both part of theDuck Keydistrict.[16][17] US 1 then crosses to and traversesLong Key, which is mostly unincorporated except for the city ofLayton, which the highway passes through.[18] The road then reachesCraig Key, and then the village ofIslamorada[18][19] includingLower Matecumbe Key,Tea Table Key,Upper Matecumbe Key, andWindley Key. US 1 crosses a drawbridge ontoPlantation Key, where it expands to four lanes and then leaves Islamorada as it crosses toKey Largo. Immediately the Overseas Highway entersTavernier,[20] where it temporarily splits into apair of one-way roads through thecommunity.[21] Soon, the road enters thecommunity of Key Largo,[20] which also features another pair of one-way roads.[22] At the northern end of the Key Largo district, about two-thirds of the way along the island, US 1 intersectsCounty Road 905 (CR 905), which offers an alternative route out of the Keys viaNorth Key Largo and theCard Sound Bridge. Signage approaching the intersection directs northbound motorists to take this alternative route if the lights on it are flashing. US 1 swings to the northwest, forms the southern boundary of North Key Largo,[23] and becomes a two-lane divided road after the intersection. After crossing theJewfish Creek Bridge (where it enters unincorporated Monroe County again) and traveling along Cross Key, US 1 crosses Manatee Creek, along with theMiami-Dade County boundary,[24] and reaches the mainland.[12][25][26][27]
TheFlorida Department of Transportation ("FDOT") maintainsmile marker signs in the Florida Keys portion of Monroe County along the Overseas Highway (U.S. Highway No. 1). Numbering commences at "0" in Key West, and increases towards the east until Islamorada where the direction changes to the northeast following the Overseas Highway to Key Largo at "106." Outside of the city of Key West and the city ofMarathon, street addresses[28] along the Overseas Highway in the Keys correspond to the mile markers. For example, the Tropical Research Laboratory ofMote Marine Laboratory has a physical address of 24244 Overseas Highway. The first two digits indicate that the Laboratory is located at Mile Marker 24 (corresponding to an address onSummerland Key). The next two digits indicate that it is about a quarter of a mile east of the Mile Marker 24 sign (MM 24.24), while the last digit, because it is an even number, indicates that it is located on the gulf side of the Overseas Highway (the term "gulf side" is used in the Middle and Lower Keys as the Overseas Highway runs east-west there; the term "bayside" is used in the Upper Keys where the Overseas Highway runs north-south. All of the Keys use the term "oceanside"):
Exceptions to this rule do exist, however. There are occasional addresses ending in even numbers on the oceanside and vice versa.

While the Overseas Highway today runs along the former Overseas Railroad right of way, portions of the highway came into existence earlier in a different alignment while the railroad was still operating. The concept of an Overseas Highway began with the Miami Motor Club in 1921. TheFlorida land boom of the 1920s was underway and the club wanted to attract tourists to easily reached fishing areas, which could only be reached by boat or train at the time. The land boom also attracted real estate interests who sought vehicular access to the upper keys where there were thousands of acres of undeveloped land. The completion of the railroad further proved a highway through the keys was feasible.[29]

Construction on the original Overseas Highway, designatedState Road 4A (an extension of a route running from Miami toHomestead), lasted through most of the mid 1920s. Officially opening for traffic on January 25, 1928, the original highway existed in two segments at its greatest extent. One segment ran from the mainland viaCard Sound Road toKey Largo and extended as far asLower Matecumbe Key, while a segment in the lower keys existed fromNo Name Key toKey West. An automobileferry service connected the 41-mile gap between Lower Matecumbe and No Name Keys.[29] State Road 4A mostly ran alongside of the Overseas Railroad in the upper keys but in the lower keys, it followed a much different path than the railroad and current highway. The ferry landing on No Name Key was located at the end of what is now Watson Boulevard, which carried State Road 4A across No Name Key and Big Pine Key before it crossed to Little Torch Key. On Little Torch Key, it turned south and rejoined the railroad. It would continue along the north side of the railroad to Upper Sugarloaf Key, where it turned south and ran along the southern shoreline ofLower Sugarloaf Key, theSaddlebunch Keys,Geiger Key, andBoca Chica Key. OnBoca Chica Key, it followed the shoreline south ofNaval Air Station Key West's airstrip to Boca Chica Beach before crossing to Stock Island. On Stock Island, it followed Maloney Avenue and MacDonald Avenue where it rejoined the Overseas Railroad heading into Key West. Most of the State Road 4A bridges in the Lower Keys were of wooden construction and had been in use since the early 1920s.
By the early 1930s, it was clear that the ferries were insufficient for the travel needs of the keys, and Monroe County and theState Road Department began making plans to connect the two portions of State Road 4A to make a continuous highway. In 1931, a 12 mile road was built just north of theOverseas Railroad through the community ofMarathon. This road was known asKey Vaca Road and ferry terminals were built at each end atGrassy Key and Hog Key. The completion of Key Vaca Road allowed the ferry route to be split into two shorter routes. The drive from Key West to the mainland was reduced by an hour after the addition of Key Vaca Road.[30] In 1933, the state legislature created the Overseas Road and Toll Bridge District to seek federal funding to extend and connect the roadways, though funding was scarce as the country was in theGreat Depression. Funding would eventually come through theFederal Emergency Relief Administration, a program established by PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt'sNew Deal. Hundreds of disgruntledWorld War I veterans seeking early payment of wartime pensions were employed for construction on the roadway and bridges as part of a government relief program.[29]
Construction on a bridge connecting Lower Matecumbe Key withLong Key was already underway when the Category 5Labor Day Hurricane struck Islamorada on September 2, 1935. The hurricane caused widespread damage throughout the area and destroyed much of the Overseas Railroad in the upper keys. Of the over 400 fatalities from the hurricane, more than half were veterans and their families. Their deaths caused anger and charges of mismanagement that led to a Congressional investigation.[31] Just west of Lower Matecumbe Key at Mile Marker 73 on the current highway, eight concrete bridge piers and a small dredged island are all that remains of the veterans' work. The dredged island is now known as Veteran's Key and the piers remain as a tribute to the veterans with a memorial plaque onCraig Key.[32]

After the hurricane, theFlorida East Coast Railway was financially unable to rebuild the damaged sections of the Overseas Railroad. Seizing a rare opportunity, the state abandoned its original plan for highway expansion and instead purchased the railroad's entire right of way south ofFlorida City and its remaining infrastructure for a price of $640,000. The Overseas Road and Toll Bridge District then made plans to build the highway on the old rail bed from Lower Matecumbe Key toBig Pine Key. The railroad's bridges, which withstood the hurricane and were in good condition, were retrofitted with new two-lane wide concrete surfaces for automobile use. In the case of theBahia Honda Rail Bridge, which was a truss bridge, the concrete road surface was built on top of the trusses. The conversion of the railroad bridges to automobile use was accomplished by Cleary Brothers Construction Co. of West Palm Beach.[33] This new stretch of highway would effectively connect the two segments of State Road 4A, with present-dayKey Deer Boulevard connecting the new highway on Big Pine Key to the original highway on the lower keys.[34]
The fully connected highway from the mainland to Key West was officially opened for traffic on March 29, 1938 and upon completion, the route became the southernmost segment ofU.S. Route 1, which previously terminated inMiami (State Road 4A would remain as a hidden designation until the1945 Florida State Road renumbering, when the hidden designation became State Road 5).[35] PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt toured the road in 1939.
Portions of the road weretolled until April 15, 1954;toll booths were located onBig Pine Key andLower Matecumbe Key.Pigeon Key, roughly the midway point of the Seven Mile Bridge, served as the headquarters for the "Overseas Road and Toll District."[36] The toll for automobiles was$1, plus 25 cents per passenger.[37]

When completed in 1938, the original highway segments were still in use in the upper and lower keys. As the United States entered intoWorld War II, theU.S. Navy sought improvements to the highway to improve their access from theNaval Air Station on Boca Chica Key to the mainland for national security purposes. The 1920s-era lower keys segment was less than ideal with its winding road and rickety wooden bridges. This resulted in relocating the rest of the highway on to the former railroad right of way in the upper and lower keys, which the state owned and was a more direct route with smoother curves that would allow for higher speeds. Also included in this project was the construction of the highway from Florida City to Key Largo on the old railroad route viaJewfish Creek. The new alignments would shorten the route from Key West to the mainland by 17 miles. The new alignments were officially completed on May 16, 1944, with Florida GovernorSpessard Holland presiding over ribbon-cutting ceremonies.[38]
After the completion of the realignments in 1944, the originalCard Sound Bridge was closed to traffic and its remains were subsequently destroyed by a fire (the Card Sound route would be restored as a secondary route in 1969 with the opening of the current bridge). Today, some segments of the original highway remain asfrontage roads for the current highway. In 1946, theState Road Department began removing some of the original highway's wooden bridges that paralleled the rebuilt highway. In the lower keys where the original road ran further south, many of the wooden bridges were left in service allowing some segments of the road to become side roads. However, the original bridges that connectedStock Island andBoca Chica Key, andGeiger Key to theSaddlebunch Keys were removed.[39][40] Portions of the original highway are nowBoca Chica Road and Geiger Road on Boca Chica and Geiger Keys.County Road 939A runs along the original road on theSaddlebunch Keys andSugarloaf Key, though some portions of the road are now hiking trails. Remnants of the wooden bridge at Tarpon Creek onUpper Sugarloaf Key still remain, which was destroyed by a fire in later years.[citation needed]


The original highway through Key Largo and Tavernier would once again become part of the Overseas Highway in the early 1970s when it was expanded to a four-lane divided highway. Here, the northbound lanes run along the route of the original highway and the southbound lanes along the route of the railroad, which is especially evident in area where the route splits into two one-way streets.[29] The widening was the beginning of a much larger project to rebuild much of the Overseas Highway, which included replacing the aging repurposed railroad bridges with more modern bridges; some of which are able to accommodate more than two lanes of traffic. This included theSeven Mile Bridge, theBahia Honda Bridge and theLong Key Bridge (although these three original bridges are no longer open to vehicular traffic, they became listed on theNational Register of Historic Places in 1979 and are currently used for fishing and pedestrian traffic). The more modern bridges were completed in the early 1980s.
In recent years, Pigeon Key was used by theUniversity of Miami as anoceanography laboratory, but current efforts to restore the buildings on the island have resulted in the establishment of a railroad museum there. The newer Seven Mile Bridge does not have direct access to Pigeon Key; people going there must bike or walk on 2.2 miles (3.5 km) of the Old Seven Mile Bridge from its eastern end onKnight's Key, take a shuttle bus, or take a boat to reach the island.
In 2001, theMonroe County Commission, theFlorida Department of Environmental Protection's Office of Greenways and Trails, and FDOT entered into aMemorandum of understanding to create theFlorida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail (FKOHT).[42] The trail will be a multi-use bicycle and pedestrian facility that will traverse the Florida Keys from Key Largo to Key West. Upon completion, the FKOHT will include an integrated system of educational kiosks, roadside picnic areas, scenic overlooks, fishing piers, water access points, and bicycle and jogging paths. The development of the trail will provide a mechanism for the preservation and use of the historic Flagler Railroad Bridges, 23 of which still exist and are mostly intact. Several alternatives exist for trail alignment, including cutting down the 22-foot-wide (6.7 m), 1940s-era roadway to its original 12-foot (3.7 m) spandrel width, or using the 22-foot-wide (6.7 m) roadway as is, particularly in multi-use areas. In all cases, original bridgework will be repaired or rebuilt, and the breaks created during the 1980s and 1990s fishing pier conversion will be reconnected. Where the original roadway no longer exists, the trail will be temporarilycantilevered on the side of the current US 1 highway bridge, until new 12-foot-wide (3.7 m) trail bridge sections can be built. The new sections will be built to match the historical character of the original bridges.
One of animated television'sWacky Races wasThe Overseas Hi-Way Race, which first aired on December 28, 1968, onCBS, covering the entire actual route from Key Largo to Key West. WhileLong Key was correctly portrayed, most of the other in-between keys were given fictional names, andSombrero Key was actually five miles south of the highway in open water, according to theFlorida Keys–East map.
The Overseas Highway is depicted in a screenprint by American artistRalston Crawford.[43]
Superboy features the bridge in the season 1 opening credits. ActorJohn Haymes Newton is shown flying around the bridge.[44]
An action scene involving a car and fighter jet was filmed on a portion of the old Seven Mile Bridge for the 1994James Cameron filmTrue Lies. No part of the bridge was destroyed during filming; an 80-foot model of the bridge built off Sugarloaf Key was blown up instead.[45]
Mileposts are taken from US 1, which begins approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) south at an intersection with Whitehead and Fleming streets inKey West. The entire route is inMonroe County.
| Location | mi[46] | km | Destinations | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Key West | 3.927 | 6.320 | US 1 continues south | ||
| 4.100– 4.169 | 6.598– 6.709 | Bridge overCow Key Channel trail on sidewalk to north | |||
| Stock Island | 4.586 | 7.380 | MacDonald Drive | FormerSR 4A | |
| | 5.291 | 8.515 | Key Haven Boulevard | ToRaccoon Key | |
| | 5.997– 6.498 | 9.651– 10.458 | Bridge overBoca Chica Channel | ||
| Boca Chica Key | 8.08 | 13.00 | Naval Air Station Key West | Interchange | |
| Rockland Key | 8.790 | 14.146 | Toppino Industrial Drive | ||
| East Rockland Key | 9.183 | 14.779 | Rockland Drive –NAS Truck Entrance | Former US 1 south | |
| | 9.508– 9.754 | 15.302– 15.698 | Bridge overRockland Channel (trail on old bridge to south) | ||
| Big Coppitt Key | 10.691 | 17.205 | Northern terminus of CR 941 (former SR 941) | ||
| | 11.181 | 17.994 | Shark Key | ||
| | 11.309– 11.701 | 18.200– 18.831 | Bridge overShark Channel (trail on old bridge to the south) | ||
| Saddle Bunch Keys | 12.547– 12.712 | 20.192– 20.458 | Bridge overSaddle Bunch No. 5 (trail on old bridge to the south) | ||
| 13.018– 13.185 | 20.950– 21.219 | Bridge overSaddle Bunch No. 4 (trail on old bridge to the south) | |||
| 14.118– 14.259 | 22.721– 22.948 | Bridge overSaddle Bunch No. 3 (trail on old bridge to the south) | |||
| 14.328 | 23.059 | Blue Water Drive | |||
| 14.496– 14.616 | 23.329– 23.522 | Bridge overSaddle Bunch No. 2 (trail on old bridge to the south) | |||
| 14.968 | 24.089 | East Circle Drive | |||
| 15.261– 15.504 | 24.560– 24.951 | Bridge overLower Sugarloaf Channel (trail on old bridge to the south) | |||
| | 16.370– 16.455 | 26.345– 26.482 | Bridge overHarris Channel | ||
| Lower Sugarloaf Key | 16.955 | 27.286 | Northern terminus of CR 939 (former SR 939) | ||
| | 17.451– 17.472 | 28.085– 28.118 | Bridge overHarris Gap Channel | ||
| | 17.658– 17.741 | 28.418– 28.551 | Bridge overNorth Harris Channel | ||
| | 18.600– 18.755 | 29.934– 30.183 | Bridge overPark Channel (trail on old bridge to the south) | ||
| Sugarloaf Key | 19.349 | 31.139 | Crane Boulevard | ||
| 19.970 | 32.139 | Old SR 4A; northern terminus of CR 939 (former SR 939) | |||
| | 20.150– 20.433 | 32.428– 32.884 | Bridge overBow Channel (trail on old bridge to the south) | ||
| Cudjoe Key | 21.409 | 34.454 | Blimp Road | ||
| | 23.471– 23.682 | 37.773– 38.112 | Bridge overKemp's Channel (partial old bridge to the south) | ||
| Summerland Key | 25.197 | 40.551 | |||
| | 25.413– 26.278 | 40.898– 42.290 | Bridge overNile's Channel (partial old bridge to the south) | ||
| Ramrod Key | 27.264 | 43.877 | Indies Road | ||
| | 27.504– 27.629 | 44.263– 44.465 | Bridge overTorch Ramrod Channel | ||
| Middle Torch Key | 27.836 | 44.798 | Middle Torch Road –Big Torch Key | ||
| | 27.895– 28.052 | 44.893– 45.145 | Bridge overTorch Key Channel | ||
| Little Torch Key | 28.216 | 45.409 | State Road 4A | Former SR 4A | |
| | 28.625– 28.801 | 46.067– 46.351 | Bridge overSouth Pine Channel (partial old bridge to the south) | ||
| | 29.411– 29.552 | 47.332– 47.559 | Bridge overNorth Pine Channel | ||
| Big Pine Key | 30.527 | 49.128 | Southern terminus of CR 940 (former SR 940) | ||
| | 33.130– 33.791 | 53.318– 54.381 | Bridge overSpanish Harbor Channel | ||
| | 35.272– 36.544 | 56.765– 58.812 | Bahia Honda Bridge overBahia Honda Channel (partial old bridge to the south) | ||
| Bahia Honda Key | 36.794 | 59.214 | Bahia Honda State Park | ||
| | 38.361– 38.571 | 61.736– 62.074 | Bridge overOhio Bahia Honda Channel (trail on old bridge to the north) | ||
| Ohio Key | 38.75 | 62.36 | no major intersections | ||
| | 38.896– 39.176 | 62.597– 63.048 | Bridge overMissouri Ohio Channel (trail on old bridge to the north) | ||
| | 39.448– 39.620 | 63.485– 63.762 | Bridge overLittle Duck Missouri Channel (trail on old bridge to the north) | ||
| Little Duck Key | 39.823 | 64.089 | Veterans Memorial Park | ||
| | 40.011– 46.804 | 64.391– 75.324 | Seven Mile Bridge overMoser Channel (partial old bridge viaPigeon Key to the north) | ||
| Marathon | 47.186 | 75.939 | Knights Key | ||
| Marathon (Vaca Key) | 48.059 | 77.343 | Southern terminus of CR 931 (former SR 931) | ||
| 49.965 | 80.411 | Northern terminus of CR 931 (former SR 931) | |||
| Marathon | 53.001– 53.081 | 85.297– 85.426 | Bridge overVaca Cut trail on sidewalk to north | ||
| Marathon (Fat Deer Key) | 53.610 | 86.277 | Sadowski Causeway –Key Colony Beach | ||
| Marathon (Long Point Key) | 56.191 | 90.431 | Curry Hammock State Park | ||
| Marathon (Crawl Key) | 56.459 | 90.862 | Banana Boulevard | ||
| Marathon (Grassy Key) | 57.594 | 92.689 | Kyle Avenue | ||
| | 60.498– 60.786 | 97.362– 97.826 | Bridge overTom's Harbor No. 4 (trail on old bridge to the south) | ||
| Duck Key | 61.051 | 98.252 | Hawks Cay | ||
| | 61.418– 61.680 | 98.843– 99.264 | Bridge overTom's Harbor Cut (trail on old bridge to the south) | ||
| Conch Key | 62.846 | 101.141 | North Conch Avenue | ||
| | 63.140– 65.446 | 101.614– 105.325 | Long Key Bridge overLong Key Channel (trail on old bridge to the south) | ||
| Long Key | 67.404 | 108.476 | Long Key State Park | ||
| | 70.735– 71.670 | 113.837– 115.342 | Bridge overChannel No. 5 (partial old bridge to the north) | ||
| Craig Key | 72 | 116 | no major intersections | ||
| Islamorada | 72.642– 73.000 | 116.906– 117.482 | Bridge overChannel No. 2 (trail on old bridge to the north) | ||
| Islamorada (Lower Matecumbe Key) | 74.403 | 119.740 | Gulfview Drive | ||
| Islamorada | 77.531– 77.703 | 124.774– 125.051 | Bridge overLignumvitae Channel | ||
| 77.966– 78.353 | 125.474– 126.097 | Bridge overIndian Key Channel | |||
| 79.177– 79.318 | 127.423– 127.650 | Bridge overTea Table Channel | |||
| 79.708– 79.761 | 128.278– 128.363 | Bridge overTea Table Relief | |||
| Islamorada (Upper Matecumbe Key) | 80.425 | 129.431 | Frontage Road | Former SR 4A | |
| 83.509 | 134.395 | Frontage Road | Former SR 4A | ||
| Islamorada | 83.879– 84.001 | 134.990– 135.187 | Bridge overWhale Harbor Channel | ||
| Islamorada | 85.578– 85.739 | 137.724– 137.984 | Snake Creek Bridge overSnake Creek | ||
| Islamorada (Plantation Key) | 90.513 | 145.667 | Plantation Avenue / Sunshine Boulevard / Bessie Road | ||
| | 90.895– 90.955 | 146.281– 146.378 | Bridge overTavernier Creek Waterway | ||
| Tavernier | 91.485 | 147.231 | Ocean Boulevard | ||
| Key Largo | 103.430– 103.454 | 166.454– 166.493 | Bridge overMarvin D. Adams Waterway | ||
| 106.312 | 171.093 | Old SR 4A; Southern terminus of CR 905 (former SR 905) | |||
| | 112.865 | 181.639 | Monroe–Miami-Dade county line; US 1 continues north to mainland Florida | ||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
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