Key West National Wildlife Refuge

History

The designation history for this site (every law, proclamation and order, and the administration behind each) is being researched and checked by the Library’s historians.

The Roosevelt connection

Protected by T.R.

• August 8, 1908: as President, Theodore Roosevelt set aside Key West Reservation (federal bird reservation). Mangrove islands west of Key West, a winter haven for wading birds and seabirds.
  archive.org · standardebooks.org · en.wikisource.org · Roosevelt’s Public Lands

His proclamations and orders

• June 8, 1908: Executive Order 808, “Portions of Man Key and Woman Key, Florida, Reserved for Navy Dept..” Today’s site transferred to it. When the naval reservation was revoked in 1982 the lands remained withdrawn for the refuge under Executive Order 923.
  Executive Order 808 in Theodore Roosevelt’s Executive Orders and Proclamations
• August 8, 1908: Executive Order 923, “Establishing Key West Reservation in Florida as Preserve and Breeding Ground for Native Birds.” Today’s site began with this document. 208,937.33 total acres, of which 206,289 are held under agreement or lease, essentially open water.
  Executive Order 923 in Theodore Roosevelt’s Executive Orders and Proclamations

What to see and do

Browse hiking, biking and paddling routes on AllTrails

Plan your visit

Check the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for current hours, fees and access.

Whose lands these are

These lands are the ancestral and present-day homelands of Native nations. A section on whose lands these are is being prepared with tribal review. In the meantime, Native Land Digital offers a starting point.

Pair it with

• Great White Heron National Wildlife Refuge FWS · 32 miles
• National Key Deer Refuge FWS · 40 miles
• Dry Tortugas National Park NPS · 55 miles
• Everglades National Park NPS · 89 miles
• Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge FWS · 97 miles
• Big Cypress National Preserve NPS · 113 miles