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VILLAGE OF KEY BISCAYNE Beach & Bay Loops: Round-the-Island |
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VILLAGE OF KEY BISCAYNE Beach & Bay Loops: Round-the-Island |
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Established 1908 |
| The largest coconut plantation in the continental U.S. occupied the northern two-thirds of the island. Owned and operated by the W.J. Matheson family, the self-sufficient community revolved around the big plantation barn that stood 80 feet east of the marked site. The barn housed mules, wagons, and farm tools, and later trucks, farm equipment and a machine shop. Before mechanization windmills pumped well water to the tall water tower. Between the ocean and present-day Crandon Boulevard, superintendents and workers, including gardeners, farm hands, bee keepers, and work boat captains lived in frame cottages east of the barn. |
Example of what the coconut plantations looked like almost 100 years ago. |
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