Tavernier is a small community found on the southern tip of Key Largo. It was not the first to develop along this neck of the island. Decades earlier, a farming community called Planter occupied the Atlantic edge. Pineapples, tomatoes and melons were among the commercial crops they farmed.
Hurricanes and the arrival of the Key West Extension of Henry Flagler’s East Coast Railway hastened the demise of Planter. Life in the Keys changed when the train started huffing and puffing up and down the tracks twice daily. No longer reliant on ships having to navigate the shipping channels successfully, the railroad offered a more reliable mode of transportation.
While the train did not arrive at Key West until 1912, daily service between the mainland and what would become the Seven Mile Bridge was operational in 1908. Communities began to move away from the edges of the islands and closer to the conveniences offered at the railroad right of way. Tavernier became one of the railroad towns that sprang up after Henry Flagler decided to push his train down the island chain to Key West.
One of the old tales about the origin of the Tavernier name suggests a thirsty sailor came ashore and asked the first person he saw, “Is there a tavern near?” It is a colorful story – nonsense, but a good story. Others have pondered if the name was French, as tavernier is the French word for innkeeper. The truth is that the community is named after the 31-acre Tavernier Key, located just off the Atlantic shoreline.
The name is based on the Spanish word for a biting fly. Some of its earliest names include Caio di Tabanos (1639) and Cayo Tabanos (1742). Roughly translated from Spanish to English, the island was called Horsefly Key. What is important to remember about the word tabano is that the “b” is pronounced with a “v” sound in Spanish. This would explain why William Roberts’ work, “First Discovery and Natural History of Florida” (1763), identified the island as Cayo de Tivanos.
In 1775, the island was identified by its Spanish and English names, Cayo Tabano and Key Tavernier. Since, the name island hopped to Key Largo and currently identifies a stretch of Key Largo between MM 94 and Tavernier Creek, and then, technically, a little more. The name hit the railroad history books when the Tavernier train station was established around 1907.
The Tavernier name was cemented into government records after the Planter Post Office closed and the first Tavernier Post Office opened in 1911.
It is an interesting little town and home to the largest group of historic structures outside of Key West. The buildings do not date back to the 19th century like those still standing on Key West, though some are approaching 100 years old. Also, Tavernier is not just about old buildings. The subject of birds and a sanctuary needs to be addressed, too.
Laura Quinn was a local hero who did everything she could for injured birds. Between the fishing hooks, monofilament dangling from mangrove branches like tangled traps, cats and windows, it can be risky being a bird. Quinn acquired a 5.5-acre property on Key Largo for the Wild Bird Center, a nonprofit incorporated in 1988. The doors opened in 1991. Though she passed in 2010, her mission carries on.
The Florida Keys Wild Bird and Rehabilitation Center remains dedicated to rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing native and migratory wild birds that have been harmed or displaced. The facility also provides or locates humane shelters for those that cannot be released. I’d call the Laura Quinn Wild Bird Sanctuary at MM 93.6 a roadside attraction, but that wouldn’t be a fair representation of the work they do.
The sanctuary provides a stroll along a wooden boardwalk, past aviaries and through some authentic island scenery. The cages are filled with two kinds of birds: those that were healed but are not fit for release and those that are rehabbing until they can be released. It is not a free stop, but one of the more worthy you’ll come across. Donations are requested.
As the facility has grown, it has expanded from its original setting to incorporate a separate hospital facility and educational center found closer to downtown Tavernier where more than 70 historic structures still stand. We are going to concentrate on a colorful collection of buildings at MM 92.
Starting at the corner of the highway and Atlantic Circle Drive is a white building that houses Krust Pizza. The building dates back to the 1920s when it was home to the Tavern Store, advertising sodas, sundries and ice cream. In the 1930s, it was a movie house called the Key Theater. Since then, it has been a series of restaurants.
Next door is a small yellow building that predates the first by a couple of years. Originally, it was a Standard Oil gas station. On the other side of that historic structure is a pink, two-story building that was under construction when the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane devastated the Upper Keys. Immediately after the storm, it served as a Red Cross first aid station. When completed, it was the new and improved Key Theater. By 1939, it was converted to the Tavernier Hotel, which is how locals remember it.
The squat turquoise building beside it dates back to the mid-1920s. During Prohibition, it was the Tavernier Tea Room and served beverages that were stronger than the law allowed. Also, allegedly, it offered games of chance. Later, it became the Tavernier Café, better known as Harry’s Place. A little farther down, on the left, is a white building that stands out because of its classic historic design. Today, it is home to Café Moka – housed in an old Methodist church with roots that date back to 1886 Planter.
After passing the Winn-Dixie shopping center, rounding a slight curve, and approaching the Tavernier Creek Bridge, the reason the southbound lanes are so much higher than the northbound lanes is that they were built atop the right-of-way of Henry Flagler’s old rail line.
Next up is Plantation Key.
