Indian Key State Historic Site, State historic site on Indian Key in the Florida Keys, Monroe County, United States.

Indian Key State Historic Site is a small island in the upper Florida Keys, a few hundred yards southeast of U.S. 1 off Islamorada. Its surface is covered with the limestone foundations and low walls of a 19th-century settlement, including the remains of houses, warehouses, and a hotel, now partly overgrown and under archaeological study.

The island was briefly an administrative center for the region in the mid-1800s. A raid by Seminole fighters in 1840 destroyed much of the settlement and ended its occupation.

Indian Key's economy rested on wrecking: crews salvaged cargo from ships grounded on the nearby Florida Reef and landed it here. Bahamian and Cuban fishermen, turtlers and loggers used the island as a base from the 18th century, and Jacob Housman's store served wreckers and settlers from 1824. Visitors can still see the limestone foundations of the warehouses where salvaged goods were kept.

You reach the island by boat or kayak from nearby Islamorada, where guided tours help you understand the ruins. Wear comfortable shoes since the ground is uneven and thick vegetation covers the old pathways.

Hidden beneath thick vegetation are the remains of a large warehouse that once stored goods salvaged from ships. These concealed ruins reveal how industrially organized this early economy actually was.