Marathon history

Timeline

1. 1908 — Trains reach Knight's Key. The first regularly scheduled train runs from Miami to Knight's Key (Marathon) while the Seven Mile bridge is planned.
2. 1912 — The railroad arrives. Henry Flagler's Over-Sea Railroad is completed; the first train reaches Key West on Jan. 22, linking the Keys to the mainland until the 1935 hurricane.
3. 1938–1954 — Pigeon Key. The railroad workers' base camp under the Old Seven Mile Bridge becomes home of the Florida Road and Toll Bridge District; it's now a National Historic Landmark.
4. 1938 — Overseas Highway opens. The Overseas Highway officially opens July 2 as the road route through the Keys.
5. 1982 — New Seven Mile Bridge. The new bridge is finished; the Seven Mile Bridge Run that marked it is still held each April.

Sources: Florida Keys: 200 Years of Paradise timeline (Florida Keys & Key West tourism council, with historian Brad Bertelli). Checked Oct 9, 2026.

Museums & historic sites

• Pigeon Key · 1090 Overseas Hwy, Marathon (visitor center; island reached by ferry or the Old Seven Mile Bridge)

  Historic railroad camp; check the site for tour times.

  Hours & admissionDirections