It was from the tiny five-acre island of Pigeon Key that Henry Flagler saw the potential for the Florida Keys and opened the islands to the world with his Florida East Coast Railroad.
What was once called Flagler’s Folly has become Flagler’s Legend.
Today Pigeon Key and a few of the original structures used as the base camp and later for bridge maintenance survives as a museum, dedicated to the builders of the Key West Extension of the Florida East Coast Railroad. Maps, historic photos, models and a wonderful picture postcard collection of the Key West Extension can be found in the island’s museum.
Pigeon Key is reached by an intact section of the original bridge off of Knights Key, which now serves as a biking and hiking trail. Most of the original Seven Mile Bridge is still in existence. The abandoned railroad right of way was converted to form the base for the Overseas Highway to Key West. Later, a new highway bridge across the Seven Mile gap was built adjacent to the old railroad bridge.
Pigeon Key is situated 2.2 miles due west of Marathon in the Florida Keys. Located approximately 45 miles from Key West and 100 miles southwest of Miami, the island connects to Marathon via the Old Seven Mile Bridge built by Henry Flagler for his Florida East Coast Railway. Pigeon Key is operated by the Pigeon Key Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the history and environment of the Florida Keys through education and research.
So, please come to Marathon Florida Keys and take a ferry boat from the Pigeon Key Visitor’s Center to the historic Island, and step back in time to the way it used to be!
In February of each year, the Pigeon Key Art Festival takes place at Marathon Community Park.
Pigeon Key
Gift Shop and Ferry DepartureMM 47 Oceanside 1 Knights Key Boulevard
Marathon FL 33050
305-743-5999
