Key West’s most photographed landmark is boarded up behind construction fencing, but a substitute Southernmost Point buoy has been erected at a temporary new spot a block away.
City crews have started a long-awaited, year-long overhaul of the southernmost selfie spot and the surrounding seawall at the corner of South and Whitehead streets. The “southernmost swap” took place overnight in Key West on Sept. 4.
Years of storms and saltwater have taken their toll on the seawall at the flood-prone downtown corner. Once the seawall is replaced, crews also will repaint the original buoy and add landscaping and other beautification features at the corner. Key West city commissioner Lissette Carey has also suggested that the “Southernmost Point / 90 Miles to Cuba” be painted on both sides of the buoy so photos can be taken from both sides to alleviate the lines that form daily for photographs.
“It is the most photographed landmark in the city of Key West,” Key West Mayor Dee Dee Henriquez said. “You can come here at 8 in the morning; there’s already a line. Come here at 11 at night; there’s a line.”
The concrete landmark marks the southernmost point in the continental United States. Almost. The actual southernmost spot of Key West, geographically speaking, is located on off-limits, military-owned property.
While the work takes place, the large, painted concrete buoy that announces Key West’s location 90 miles from Cuba, has been painted all white and is now enclosed in a plywood box behind construction fencing that lines the last block of Whitehead Street.
An exact replica buoy has been placed in the pedestrian plaza at the south end of Duval Street, 1400 Duval St., and has already become a popular social media spot. Once the work at South and Whitehead streets is complete, the original buoy will be unboxed, freshly painted and reopened to the public.
According to Henriquez, the landmark’s origins date to 1972 — when “Southernmost Buoy” was simply painted on a piece of plywood. On Sept. 10, 1983, the city of Key West unveiled the now-iconic concrete buoy seen around the world in photos today.
As for the future of the temporary buoy, could it stay afloat after the original returns, and provide a secondary photo-op location? That remains to be decided, according to Key West tourism officials.
