115-595: Punta Rassa is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Lee County, Florida , United States. The population was 1,620 at the 2020 census , down from 1,750 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . Punta Rassa is located in southwestern Lee County at 26°31′N 82°0′W / 26.517°N 82.000°W / 26.517; -82.000 (26.5104, -81.9988), at
230-662: A census-designated place (CDP). A CDP is an area defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. It is a populated area that generally includes one officially designated but currently unincorporated community for which the CDP is named, plus surrounding inhabited countryside of varying dimensions, and occasionally other smaller unincorporated communities as well. Otherwise, it has no legal status. The Census Bureau designates some unincorporated areas as "unorganized territories", as defined by
345-424: A county island is surrounded on most or all sides by municipalities. In areas of sparse population, the majority of the land in any given state may be unincorporated. Some states, including North Carolina , grant extraterritorial jurisdiction to cities and towns (but rarely villages) so that they may control zoning for a limited distance into adjacent unincorporated areas, often as a precursor (and sometimes as
460-597: A local services board in Ontario. In New Brunswick, where a significant population lives in a local service district , taxation and services may come directly from the province. The entire area of the Czech Republic is divided into municipalities ; the only exceptions are four military training areas . These are parts of the regions and do not form self-governing municipalities, but are rather governed by military offices ( újezdní úřad ), which are subordinate to
575-456: A "place or area with clustered or scattered buildings, and a permanent human population (city, settlement, town, village)." No legal boundaries exist, although a corresponding "civil" record may occur, the boundaries of which may or may not match the perceived populated place. Some nations have some exceptional unincorporated areas: Many countries, especially those with many centuries of history with multiple tiers of local government, do not use
690-524: A U.S. businessman John W. Simonton, during a meeting in a Havana café on January 19, 1822, for the equivalent of $ 2,000 in pesos in 1821. Geddes tried in vain to secure his rights to the property before Simonton who, with the aid of some influential friends in Washington, was able to gain clear title to the island. Simonton had wide-ranging business interests in Mobile, Alabama . He bought the island because
805-627: A council of their own, usually an Ortsvorsteher or Ortsvorsteherin (village chairman / chairwoman) is appointed by the municipal council, except in the very smallest villages. In 2000, the number of unincorporated areas in Germany, called gemeindefreie Gebiete (municipality-free areas) or singular gemeindefreies Gebiet , was 295 with a total area of 4,890 km (1,890 sq mi) and around 1.4% of its territory. However, these are mostly unpopulated areas such as forests, lakes and their surroundings, military training areas, and
920-499: A descriptive name, followed by the designation "unorganized territory". Unorganized territories were first used for statistical purposes in conjunction with the 1960 census. At the 2000 census there were 305 of these territories within the United States. Their total land area was 85,392 square miles (221,165 km ) and they had a total population of 247,331. South Dakota had the most unorganized territories, 102, as well as
1035-453: A few other unique cases, almost all of Australia is part of an LGA. Unincorporated areas are often in remote locations, cover vast areas, or have very small populations. Postal addresses in unincorporated areas, as in other parts of Australia, normally use the suburb or locality names gazetted by the relevant state or territorial government. Thus, any ambiguity regarding addresses rarely exists in unincorporated areas. In Canada, depending on
1150-469: A form of direct democracy, such as the open town meeting or representative town meeting . Larger towns in New England may be incorporated as cities, with some form of mayor-council government. In New Jersey, multiple types exist, as well, such as city , township , town , borough , or village , but these differences are in the structure of the legislative branches, not in the powers or functions of
1265-532: A friend, John Whitehead, had drawn his attention to the opportunities presented by the island's strategic location. John Whitehead had been stranded in Key West after a shipwreck in 1819 and he had been impressed by the potential offered by the deep harbor of the island. The island was indeed considered the " Gibraltar of the West" because of its strategic location on the 90-mile (140 km)–wide deep shipping lane,
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#17327823383451380-503: A great sport fishing area and was frequented by the wealthy, who came in search of the prized tarpon sport fish. Soon, however, visitors relocated to Boca Grande , 70 miles (110 km) north of Punta Rassa by land after the Charlotte Harbor and Northern Railway was completed to that destination. Although the distance seems great, these areas are only separated by approximately 25 miles (40 km) of water. A railroad line
1495-587: A landfill at Trumbo Point for his railyards. The 1919 Florida Keys hurricane caused catastrophic damage to the area. On December 25, 1921, Manuel Cabeza was lynched by members of the Ku Klux Klan for living with a black woman. Pan American Airlines was founded in Key West, originally to fly visitors to Havana, in 1926. The airline contracted with the United States Postal Service in 1927 to deliver mail to and from Cuba and
1610-466: A legal requirement) to later annexation of those areas. This is especially useful in rural counties that have no zoning at all, or only spot zoning for unincorporated communities. In California, all counties except the City and County of San Francisco have unincorporated areas. Even in highly populated counties, the unincorporated portions may contain a large number of inhabitants. In Los Angeles County ,
1725-455: A part of an incorporated place, changes to another incorporated place, or disincorporates. For example, places in Kingwood, Texas , previously unincorporated, retained "Kingwood, TX" mailing addresses after the 1996 annexation of Kingwood into the city of Houston . The Houston city government stated on its website, "The U.S. Postal Service establishes ZIP codes and mailing addresses to maximize
1840-524: A place name is "acceptable" in a mailing address or not, as is the case with Lithia Springs, Georgia . ZIP Code boundaries often ignore political boundaries, so the appearance of a place name in a mailing address alone does not indicate whether the place is incorporated or unincorporated. Unincorporated areas with permanent populations in the United States are defined by the United States Geological Survey as "populated places",
1955-478: A population between 100 and 1,000 residents may have the status of designated place in Canadian census data. In some provinces, large tracts of undeveloped wilderness or rural country are unorganized areas that fall directly under the provincial jurisdiction. Some unincorporated settlements in such unorganized areas may have some types of municipal services provided to them by a quasigovernmental agency such as
2070-588: A shark cage. The earliest Key West neighborhoods, on the western part of the island, are broadly known as Old Town . The Key West Historic District includes the major tourist destinations of the island, including Mallory Square , Duval Street, the Truman Annex , and Fort Zachary Taylor . Old Town is where the classic bungalows and guest mansions are found. Bahama Village , southwest of Whitehead Street, features houses, churches, and sites related to its Afro-Bahamian history. The Meadows , lying northeast of
2185-463: A total land area of 4.2 square miles (11 km ). Within Florida, it is 130 miles (210 km) southwest of Miami by air, about 165 miles (266 km) by road. Key West is approximately 95 miles (153 km) north of Cuba at their closest points, and 106 miles (171 km) north-northeast of Havana . The city of Key West is the county seat of Monroe County , which includes a majority of
2300-836: Is 1.1 miles (1.8 km) in length in its 14-block-long crossing from the Gulf of Mexico to the Straits of Florida and the Atlantic Ocean. Key West is the southern terminus of U.S. Route 1 – the longest north–south road in the United States, as well as State Road A1A , the East Coast Greenway and, before 1935, the Florida East Coast Railway . Key West is a port of call for passenger cruise ships . The Key West International Airport provides airline service. Naval Air Station Key West
2415-422: Is a small group of islands that forms the easternmost part of Denmark. This small archipelago lies 20 kilometers northeast of Bornholm and is the only part of metropolitan Denmark which is not part of a municipality. The islands have been under military jurisdiction since 1685 when Denmark turned Christiansø into a naval base to in response to Sweden creating Karlskrona naval base a few years earlier. In 1926,
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#17327823383452530-404: Is an important year-round training site for naval aviation due to the tropical weather, which is also the reason Key West was chosen as the site of President Harry S. Truman 's Winter White House . The central business district is located along Duval Street and includes much of the northwestern corner of the island. At various times before the 19th century, people who were related or subject to
2645-666: Is not governed by a local municipal corporation . There are many unincorporated communities and areas in the United States and Canada. In Argentina, the provinces of Chubut , Córdoba , Entre Ríos , Formosa , Neuquén , Río Negro , San Luis , Santa Cruz , Santiago del Estero , Tierra del Fuego , and Tucumán have areas that are outside any municipality or commune. Unlike many other countries, Australia has only one level of local government immediately beneath state and territorial governments. A local government area (LGA) often contains several towns and even entire metropolitan areas. Thus, aside from very sparsely populated areas and
2760-736: Is now Summerlin Road, terminating just east of Punta Rassa at Truckland. Due to their financial state, the Seaboard Air Line Railroad discontinued all operations in the Fort Myers area in 1952. Despite never fully reaching Punta Rassa, the abandoned line is still referred to as Seaboard's Punta Rassa Branch. An FPL transmission line currently sits on a portion of the Punta Rassa Branch's former right of way just south of Summerlin Road. The area figured prominently in
2875-511: Is one of the most populated places in Georgia but is served by a branch of the Atlanta post office. Only after the city was incorporated in 2005 was "Sandy Springs" approved for use in mailing addresses, though "Atlanta" remains the default name. Accordingly, "Atlanta" is the only accepted place name for mailing addresses in the nearby unincorporated town of Vinings , also served by a branch of
2990-402: Is said that the island was littered with the remains (bones) of prior native inhabitants, who used the isle as a communal graveyard. This island was the westernmost Key with a reliable supply of water. Between 1763, when Great Britain took control of Florida from Spain, and 1821, when the United States took possession of Florida from Spain, there were few or no permanent inhabitants anywhere in
3105-588: Is subdivided into 393 municipalities which are further classified, normally by population, as city , local council , or regional council . All three types of municipality provide services including zoning and planning. However, a few unincorporated areas exist, whether because of omissions and ambiguities left in official maps dating from the British Mandate for Palestine , or due to deliberate policy of ensuring facilities of national importance, such as Ben Gurion Airport , Mikveh Israel boarding school, or
3220-546: Is the Longyearbyen Community Council in Svalbard, which since 2004 in reality acts partly like a Norwegian municipality. Svalbard has a governor appointed by the government of Norway, ruling the area. Jan Mayen has no population, only radio and weather stations with staff, whose manager has the responsibility for the activities. Bouvet Island has only occasional visitors. In local government in
3335-552: Is the main street in Key West and is 1.1 miles (1.8 km) in length in its 14-block-long crossing from the Gulf of Mexico to the Straits of Florida and the Atlantic Ocean. Key West is closer to Havana (about 106 miles or 171 kilometers by air or sea) than it is to Miami (130 miles or 210 kilometers by air or 165 miles or 266 kilometers by road). Key West is the usual endpoint for marathon swims from Cuba, including Diana Nyad 's 2013 swim and Susie Maroney 's 1997 swim from within
3450-541: The BAZAN Group oil refineries, would not have their operation affected by local considerations. The largest unincorporated area in Israel is the so-called "Reservation area", a triangular region whose vertexes are Beersheba , Dimona and Arad , in which all Negev Bedouins were concentrated in the 1950s. As no municipal services are provided within unincorporated areas, this effectively makes all Bedouin settlements in
3565-723: The Caloosahatchee River to a site named Fort Harvie. Fort Harvie was abandoned in 1842. After a white trader was killed by Seminoles on the Peace River in 1849, the Army returned to the Caloosahatchee River in 1850. The new Fort Myers was built on the burned ruins of Fort Harvie. Fort Dulany was reopened during the Third Seminole War, in 1856, and then closed again in 1858. Southwest Florida
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3680-521: The Calusa and the Tequesta inhabited Key West. The last Native American residents of Key West were Calusa refugees who were taken to Cuba when Florida was transferred from Spain to Great Britain in 1763. Cayo Hueso ( Spanish pronunciation: [ˈkaʝo ˈweso] ) is the original Spanish name for the island of Key West. It literally means "bone cay", cay referring to a low island or reef. It
3795-532: The Dry Tortugas , served after the Civil War as the prison for Samuel A. Mudd , convicted of conspiracy for setting the broken leg of John Wilkes Booth , the assassin of President Abraham Lincoln . In the 19th century, major industries included wrecking , fishing , turtling , and salt manufacturing. From 1830 to 1861, Key West was a major center of U.S. salt production, harvesting the commodity from
3910-599: The Ministry of Defence . Note: The Brdy Military Area was abandoned by the Army in 2015 and converted into a protected landscape area , with its area being incorporated either into existing municipalities or into newly established municipalities based on the existing settlements. The other four military training areas were reduced in size in 2015 too. The decisions on whether the settlements joined existing municipalities or formed new ones were made by plebiscites. Ertholmene ,
4025-756: The Openbaar Lichaam Zuidelijke IJsselmeerpolders (Southern IJsselmeerpolders Public Body). In 1984, the Landdrost became the first mayor of the new city Almere. Since that date, the Netherlands does not have any unincorporated land areas. The Openbaar Lichaam remained, however, only governing the water body of the Markermeer . After the municipal division of the Wadden Sea (1985), the territorial waters in
4140-622: The Southernmost House and the Fogarty Mansion , built by the children of William Curry—his daughter Florida and son Charles, respectively. In addition to architecture, Old Town includes the Key West Cemetery , founded in 1847, containing above-ground tombs, notable epitaphs, and a plot where some of the dead from the 1898 explosion of USS Maine are buried. The Casa Marina area takes its name from
4255-672: The Spanish governor of Cuba in Havana deeded the island of Key West to Juan Pablo Salas, an officer of the Royal Spanish Navy Artillery posted in Saint Augustine, Florida . After Florida was transferred to the United States in 1821, Salas was so eager to sell the island that he sold it twice – first for a sloop valued at $ 575 to a General John Geddes , a former governor of South Carolina , and then to
4370-627: The Straits of Florida , between the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico . On March 25, 1822, Lt. Commander Matthew C. Perry sailed the schooner USS Shark to Key West and planted the U.S. flag, claiming the Keys as United States property. No protests were made over the American claim on Key West, so the Florida Keys became the de facto property of the United States. After claiming
4485-410: The Straits of Florida . The island is about 4 miles (6 km) long and 1 mile (2 km) wide, with a total land area of 4.2 square miles (10.9 km ; 2,688.0 acres). The average elevation above sea level is about 8 feet (2.4 m) and the maximum elevation is about 18 feet (5.5 m), within a 1-acre (0-hectare) area known as Solares Hill . The city of Key West is the southernmost city in
4600-665: The United States Postal Service (USPS) (indeed, some have their own post offices), and the Census Bureau uses the names of some widely recognized unincorporated communities for its CDPs for which it tabulates census data. In some instances, unincorporated areas have a mailing address indicating the name of an incorporated city, as well as those where residents of one incorporated city have mailing addresses indicating another incorporated city. Mailing addresses do not necessarily change whether an area becomes
4715-696: The White Street Gallery District , is exclusively residential. Many of the structures in Old Town date from 1886 to 1912. The basic features that distinguish the local architecture include wood-frame construction of one- to two-and-a-half-story structures set on foundation piers about three feet (one meter) above the ground. Exterior characteristics of the buildings are peaked metal roofs, horizontal wood siding, gingerbread trim , pastel shades of paint, side-hinged louvered shutters, covered porches (or balconies, galleries, or verandas) along
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4830-501: The contiguous United States , and the island is the westernmost island connected by highway in the Florida Keys . The city boundaries include the island of Key West and several nearby islands, as well as the section of Stock Island north of U.S. Route 1 , on the adjacent key to the east. The total land area of the city is 5.6 square miles (15 km ), with an additional 1.6 square miles (4.1 km ) of surrounding water within
4945-650: The northeastern states . All of the land in New Jersey , Connecticut , Massachusetts , New York , and Rhode Island , and nearly all of the land in New Hampshire , Pennsylvania , and Vermont , is part of an incorporated area of some type. In these areas, types (and official names) of local government entities can vary. In New England (which includes five of those eight states, plus the less fully incorporated state of Maine ), local municipalities are known as towns or cities, and most towns are administered by
5060-558: The 1830s, Key West was the richest city per capita in the United States. In 1846, the city suffered severely from the 1846 Havana hurricane . In 1852 the first Catholic Church, St. Mary's Star-Of-The-Sea, was built. The year 1864 became a landmark for the church in South Florida when five Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary arrived from Montreal, Canada, and established the first Catholic school in South Florida. At
5175-532: The 1860s and 1870s), many Cubans sought refuge in Key West. Several cigar factories relocated to the city from Cuba, and Key West quickly became a major producer of cigars. The Great Fire of Key West , on April 1, 1886, started at a coffee shop next to the San Carlos Institute and spread out of control, destroyed 18 cigar factories and 614 houses and government warehouses. Some factory owners chose not to rebuild and instead moved their operations to
5290-572: The 1984 historical novel A Land Remembered , by Patrick D. Smith . As of the census of 2000, there were 1,731 people, 1,015 households, and 481 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 734.8 inhabitants per square mile (283.7/km). There were 1,372 housing units at an average density of 582.4 per square mile (224.9/km). The racial makeup of the CDP was 99.25% White , 0.35% African American , 0.12% Native American , 0.17% Asian , 0.06% from other races , and 0.06% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.23% of
5405-682: The Atlanta post office, even though Vinings is in Cobb County and Atlanta is in Fulton and DeKalb counties. In contrast, neighboring Mableton has not been incorporated in nearly a century, but has its own post office and thus "Mableton" is the only acceptable place name for mailing addresses in the town. The areas of Dulah and Faria , California, which are unincorporated areas in Ventura County between Ventura and Carpinteria , have
5520-527: The British and Spanish periods no nation exercised de facto control. The Bahamians apparently set up camps in the Keys that were occupied for months at a time, and there were rumors of permanent settlements in the Keys by 1806 or 1807, but the locations are not known. Fishermen from New England started visiting the Keys after the end of the War of 1812 , and may have briefly settled on Key Vaca in 1818. In 1815,
5635-403: The CDP was $ 44,583, and the median income for a family was $ 66,912. Males had a median income of $ 73,333 versus $ 19,583 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $ 39,048. None of the families and 1.9% of the population was living below the poverty line , including no under eighteens and 1.3% of those over 64. Unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that
5750-650: The Civil War. Another landmark built by the federal government is the Key West Lighthouse , now a museum. Two of the most notable buildings in Old Town , occupied by prominent 20th-century residents, are the Ernest Hemingway House , where the writer lived from 1931 to 1939, and the Harry S. Truman Little White House , where the president spent 175 days of his time in office. Additionally,
5865-510: The Conch Republic Independence Celebration—including parades and parties—is celebrated annually, on April 23. In 1998, Hurricane Georges damaged the city. In 2017, Hurricane Irma caused substantial damage with wind and flooding, killing three people. Key West is an island located at 24°33′55″N 81°46′33″W / 24.565176°N 81.775794°W / 24.565176; -81.775794 in
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#17327823383455980-471: The Florida Keys and part of the Everglades . The total land area of the city is 5.6 square miles (14.5 km ). The population within the city limits was 26,444 at the 2020 census . The official city motto is "One Human Family". Key West is the southernmost city in the contiguous United States and the westernmost island connected by highway in the Florida Keys . Duval Street , its main street,
6095-758: The Florida Keys for the United States, Perry renamed Cayo Hueso (Key West) to Thompson's Island for Secretary of the Navy Smith Thompson , and the harbor Port Rodgers in honor of War of 1812 hero and President of the Navy Supervisors Board John Rodgers . In 1823, Commodore David Porter of the United States Navy West Indies Anti- Pirate Squadron took charge of Key West, which he ruled as military dictator under martial law . The United States Navy gave Porter
6210-512: The Florida Keys. Cubans and Bahamians regularly visited the Keys, the Cubans primarily to fish, while the Bahamians fished, caught turtles, cut hardwood timber, and salvaged wrecks. Smugglers and privateers also used the Keys for concealment. In 1766 the British governor of East Florida recommended that a post be set up on Key West to improve control of the area, but nothing came of it. During both
6325-482: The Georgia border, to Punta Rassa. Water was a problem; too much during the wet season, not enough in the dry season. In the dry season, the cowboys might have to rope alligators to pull them out of water holes so that the cattle could safely drink. The International Ocean Telegraph Company controlled the wharf that had been part of Fort Dulaney, and for many years, charged 15 cents a head for cattle loaded on ships from
6440-561: The Lee county seat . Punta Rassa is bordered to the east by the unincorporated community of Iona . According to the United States Census Bureau , the Punta Rassa CDP has a total area of 4.5 square miles (11.6 km), of which 2.4 square miles (6.2 km) are land and 2.1 square miles (5.4 km), or 46.55%, are water. The location was named Punta Rasca (Spanish for "smooth or flat point" and later corrupted to "Punta Rassa") by
6555-633: The Navy investigation into the blast occurred at the Key West Customs House. In October 1909, Key West was devastated by the 1909 Florida Keys hurricane . Further damage was suffered the following year in the 1910 Cuba hurricane . Key West was relatively isolated until 1912, when it was connected to the Florida mainland via the Overseas Railway extension of Henry M. Flagler 's Florida East Coast Railway (FEC). Flagler created
6670-578: The North Sea (1991) and the IJsselmeer (1994), all water bodies are now also part of a municipality and no unincorporated areas exist in the Netherlands anymore. The Openbaar Lichaam Zuidelijke IJsselmeerpolders was dissolved in 1996. The New Zealand outlying islands are offshore island groups that are part of New Zealand. The Chatham Islands is the only island group among these that are populated and it has its own territorial authority . Most of
6785-433: The Spanish Conquistadors in the mid-16th century, who unloaded cattle in the area. By the middle of the 18th century, fishermen from Cuba had established permanent fishing stations, called ranchos , along the southwest Florida coast from Tampa Bay to San Carlos Bay . The Spanish Cubans would stay in Florida from September until March drying and salting fish caught along the coast to supply Havana . Indians living in
6900-482: The U.S. Census Bureau where portions of counties are not included in any legally established minor civil division (MCD) or independent incorporated place. These occur in 10 MCD states: Arkansas , Indiana , Iowa , Louisiana , Maine , Minnesota , North Carolina , North Dakota , Ohio , and South Dakota . The census recognizes such separate pieces of territory as one or more separate county subdivisions for statistical purposes. It assigns each unorganized territory
7015-496: The United States , an unincorporated area generally refers to the part of a county that is outside any municipality. An unincorporated community is one general term for a geographic area having a common social identity without municipal organization or official political designation (i.e., incorporation as a city or town). The two main types of unincorporated communities are: Most states have granted some form of home rule , so that county commissions (or boards or councils) have
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#17327823383457130-443: The United States by Congress. Currently, the five major unincorporated U.S. insular areas are American Samoa , Guam , the Northern Mariana Islands , Puerto Rico , and the U.S. Virgin Islands . Unincorporated insular areas can be ceded to another nation or be granted independence. The U.S. has one incorporated insular area, Palmyra Atoll . Incorporation is regarded as perpetual by the U.S. federal government; once incorporated,
7245-434: The United States. The mail route was known as the Key West, Florida – Havana Mail Route . The Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 destroyed much of the Overseas Railway and killed hundreds of residents, including around 400 World War I veterans who were living in camps and working on federal road and mosquito-control projects in the Middle Keys. The FEC could not afford to restore the railroad. The U.S. government then rebuilt
7360-484: The ZIP Code of 93001, which is assigned to the post office at 675 E. Santa Clara St. in Ventura; thus, all mail to those two areas is addressed to Ventura. If an unincorporated area becomes incorporated, it may be split among ZIP Codes, and its new name may be recognized as acceptable for use with some or all of them in mailing addresses, as has been the case in Johns Creek and Milton, Georgia . If an incorporated area disincorporates, though, this has no effect on whether
7475-456: The area unrecognized , with the sole exception of those that were included from 2003 within the Abu Basma Regional Council . On 5 November 2012 that council was split into two new councils, Neve Midbar Regional Council and al-Kasom Regional Council . The Netherlands has had regular periods with unincorporated land when newly reclaimed land polders fall dry. Unincorporated land is since medieval times administered by an appointed officer with
7590-442: The area, possibly Calusa at first, and later Seminole , worked seasonally at the ranchos , staying on in the area during the off-season. Dr. Benjamin Strobel visited a rancho at Punta Rassa in 1833, where he found ten or so wood-framed houses. "Ponte Rasa" was named as a "rancho" in an 1835 letter from William Buner (presumably William Bunce) to Wiley Thompson . Between 1835 and 1842, and again between 1855 and 1858, Punta Rassa
7705-402: The average family size was 2.09. In the CDP, the age distribution of the population shows 1.5% under the age of 18, 0.5% from 18 to 24, 2.8% from 25 to 44, 12.8% from 45 to 64, and 82.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 80 years. For every 100 females, there were 63.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 64.3 males. The median income for a household in
7820-439: The building above storm surges. At the end of the Civil War, the U.S. military withdrew from the area. In 1866, the newly formed International Ocean Telegraph Company (IOTC) received from the U.S. government, the state of Florida and the government of Spain the exclusive right to operate an underseas telegraph cable between Florida and Cuba. In 1867, the IOTC constructed a telegraph line from Lake City , where it connected with
7935-565: The cattle shipments to Cuba were made out of Punta Rassa starting in 1869, and by 1872, 18,000 out of a little more than 21,000 cattle shipped from Florida to Cuba went through Punta Rassa. Most cattle drives in Florida were relatively small and short. Three or four hundred steers would be driven by three to five cowboys for 100 miles (160 km) or so from the open range of central Florida to Punta Rassa. A few cattle drives were larger, up to 1,500 cattle moved by ten or so cowboys. The longest drives were 300 miles (480 km), from Fernandina , by
8050-429: The city limits. Sigsbee Park —originally known as Dredgers Key—and Fleming Key , both located to the north, and Sunset Key located to the west are all included in the city boundaries. Both Fleming Key and Sigsbee Park are part of Naval Air Station Key West and are inaccessible to the general public. In the late 1950s, many of the large salt ponds on the eastern side of the island were filled in. The new section on
8165-432: The city. The California Government Code allows cities to call themselves towns, if they wish, although the designation is purely cosmetic. In the context of the insular areas of the United States, the word "unincorporated" refers to territories in which the United States Congress has determined that only selected parts of the Constitution of the United States apply and which have not been formally incorporated into
8280-420: The concept of an unincorporated area. Key West Key West 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 constitutes the City of Key West . The island of Key West is about 4 miles (6 kilometers) long and 1 mile (2 km) wide, with
8395-694: The council of Municipal District or Specialized Municipality within their boundaries, or by the Minister of Municipal Affairs within the boundaries of an Improvement District. For example, were they incorporated, the urban service areas of Fort McMurray in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo and Sherwood Park in Strathcona County would be the fifth- and sixth-largest cities in Alberta. Unincorporated settlements with
8510-495: The county government estimates the population of its unincorporated areas to exceed one million people. Despite having 88 incorporated cities and towns, including the state's most populous, 65% of the land in Los Angeles County is unincorporated, this mostly consisting of Angeles National Forest and sparsely populated regions to its north. In California, the state constitution recognizes only one kind of municipality,
8625-609: The county level. In mid-Atlantic states such as New York and Pennsylvania, a hybrid model that tries to balance the two approaches is prevalent, with differing allocations of power between municipalities and counties existing. Throughout the U.S., some large cities have annexed all surrounding unincorporated areas within their counties, creating what are known as consolidated city–county forms of government (e.g., Jacksonville, Florida , and Nashville, Tennessee ). In these cases, unincorporated areas continue to exist in other counties of their respective metropolitan areas. Conversely,
8740-493: The eastern side is called New Town, which contains shopping centers, retail malls, residential areas, schools, ball parks , and Key West International Airport . Key West and most of the rest of the Florida Keys are on the dividing line between the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico . The two bodies have different currents, with the calmer and warmer Gulf of Mexico being characterized by great clumps of seagrass . The shallow passage known as Hawk Channel lies directly south of
8855-428: The efficiency of their system, not to recognize jurisdictional boundaries." The USPS is very conservative about recognizing new place names for use in mailing addresses and typically only does so when a place incorporates. The original place name associated with a ZIP Code is still maintained as the default place name, even though the name of the newly incorporated place is more accurate. As an example, Sandy Springs
8970-658: The end of the Third Seminole War . Shipments at first were made from Tampa, and then from Fort Ogden and Punta Gorda on the Peace River. Cattle shipments to Cuba were curtailed, but not completely stopped, by the Union blockade of Florida during the Civil War . After the war ended, shipments of cattle from the Peace River ports resumed to Cuba, to Savannah, Georgia , and to Charleston, South Carolina . Some of
9085-565: The entire area was declared protected cultural heritage. Population of less than 100. Statistics Denmark groups it with Bornholm in Landsdel Bornholm . Since Germany has no administrative level comparable to the townships of other countries, the vast majority of the country, close to 99%, is organized in municipalities ( German : Gemeinde , plural Gemeinden ), often consisting of multiple settlements that are not considered to be unincorporated. Because these settlements lack
9200-486: The entities themselves. On the opposite end of the spectrum is the Virginia "strong county" model. Virginia and other states with this model, such as Alabama , Maryland , and Tennessee , set strict requirements on incorporation or grant counties broad powers that in other states are carried out by cities, creating a disincentive to incorporate, and thus have large urbanized areas which have no municipal government below
9315-408: The first years, the soil is equivalent to quicksand . During the initial period of inhabitation, a special, government-appointed officer was installed, the landdrost . During the administrative office of a Landdrost , no municipal council forms. In 1975, the first homes in what is now the city of Almere were built, and from 1976 to 1984, the area was governed by the Landdrost as the executive of
9430-811: The fronts of the structures, and wood lattice screens covering the area elevated by the piers. Some antebellum structures survive, including the Oldest (or Cussans-Watlington) House (1829–1836) and the John Huling Geiger House (1846–1849), now preserved as the Audubon House and Tropical Gardens . Fortifications such as Fort Zachary Taylor , the East Martello Tower, and the West Martello Tower , helped ensure that Key West would remain in Union control throughout
9545-536: The island and is conducive to the exchange of Gulf waters to the Atlantic via tidal currents. The area where the two bodies merge between Key West and Cuba is called the Straits of Florida. The warmest ocean waters anywhere on the United States mainland are found in the Florida Keys in winter, with sea surface temperatures averaging in the 75–77 °F (24–25 °C) range in December through February. Duval Street
9660-485: The larger fort. When completed, they were connected to Fort Taylor by railroad tracks for movement of munitions. Early in 1864, 900 men from the 2nd United States Colored Troops (USCT) arrived in Key West as replacements for the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers. Many of these men would see action in southern Florida and the 2nd USCT would become "one of the most active" black regiments in Florida. Fort Jefferson , located about 68 miles (109 km) from Key West on Garden Key in
9775-521: The largest amount of land under that status: 39,785 square miles (103,042 km ), or 52.4% of the state's land area. North Dakota followed with 86 territories, 20,358 square miles (52,728 km ), or 29.5% of its land area. Maine was next with 36 territories, 14,052 square miles (36,396 km ), or 45.5% of its land area. Minnesota had 71 territories, 10,552 square miles (27,330 km ), or 13% of its land area. Several other states had small amounts of unorganized territory. The unorganized territory with
9890-445: The largest population was Camp Lejeune, North Carolina , a United States Marine Corps base with a census population of 34,452 inhabitants. In the 2010 census , unorganized territory areas were identified in nine U.S. states: Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Many unincorporated communities are also recognized as acceptable place names for use in mailing addresses by
10005-427: The largest unincorporated areas in Germany (including all inhabited areas, but excluding lakes) with an area of more than 50 km (19 sq mi): In Bavaria, there are other contiguous unincorporated areas covering an area of more than 50 km (19 sq mi) which are however composed of several adjacent unincorporated areas, each one of which is under 50 km in area. In Israel, almost all land
10120-797: The like. As of 31 December 2007 , Germany had 248 uninhabited unincorporated areas (of which 214 are located in Bavaria ), not belonging to any municipality, consisting mostly of forested areas, lakes, and larger rivers. Also, three inhabited unincorporated areas exist, all of which served as military training areas : Osterheide and Lohheide in Lower Saxony, and Gutsbezirk Münsingen in Baden-Württemberg . They have fewer than 2,000 inhabitants in total. Gutsbezirk Münsingen has become uninhabited after losing its inhabited parts to adjacent municipalities on 1 January 2011. The following shows
10235-588: The longest-serving governor in Florida's U.S. history. William Whitehead became chief editorial writer for the Enquirer , a local newspaper, in 1834. He preserved copies of his newspaper as well as copies from the Key West Gazette , its predecessor. He later sent those copies to the Monroe County clerk for preservation, which gives us a view of life in Key West in the early days (1820–1840). In
10350-562: The mainland at Florida City . A traffic jam of 17 miles (27 km) ensued while the Border Patrol stopped every car leaving the Keys, supposedly searching for illegal immigrants attempting to enter the mainland United States. This paralyzed the Florida Keys, which rely heavily on the tourism industry. Flags, T-shirts and other merchandise representing the Conch Republic are still popular souvenirs for visitors to Key West, and
10465-458: The mission of countering piracy and the slave trade in the Key West area. Soon after his purchase, John Simonton subdivided the island into plots and sold three undivided quarters of each plot to: Simonton spent the winter in Key West and the summer in Washington, where he lobbied hard for the development of the island and to establish a naval base on the island, both to take advantage of the island's strategic location and to bring law and order to
10580-458: The name Landdrost or Drossaart . Also, Elten and Tudderen , both annexed from Germany after World War II , were governed by a Landdrost until they were ceded back to Germany in 1963. The most recent period with unincorporated land started in 1967, when the dyke around Southern Flevoland was closed, but several years are required before the polder is genuinely accessible for cultivation, and construction of roads and homes can start, as in
10695-471: The national telegraph network via Western Union , to Punta Rassa, where the underwater cable would come ashore. The underwater cable was laid from Havana to Key West, and then on to Punta Rassa, and the line opened to public use on September 11, 1867. The U.S. Congress had, in 1866, authorized telegraph companies to run their lines across, take supplies from, and place stations on federal public domain lands without charge. The IOTC placed its office in one room of
10810-582: The new community of Ybor City in Tampa , leading to a slow decline in the cigar industry in Key West. Still, Key West remained the largest and wealthiest city in Florida at the end of the 1880s. USS Maine sailed from Key West on her fateful visit to Havana, where she blew up and sank in Havana Harbor , igniting the Spanish–American War . Crewmen from the ship are buried in Key West, and
10925-479: The now abandoned barracks at Fort Dulaney, while the station agent lived in another room. Punta Rassa became a thriving cattle shipping town in the later 1800s. The first cattle drive to Punta Rassa had been in 1833, when P. B. Prior purchased ten cattle and some calves from Seminoles living near the Peace River in what is now Hardee County , and drove them to Punta Rassa, possibly for transport to Sanibel Island . Florida cattlemen began shipping cattle to Cuba after
11040-400: The other island groups are not part of any administrative region or district , but are instead each designated as an Area Outside Territorial Authority . In Norway, the outlying islands of Bouvet Island , Jan Mayen , and Svalbard are outside of all of the country's counties and municipalities . They are ruled directly by national authorities without any local democracy. An exception
11155-406: The population. There were 1,015 households, out of which 1.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.7% were married couples living together, 0.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 52.6% were non-families. 52.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 48.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.53 and
11270-468: The port onto ships destined for Cuba. It was one of the home bases for the "King of the Cracker Cowboys" Jake Summerlin, who by the time he was 40, was one of the wealthiest of the Florida cattle barons. The town of Punta Rassa was lined with wooden buildings, including a hotel and several bars, which were frequented by the many merchants and cattle sellers. In the 1880s, the area became known as
11385-454: The province, an unincorporated settlement is one that does not have a municipal council that governs solely over the settlement. It is usually, but not always, part of a larger municipal government. These range from small hamlets to large urbanized areas similar in size to a town or city. In Alberta , unincorporated communities can be classified as Hamlet, Locality or townsite. A Hamlet is an unincorporated community that can be designated by
11500-608: The rail route as an automobile highway, completed in 1938, built atop many of the footings of the railroad. It became an extension of U.S. Route 1 . The portion of U.S. 1 through the Keys is called the Overseas Highway . Franklin Roosevelt toured the road in 1939. During World War II , more than 14,000 ships came through the island's harbor. The population, because of an influx of soldiers, sailors, laborers, and tourists, sometimes doubled or even tripled at times during
11615-744: The residences of some historical Key West families are recognized on the National Register of Historic Places as important landmarks of history and culture, including the Porter House on Caroline Street and the Gato House on Virginia Street. Several historical residences of the Curry family remain extant, including the Benjamin Curry House, built by the brother of Florida's first millionaire, William Curry, as well as
11730-484: The same powers in these areas as city councils or town councils have in their respective incorporated areas. Some states instead put these powers in the hands of townships, which are minor civil divisions of each county and are called "towns" in some states. Differences in state laws regarding the incorporation of communities leads to a great variation in the distribution and nature of unincorporated areas. Unincorporated regions are essentially nonexistent in eight of
11845-570: The sea (via receding tidal pools) rather than from salt mines. After the outbreak of the Civil War, Union troops shut down the salt industry after Confederate sympathizers smuggled the product into the South. Salt production resumed at the end of the war, but the industry was destroyed by an 1876 hurricane and never recovered, in part because of new salt mines on the mainland. During the Ten Years' War (an unsuccessful Cuban war for independence in
11960-564: The territory cannot be disincorporated . The United States Minor Outlying Islands without a permanent civilian population are "unorganized" in the sense that they do not have a local government, and they are administered by the Office of Insular Affairs directly. The populated American Samoa is "unorganized" in the sense that Congress has not passed an organic act , but it does have a constitution and locally elected territorial legislature and executive. An unincorporated community may be part of
12075-698: The time it was called Convent of Mary Immaculate. The school is still operating today and is now known as Mary Immaculate Star of the Sea School. During the American Civil War , while Florida seceded and joined the Confederate States of America , Key West remained in U.S. Union hands because of the naval base. Most locals were sympathetic to the Confederacy, however, and many flew Confederate flags over their homes. However, Key West
12190-465: The town. He died in 1854. The names of the four "founding fathers" of modern Key West were given to main arteries of the island when it was first platted in 1829 by William Adee Whitehead , John Whitehead's younger brother. That first plat and the names used remained mostly intact and are still in use today. Duval Street, the island's main street, is named after Florida's first territorial governor, William Pope Duval , who served between 1822 and 1834 as
12305-601: The war. Starting in 1946, US President Harry S. Truman established a working vacation home in Key West, the Harry S. Truman Little White House , where he would spend 175 days of his presidency. In 1948, Key West suffered damage from two hurricanes within as many months, from the September 1948 Florida hurricane then the 1948 Miami hurricane . Prior to the Cuban revolution of 1959, there were regular ferry and airplane services between Key West and Havana. John F. Kennedy
12420-479: The west end of a peninsula bordered to the north by the Caloosahatchee River , to the west by San Carlos Bay , and to the south by the Gulf of Mexico . The community sits at the east end of the Sanibel Causeway , which crosses San Carlos Bay to Sanibel Island . McGregor Boulevard (County Road 867) forms the southern edge of the community; the highway leads northeast 15 miles (24 km) to Fort Myers ,
12535-496: The wharf. Francis A. Hendry later built pens and a wharf at Punta Rassa and charged 10 cents a head for cattle shipped from his wharf. Another cattleman, Jake Summerlin , who had owned holding pens at Punta Rassa since 1868, built a hotel (the Summerlin House) in 1874. When the hotel was full, cowboys would camp out under the building. Summerlin bought Hendry's pens and wharf for $ 10,000 in 1878. Cattle would be loaded at
12650-473: The year progressed, Union troops and sympathizers began driving cattle to Punta Rassa to supply Union ships on blockade duty and Union-held Key West , reducing the supply of cattle available to Confederate forces. The increased shipping from Punta Rassa led the Union Army to build a barracks and a wharf there. The barracks was 50 by 100 feet (15 by 30 m), set on 14-foot-tall (4.3 m) pilings to place
12765-438: Was also home to a large free black population. This population grew during the war as more enslaved black people fled from their masters and came under the relative safety of the Union garrison there. Fort Zachary Taylor , constructed from 1845 to 1866, was an important Key West outpost during the Civil War. Construction began in 1861 on two other forts, East and West Martello Towers, which served as side armories and batteries for
12880-745: Was built towards Punta Rassa in the early 1920s by the Seaboard Air Line Railroad as part of an effort by Seaboard president S. Davies Warfield to reestablish a deepwater port at Punta Rassa. The 8-mile (13 km) line branched off the Seaboard's main line , which ran along the west bank of the Ten Mile Canal, in South Fort Myers near where Six Mile Cypress Parkway crosses the canal. It ran through where Lakes Park currently sits, and then roughly paralleled what
12995-623: Was in the theater of war during the Seminole Wars . As a result, Fort Dulany (also spelled "Dulaney", "Delany" and "Delaney") was built there in 1837 as an army supply depot, with a hospital. The fort was abandoned the next year, and then re-occupied in 1841, when it was used to hold Seminole prisoners before they were sent west to the Indian Territory . A hurricane destroyed Fort Dulany in October 1841. Army operations were moved up
13110-580: Was relatively quiet in the early part of the Civil War . Union troops and refugee Union sympathizers occupied Useppa Island in December 1863 and mounted a small raid into Charlotte Harbor and up the Myakka River , which resulted in some skirmishes with Confederate troops and irregulars. In January 1864, Union troops landed at Punta Rassa and marched overland to Fort Myers, which they were able to seize before Confederate sympathizers could burn it. The troops on Useppa Island then moved to Fort Myers. As
13225-614: Was to use "90 miles from Cuba" extensively in his speeches against Fidel Castro . Kennedy himself visited Key West a month after the resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis . In 1982, the city of Key West briefly asserted independence as the Conch Republic as a protest over a United States Border Patrol blockade . This blockade was set up on US 1 , where the northern end of the Overseas Highway meets
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