Lignumvitae Key is an island in the upper

Florida Keys The Florida Keys are a coral cay archipelago located off the southern coast of Florida, forming the southernmost part of the continental United States. They begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami, and e ...

. It is located due north of, and less than one mile from the easternmost tip of

Lower Matecumbe Key Lower Matecumbe Key is an island in the upper Florida Keys, United States, located on U.S. 1 between mile markers 75–78. All of the key is within the Village of Islamorada as of November 4, 1997, when it was incorporated. It is home to the ma ...

. The island has the Keys' highest point above sea level of , which beats the island of

Key West Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it cons ...

's Solares Hill by . This dark green island is covered in rare tropical hardwoods such as the island's namesake, Holywood Lignum-vitae (''

Guaiacum sanctum ''Guaiacum sanctum'', commonly known as holywood, lignum vitae or holywood lignum-vitae, is a species of flowering plant in the creosote bush family, Zygophyllaceae. It is native to tropical America, from Mexico through Central America, Florida, ...

'').

History

Records of the ownership of Lignumvitae Key go back to 1843, including the years of 1919-1953 when the Matheson family of

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

owned the island. The island was purchased by Dr. Edwin C. Lunsford, Sr. and two other investors in 1953. Charlotte and Russell Neidhauk lived on the island and served as caretakers during this period. The

coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...

bedrock house they lived in still stands today. On March 2, 1971, Lignum Vitae and nearby Shell Keys were purchased by the State of Florida, and Lignum Vitae became Lignumvitae Key State Botanical Park. The key is called Cayo de la Leña (Spanish for "Firewood Key") on an unsigned Spanish chart of 1760.

References

External links

History of the Key
Hills of Florida Islands of Monroe County, Florida Islands of the Florida Keys Islands of Florida {{monroeCountyFL-geo-stub