The original Bahia Honda bridge was constructed as part of Henry Flagler's Florida East Coast Railway that transported passengers and freight from Miami to Key West from 1912-1935. In September of 1935 a killer hurricane devasted the Middle Keys. Over 400 people were killed when a rescue train was washed off its tracks by a 17 foot surge. Ernest Hemingway told gory details of the aftermath of the storm in a letter to his publisher that fall. The State of Florida acquired the right of way, and built what was to become US 1 highway right over the top of the old railway bridges, and ran a water line underneath to supply Key West with water. This narrow, rickety bridge went into service in 1938.
The old bridge was replaced by a new one in 1972. The new Bahia Honda Bridge has a span of a little over 5,000 feet, and crosses the deepest channel between any of the Keys.
The State of Florida has built a pier over the old roadbed that extends about 500 feet out from the western end of Bahia Honda. Our P.E. classes were frequently held on the pier, and it soon became a popular place to enjoy cool evening breezes and hold discussions that often became philosophical in nature.
