Talk:Florida Keys

Plagiarism in the "Major Islands" section
Sorry I don't have time to properly address this myself, I've gotta run to a final exam. The entire "Major Islands" section seems to be cut and pasted from About the Florida Keys. I noticed it first because it made the article read like a tourist's guide, then looked up the edits and found that part changed as well as that link added, followed the link and saw the plagiarism. If someone could remove the plagiarized text and clean it up, it would be appreciated. Thanks! —Preceding unsigned comment added by Bcherry (talk • contribs) 20:07, 20 March 2008 (UTC)

A map and some photographs would be nice... Anyone? 159.46.248.216 08:40, 6 Aug 2003 (UTC)

Key Biscayne is not a peninsula and not the home of Miami Beach. The only municipality on Key Biscayne is the Village of Key Biscayne. Please see my talk secion on Key Biscayne for further details.

Re: Key Biscayne is its own city - Agreed (I live in Miami-Dade County). Since nobody else has made the change I've gone ahead and done so. --65.3.137.171 03:12, 5 Apr 2005 (UTC)

FL KEYS: Hello. I came to get information regarding the Florida Keys. Nowhere does it say the total length from mainland to the end of the keys. This info would be nice (perhaps 'belongs'?) in an encyclopedia entry. Thanks. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.124.12.253 (talk • contribs) 18:34, 21 June 2006 (UTC)

In the same vein as that last point, "About 1700 islands" seems a little vague.D.C.Rigate (talk) 17:59, 22 July 2008 (UTC)

Labor Day Hurricane (1935)
Where does the information about "Flagler railroad workers" being killed in the hurricane come from? The sources I've read say that the many workers killed were WW I vets who were in the keys working on government mosquito control and road-building projects as a form of relief. The hurricane built from tropical storm strength to Category 5 intensity in only a day -- there was very little warning, so it's doubtful anybody had the time to decide that any group of workers wasn't allowed to evacuate. Late on the Monday that the storm hit, a train backed down the tracks from Homestead to evacuate the vets, but it was too late, and the train was washed off the tracks by the storm. Estimates place the number of vets killed at around 400, with perhaps 200 or more civilians also killed. A map of where bodies were found (and burned) was created and hangs in a historical museum in the Keys. DavidH 29 June 2005 17:12 (UTC)

Etymology of key
I have pulled the link to On the etymology of "keys" from the References section because it is quite likely wrong. Cay entered English from Spanish cayo (American English spells it key). Spanish apparantly acquired the word from the Taino language. The Tainos in the Bahamas called themselves Lukku-cairi, or island people, which became Lucaya. (Caton, Michael, 1986, A History of the Bahamas, San Salvador Press, Waterloo, Ontario. ISBN 0-9692568-0-9) --  Dalbury ( Talk )  22:11, 19 December 2005 (UTC)

Key Biscayne
This article says that, "Key Biscayne is not considered part of the Keys by some Floridians. It is, however, part of the same geological formation". The Key Biscayne article says, "It and nearby Virginia Key, while named keys, are not geologically part of the Florida keys". I'm having some difficulty reconciling these. Mark1 20:03, 21 January 2006 (UTC)
 * I knew I needed to get around to this. The best explanation I've found is at . Key Biscayne and places north are barrier islands, built up of sand. Starting with Elliott Key and extending down past Key West, the Florida Keys are exposed ancient reefs, coral formations that are now above sea level, with little sand. Some small islands to the north of Elliott Key, from Soldier Key down to Sands Key, are transitional keys. --  Dalbury ( Talk )  21:31, 21 January 2006 (UTC)

Upper/Middle/Low Keys
I've done some re-org of these Keys groups. Basically, most speak of the "Upper" and "Lower" Keys. The division between these two groups is Big Pine and West Summerland Key. All the keys from Big Pine (including No Name) on down to Key West are the Lower Keys. All the keys from West Summerland and northward are the Upper Keys. There is a geological division between the two groups. The upper keys are made of Key Largo Limestone and are the remains of a reef, the lower keys are made of Miami Oolite and are the remains of built up sedament. The idea of the 'middle keys' is more recent, and usually is used to refer to the area around Marathon and prehaps also Layton. --Emb021 19:33, 24 July 2006 (UTC)

No map???
There's no map in this article? Badagnani (talk) 01:16, 3 September 2008 (UTC)


 * Any map has to be free (public domain or released under a license at least as free as the GFDL). I've looked some, but haven't seen anything suitable. -- Donald Albury 12:04, 3 September 2008 (UTC)
 * I found and added some good maps from the NOAA. --Nricardo (talk) 17:37, 16 November 2008 (UTC)

I clarified the implication of having only a 2 lane highway...traffic. —Preceding unsigned comment added by KeithBeltham (talk • contribs) 06:53, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Wreckers removed navigational markers?
I have hidden a sentence in the section 'Early history' that said, "A legend says that wreckers removed navigational markers from shallow areas to strand unsuspecting captains ashore." Wrecking (shipwreck) covers the history of wrecking in the Keys. As all salvage from wrecked ships had to be taken into Admiralty Court, there are very good records of wrecks on the Florida Reef. I would note that the only navigational markers of interest to ships passing along the Keys were the lighthouses, and there is no historical record of wreckers removing lighthouses (although Confederate sympathizers removed the machinery from the Cape Florida Light in 1860, but that was to prevent it from being an aid to the Federal blockaders). The travel guide is just repeating a silly story that has no basis in history. -- Donald Albury 03:46, 23 December 2010 (UTC)

Are the Keys cays?
Are the Keys technically cays (also called keys)? Or at least something like cays? If so, it's worth a mention, and any etymological link noted.

I read above, but not sure if there's an authoritative answer... --Chriswaterguy talk 19:13, 22 October 2011 (UTC)

There appears to be some argument regarding Florida barrier islands vs. official "Florida Keys." The Florida Keys are in by definition all barrier islands. The Keys are generally consider the official name Florida Keys and only the ones which are located from Key Largo to Key West. Geologically this is not correct. These barrier islands start in the Dry Tortugas and extend to Fernandina Beach, Florida on the Georgia border. Amelia Island, is not considered or named a Key, but is a barrier island in the classic sense of the word. Historically speaking and by their name sake, "Key" Biscayne is the northern most Florida Key on the Florida east coast and Anclote "Key" not island is the northern most key on the west coast of Florida. "Key" comes from the Bahamian word "Cay" or a small island with no fresh water source. For example; Bahamian Islands such as Andros Island and Freeport Grand Bahama, are not called Cays or Keys. Remote, unattached, uninhabited barrier islands directly fronting on open bodies of water and located only in tropical latitudes, qualify as Cays or in the United States, term Keys applies i.e. Florida Keys. Unsettled argument — Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.32.190.183 (talk) 13:38, 9 August 2014 (UTC)

Middle-Upper divide
I'm finding conflicting information about this divide. Logic would dictate that the longest bridge, that from Conch Key to Long Key, is a psychological barrier, and the Florida DEP agrees (but note that it's the Lower-Upper divide). Lists such as also agree that the Middle Keys begin with Conch. --NE2 07:54, 3 April 2014 (UTC)

Drug smuggling
An IP removed a section here. I don't know if it should be readded. --NE2 04:14, 22 December 2014 (UTC)

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