Points of Reference
Southernmost Point in America
At Whitehead and South Streets
While this concrete monument proclaims that your at the Southernmost Point in the continental US, you're actually not; the true point is in the U.S. Naval Reservation just to the west. But it's a popular place to snap a picture to prove that you visited Key West. Here, you're closer to Cuba than you are to Miami.
Fort Zachary Taylor State Park
End of Southard Street on Truman Annex
(305) 292-6713
The 87-acre Fort Zachary Taylor State Park is a National Landmark, and contains picnic areas with food concessions and a sand and coral rock beach. The fort was constructed beginning in 1845, and was used to project American military power into the Caribbean region. It was held by Union forces during the Civil War, providing a check on Confederate shipping. Guided tours of of the fort are offered daily.
Historic Seaport District
Grinnell Street
A short 4 block walk from Mallory Square will take you to the Historic Seaport District, which provides a glimpse into old Key West. Here you'll find shops, bars and restaurants that are housed in nicely restored buildings. Depending on when your ship departs, it's also a nice place to have a drink and watch the sunset.
Key West Cemetery
701 Passover Lane
(305) 292-8177
Spending an hour or two at the Key West Cemetery can be an interesting diversion. While you can take a guided tour, we also provide a map of the cemetery for those who want to explore it on their own. The map is courtesy of KeyWestTravelGuide.com.
Hemingway Homes in Key West
Casa Antigua
314 Simonton Street
(305) 292-9955
In 1919, Benjamin Trevor and George Morris built the Trev-Mor Hotel, which featured lodgings on the second floor, while the island's first car dealership, Trev-Mor Ford, occupied the ground floor.
In April 1928, Ernest Hemingway and his second wife Pauline Pfeiffer arrived in Key West aboard the steamship Orita. They were returning from France, via Havana, and had made arrangements to pick up a new Ford roadster purchased by Pauline's uncle for the couple. The car had yet to be delivered, so they checked into the Trev-Mor Hotel to await its arrival.
In the seven weeks it took for the car to arrive, Hemingway fell in love with Key West. Legend has it that he wrote A Farewell to Arms during his stay.
Hardware store owner Charles Thompson introduced him to deep-sea fishing. Among the group who went fishing was Joe Russell (also known as Sloppy Joe). Russell was reportedly the model for Freddy in Hemingway's To Have and Have Not. Portions of the original manuscript were found at Sloppy Joe's Bar after his death.
Due to this exposure to Key West, Hemingway decided to make the town his home, and he moved back in 1931. Key West would remain his home until he moved to Havana in 1939.
Since Hemingway's day, the building has been used for a variety of purposes, and in 1975 the interior was heavily damaged by fire. It has been lovingly restored by the Worth family. The three-story building, now known as Casa Antigua, is home to the Pelican Poop Shoppe and a lush tropical garden.
Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum
907 Whitehead Street
(305) 294-1136
The Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum, a National Historic Landmark, was purchased in 1931 as a wedding present for Hemingway and his wife Pauline Pfeiffer by her wealthy uncle Gus. Legend has it that the couple installed a swimming pool that in the 1930s cost over $20,000 (equivalent to $250,000 in today's money). Distressed by the price, Hemingway is said to have put a penny in the concrete, saying, "Here, take the last penny I've got!" The penny is still there.
During the 8 years he was based in Key West, he wrote or worked on Death in the Afternoon, For Whom the Bell Tolls, The Snows of Kilimanjaro and The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber. He used Depression-era Key West as the locale for To Have and Have Not--his only novel set in the United States.
Pauline and Hemingway divorced in 1939; she remained in Key West, while he moved to Havana. They visited only occasionally when he would sail to Key West from Havana.
The six- or seven-toed polydactyl cats that descended from Hemingway's original pet Snowball still live on the grounds, and are cared for at the Hemingway House.
Guided tours are offered daily.
Museums
Audubon House and Tropical Gardens
205 Whitehead Street
(305) 294-2116
The building now known as the Audubon House was built in 1846 for the family home of Captain John Geiger, Key West's first Harbor pilot. His fortune had been made as a wrecking master, salvaging ships that foundered on the treacherous reefs.
The home is an elegant example of American Classic Revival architecture, and was once the residence of the famous ornithologist John James Audubon. Audubon visited the Florida Keys and Dry Tortugas in 1832, and left Key West having sighted and drawn 18 new birds for his "Birds of America" folio. It is believed that many of those drawings were conceived in the Audubon House garden. Also, Audubon's painting of the white-crowned pigeon features the Geiger tree found in the front yard of the house.
The house contains 28 first edition works by Audubon, and is furnished with antiques purchased from estate sales and auctions in Europe.
The Audubon House Gallery, separate from the main house, features a unique collection of 19th century original Audubon art and a comprehensive selection of John James Audubon's images.
A wonderful, lush one acre garden with a brick pathway offers views of orchids, bromeliads and other tropical foliage, lily pools, an herb garden and 1840-style nursery.
Heritage House Museum and Robert Frost Cottage
410 Caroline Street
(305) 296-3573
The Key West Heritage House Museum and Robert Frost Cottage was built in the 1830s in Caribbean Colonial house style. It is owned by the notable Porter family, who have lived on the island for seven generations.
Jessie Porter, fifth generation conch and daughter of the town's banker, acquired the derelict building in the 1930s, and began an extensive renovation. Today, the museum contains six generations of grand furnishings and Key West artifacts.
Over time the Heritage House and its gardens became the epicenter of Key West society. Miss Jessie's gatherings of the famous and infamous were legendary. The Heritage House was the gathering place for some of the island's most famous celebrities, including Robert Frost, Tennessee Williams, Thornton Wilder, Gloria Swanson and Sally Rand.
The poet Robert Frost was an old friend of Miss Jessie and spent sixteen winters staying in her garden cottage; the cottage now bears his name. Visitors can sit in the same flowering tropical garden (where writers and artists continue to meet) and listen to recordings of Frost reading his poetry.
Curry Mansion Museum
511 Caroline Street
(305) 294-5349
The three-story Victorian-era Curry Mansion is built on the site of the original 1855 homestead of Florida's first millionaire, William Curry. Curry was a penniless Bahamian immigrant who made his fortune as a salvager. For unknown reasons, the construction took decades and was not completed in his lifetime. Curry's son Milton finally completed the construction in 1899, and the antique furniture in the building is original to the house.
The architectural details of the house are common to wreckers, incorporating elements of many ports-of-call: the widow's walk of New England, the ornate trellises and balustrades of New Orleans and the columns and colonnades of the Deep South.
Inside the home you'll find 20 beautifully proportioned high-ceiling rooms. The mansion offers an excellent historic example of "elegant Key West" style.
According to legend, the first key lime pie was made in the Curry Mansion's kitchen by a servant known as Aunt Sally.
Key West Lighthouse & Keeper's Quarters Museum
938 Whitehead Street
(305) 295-6616
The Key West Lighthouse was built in 1847, and decommissioned in 1969. Intrepid tourists can ascend the tower's 88 steps to the top, where you'll enjoy a great view of the town and surroundings. In the Lightkeeper's quarters, you will find an interesting collection of lighthouse artifacts, if you're into that sort of thing.
Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Museum
200 Greene Street
(305) 294-2633
The late treasure hunter and Key West resident Mel Fisher created the Maritime Museum to showcase his extensive collection of artifacts from 17th century shipwrecks, and for educational purposes. The museum provides interesting insights into the history of Spanish galleons in the Caribbean.
Pirate Soul Museum
524 Front Street
(305) 292-1113
Established in 2005, the Pirate Soul Museum is one of the newest attractions in Key West. Pat Croce, health and inform fitness guru, one-time part owner of the Philadelphia 76ers and avowed pirate fanatic established the museum to educate, inform and entertain the world about the 17th and 18th century pirates of the Caribbean.
Croce began collecting authentic pirate-related artifacts with his purchase of the 1684 first-edition copy of Exquemelin's Bucaniers of America. But the piece de resistance of his collection, acquired at a Christie's auction, is the world's only treasure chest with provenance to a pirate, Captain Thomas Tew (1694).
Croce continued collecting rare and wonderful piratical artifacts, and one day began discussing the possibility of sharing his priceless treasures with the world. He partnered with his daughter Kelly and hired Gallagher & Associates (Holocaust Museum, International Spy Museum) to help design his dream attraction--Pirate Soul. He developed a strategic relationship with both the North Carolina Maritime Museum (for the loan of pieces from their Blackbeard collection) and with the Delaware Art Museum (for their Howard Pyle pirate paintings). With the help of other pirate collectors, including Sir Robert Marx and Peter Tobia, who made their rare collections available for display, the museum was born.
The museum's 48 individual exhibit areas are outfitted to display the largest and most authentic collection of pirate artifacts ever displayed under one roof.
Harry S Truman Little White House
111 Front Street
(305) 294-9911
The Truman Little White House was originally built in 1890 as a two-family dwelling for the commandant and paymaster of the Key West Naval Station, which was attached to the Army's Fort Zachary Taylor. During the Spanish American War of 1898, the building served as command headquarters for the US Navy.
In 1911, the house was converted into a single-family residence to house the base commandant.
The building's most famous resident was President Harry Truman. During the 8 years of his administration, Truman spent 11 working vacations in Key West, beginning in November 1946. Truman saw Key West as the perfect island winter getaway, and spent a total of 175 days at his Winter White House, which the press dubbed "Truman's Little White House." Truman enjoyed morning walks along the beach, and, as an avid fisherman, would try to make some time to angle in Key West's waters as often as he could.
The building has had its share of other notable residents and visitors:
- In 1918, inventor Thomas Edison lived here for six months while inventing 41 new weapons for the war effort.
- President Dwight Eisenhower used the house for meetings in December 1955, and in January 1956 while he recovered from a heart attack.
- President John F. Kennedy used the building for a summit meeting with British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan on March 26, 1961, just three weeks before the Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba.
Between 1957 and 1969, Truman made five return visits to Key West. While he stayed in a private residence in town, he always made time to visit his former quarters.
The Navy base was renamed the Truman Annex in 1973, following Truman's death in the prior December. The Little White House was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places in February 1974 by the U.S. Department of the Interior. On March 31, 1974, this portion of the base closed.
The Truman Annex, including the Little White House, was sold in 1986 by the U.S. government to Pritam Singh, a developer from Maine. In January 1987, Mr. Singh transferred this property to the State of Florida in exchange for certain easements and development rights to the adjacent property. Over the next several years, Mr. Singh, along with several benefactors, privately funded the restoration of the building and the grounds.
Fort East Martello Museum & Gardens
3501 South Roosevelt Boulevard
(305) 296-3913
History buffs will enjoy a visit to the Fort East Martello Museum & Gardens, which is housed within the eight-foot thick walls of the East Martello Battery. The museum provides insights into Key West's military history, beginning just before the Civil War up to the 1980's. The museum also displays Robert, the creepy-looking haunted doll (see the Otto Mansion, in the Haunted Houses section below).
Flagler Station
901 Caroline Street
(305) 295-3562
Henry Flagler played an important role in the history of Key West, having built the Florida East Coast Railroad from Miami into Key West. The Flagler Station museum contains a collection of photographs and artifacts presented in a railroad car of the period. The museum also presents historic railway films and other railway-related mementos from the early 20th century.
Wrecker's Museum at the Oldest House
322 Duval Street
(305) 294-9501
Located in the oldest house in Key West (built in 1829), the Wrecker's Museum was the home of Capt. Francis B. Watlington, a prominent wrecker of his day. Here you'll find ship models, period documents and maritime artifacts.
Key West Shipwreck Historeum Museum
1 Whitehead Street
(305) 292-8990
Step back into time as you discover Key West's unique maritime heritage and how it became the richest city in the United States. The Key West Shipwreck Historeum combines actors, films and the actual artifacts from the 1985 rediscovery of the wrecked vessel Isaac Allerton, which sank in 1856 on the treacherous Florida Keys reef.
Turtle Kraals Museum
200 Margaret Street
(305) 294-0209
Located in the Historic Seaport District on the site of the city's first turtle cannery, the Turtle Kraals Museum is the world's only museum dedicated to the sea turtle. Here you'll learn the history of Key West's turtle canning industry and the fate of the sea turtle in the Caribbean.
Activities
Key West Aquarium
1 Whitehead Street
(800) 868-7482
In 1934, the Key West Aquarium was dedicated as Key West's first tourist attraction. Still going strong 75 years later, the Aquarium offers guided tours, a fish touch tank and other activities for the young and young at heart.
Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory
1316 Duval Street
(305) 296-2988
The Key West Butterfly and Nature Conservatory offers visitors the opportunity to walk through an exotic and inviting environment filled with hundreds of butterflies and birds in a unique tropical setting.
Ripley's Believe It or Not Key West Odditorium
108 Duval Street
(305) 293-9939
Ripley's Believe It or Not! was the brainchild of Robert Ripley, a writer, cartoonist and amateur anthropologist who brought outrageous-but-true facts to the attention of the American public in cartoon panels, books and radio shows, beginning in 1929. Ripley, a promoter extraordinaire, traveled the world in search of bizarre artifacts and photos. In 1936, he was voted the most popular man in America by his newspaper readers. He died in 1949 while filming the 13th episode of his Ripley's Believe It or Not! television show.
Today, the Ripley trademark is owned by Ripley Entertainment, Inc., a division of the Jim Pattison Group, a global company whose museums and "Odditoriums" attract more than 12 million guests every year. The company, based in Orlando, Florida, owns the Ripley collection of over 20,000 photographs, 20,000 artifacts and more than 130,000 cartoon panels. Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditoriums can be found around the world.
Ripley first displayed his collection to the public at the Chicago World's Fair in 1933. Christened Ripley's Odditorium, the exhibit attracted over two million visitors during the run of the fair; beds were provided in the Odditorium for people who "fainted" daily. That success led to trailer shows across the country during the 1930s, and Ripley's collections were exhibited at many major fairs and expositions, including San Francisco, San Diego, Dallas and Cleveland. In New York, the famed Times Square exhibit opened in 1939 on Broadway. In 1950, a year after Ripley's death, the first permanent Odditorium opened in St. Augustine, Florida, his erstwhile home.
The company's Key West Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditorium is worth a visit.
Florida Keys Eco-Discovery Center
35 East Quay Road
(305) 292-0311
This free attraction, located at the Truman Annex Waterfront, offers insights into the ecosystem of the Florida Keys. Features touch screen exhibits, photos and a theater.
Dry Tortugas National Park & Seaplanes of Key West
Key West International Airport
(305) 294-0709 or (800) 950-2359
While you've only got about 8 hours in Key West, you can still see America's most inaccessible National Park, the Dry Tortugas National Park, which features seven small but beautiful islands. Seaplanes of Key West can take you to the park in less than 30 minutes. You'll leave Key West International Airport for the 70 mile journey, and make a water landing in the park. Upon arrival, you'll have time to explore the park, do some snorkeling, swimming or bird watching. You can also take a self-guided tour through historic Fort Jefferson, built in the 19th century, and which was used as a military prison during the Civil War.
The Southernmost Scavenger Hunt
(305) 292-9994
The Southernmost Scavenger Hunt offers a unique, fun and exciting way to explore Key West. Participants are able to enjoy all the sights and sounds that make the "Southernmost City" such an unforgettable destination.
Haunted Houses
The Otto Mansion
414 Simonton Street
One of the creepier ghost stories of Key West concerns a doll owned by a local artist, Gene Otto. When he was 4 years old, Otto received the doll as a gift, legend has it, from a local Bahamian girl. He named the doll Robert, and from that day until his death, Otto believed the doll to be possessed; he often blamed Robert for the many misfortunes that plagued his life.
Just who was the girl that gave the doll to Otto? Many believe she was the daughter of ill-treated servants of the Otto family. It has been speculated that the source of the doll's "evil powers" is a crystal sewn into the doll, or perhaps Robert was actually a voodoo doll that projected evil spirits.
Otto, who grew up in a house on Eaton Street (now a bed-and-breakfast), became almost inseparable from the doll. Otto eventually built an attic bedroom for Robert, who would reportedly sit in the windowsill and wave at neighborhood children.
After Otto died in 1974, his wife Anne rented the house with the stipulation that Robert should always remain in his attic lair. The doll, dressed in a white sailor suit, remained in the attic for several years. Soon thereafter, neighbors began to complain about hearing an "evil giggle" coming from the attic.
When the house was sold, Robert was removed and placed on display in the East Martello Museum. (Robert is a pretty creepy looking doll; people say he resemble everything from Michael Jackson to Curious George.) Nonetheless, a ghostly presence remained in the house, this time as the ghost of Gene Otto's wife, Anne, who stands guard against the return of Robert's evil spirit.
Marrero's Guest Mansion
410 Fleming Street
This ornate Victorian mansion was built in 1889 by Francisco Marrero, a wealthy cigar maker, for his wife-to-be, Henrichetta. He had hoped that the attractions of the home would entice her to marry him and move from Europe to Florida.
She agreed to his proposal, married him, and they moved into their new home in Key West. They enjoyed a happy life together, and over the years had eight children.
On a return trip to Cuba Francisco met a mysterious end, and Henrichetta was left a widow. As she tried to cope with her loss, she was shocked to learn that Francisco had a wife in Cuba. This woman traveled to Key West and laid claim to Henrichetta's home.
A court eventually supported her claim, and the distraught Henrichetta was evicted. She found herself and her children homeless. Before she left her home, however, she promised that the mansion would always be her home and she would never leave it. It seems that she never has, as her ghost is seen frequently roaming about the house.
La Concha Hotel/Crowne Plaza La Concha
430 Duval Street
The La Concha Hotel is believed to be haunted by a man who lost his life in the hotel after falling into an empty elevator shaft. Hotel guests frequently report having someone tap them on the shoulder, but when they turn to see who tapped them, they find no one there.
Despite the fact that La Concha was approved as a Holiday Inn franchise, this lurking spirit has proved to be an enduring nuisance to guests.
Dolphins
Wild About Dolphins
Oceanside Marina
5950 Peninsular Avenue
(305) 294-5026
If you've ever wanted to see dolphins in their natural habitat, Wild About Dolphins can take you there. You will snorkel in the area's coral reefs, seeing dolphins and other marine life. This tour is also great for birders. A breakfast or lunch is also provided on this tour.
Captain Seaweed Charters
5130 Overseas Highway
Stock Island
(305) 872-7588
Captain Seaweed Charters is the home of the popular Island Eco tour, where you can see dolphins swimming in the clear waters of Key West. The tours include an exploration of the uninhabited Florida Keys mangrove islands, a dolphin encounter in the wild, and a chance for you to go swimming and snorkeling in the clear waters where the wild dolphins swim.
Watersports
A1 Snuba of Key West
1107 Key Place
(305) 292-4616
Snuba is a unique undersea adventure, and A1 Snuba of Key West enables you and your family to explore the undersea world of Key West's waters in a trip that will be sure to be memorable.
Island Water Sports
245 Front Street
(305) 296-1754
Island Water Sports offers guided jet ski tours on Seadoo personal watercraft. You may spot dolphins, manatees, stingrays, sea turtles and other marine life. Tours last from 1 to 2 hours.
White Knuckle Thrill Boat Ride
5130 Overseas Highway
(305) 797-0459
Get your adrenaline up and your mojo working again as you take 360° spins and speed through the waters surrounding Key West on the exhilarating jet-powered White Knuckle Thrill Boat. After your first ride, you'll want another!
Subtropic Dive Center
1605 North Roosevelt Boulevard
(305) 296-9914 or (800) 853-3483
Whatever your experience level, the Subtropic Dive Center has something fantastic for you. For novices, Scuba instruction is provided. For experienced divers, the Dive Center offers trips to Key West's little known deep reefs for some fantastic drift dives.
Golf
Key West Golf Club
6450 East College Road
(305) 294-5232
The newly-renovated Key West Golf Club offers a Rees Jones-designed 18-hole, 6,500-yard course that will challenge players of all skill levels.
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