Marathon is a
cityA city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
on
Knight's KeyKnight's Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys, located entirely within the borders of the city of Marathon, Florida.-Geography:U.S. 1 crosses the key at approximately mile marker 47, at the western end of Key Vaca and eastern end of the Seven Mile Bridge.-History:Prior to the completion of...
,
Boot KeyBoot Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys located adjacent to Key Vaca. Boot Key is within the city limits of Marathon, Florida, USA. The island is largely undeveloped despite having a bridge spanning Boot Key Harbor to Key Vaca, which is now closed to pedestrian and vehicular...
,
Key VacaKey Vaca is an island in the middle Florida Keys, located entirely within the borders of the city of Marathon, Florida. It is often incorrectly identified as "Marathon Key."- Geography :Key Vaca is located between Fat Deer Key and Knight's Key...
,
Fat Deer KeyFat Deer Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys.U.S. 1 crosses the key at approximately mile markers 53.5-56, between Long Point Key and Key Vaca....
,
Long Point KeyLong Point Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys.U.S. 1 traverses the key between Crawl Key and Fat Deer Key, which is part of a long stretch of road known as the Grassy Key Causeway....
,
Crawl KeyCrawl Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys.U.S. 1 traverses the key between Grassy Key and Long Point Key, which is part of a long stretch of road known as the Grassy Key Causeway....
and
Grassy KeyGrassy Key, Florida is an island in the middle Florida Keys.It is located on U.S. 1 , at approximately mile markers 57—60, below the Conch Keys. It has an area of 3.65 km², with a population of 974 as of the census 2000....
islandAn island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
s in the middle
Florida KeysThe Florida Keys are a coral archipelago in southeast United States. They begin at the southeastern tip of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami, and extend in a gentle arc south-southwest and then westward to Key West, the westernmost of the inhabited islands, and on to the uninhabited Dry...
, in
Monroe CountyMonroe County is a county located in the state of Florida. As of 2000, the population was 79,589. The U.S. Census Bureau 2006 estimate for the county was 74,737....
,
FloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. As of the 2000
censusA census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, the city had a total
populationA population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 10,255. As of 2005, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau is 10,626.
Geography
Marathon is located at 24.726310°N 81.040327°W.
According to the
United States Census BureauThe United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 9.6 square miles (24.9 km²), of which 8.6 square miles (22.3 km²) is land and 1 square miles (2.6 km²) (10.37%) is water. Its city limits extend 1200' from land into the adjacent waters.
Boot Key HarborBoot Key Harbor is a natural body of water located in the middle of the Florida Keys, entirely within the city limits of Marathon, Florida, USA....
is a natural body of water between
Boot KeyBoot Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys located adjacent to Key Vaca. Boot Key is within the city limits of Marathon, Florida, USA. The island is largely undeveloped despite having a bridge spanning Boot Key Harbor to Key Vaca, which is now closed to pedestrian and vehicular...
and Key Vaca, entirely within the Marathon city limits.
Demographics
As of the
censusA census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 10,255 people, 4,597 households, and 2,735 families residing in the city. The
population densityPopulation density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,186.1 inhabitants per square mile (457.7/km²). There were 6,791 housing units at an average density of 785.4 per square mile (303.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.09% White, 4.65% African American, 0.36% Native American, 0.48% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.00% from
other racesRace and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.38% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 20.43% of the population.
There were 4,597 households out of which 34.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.0% were
married couplesMarriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.5% were non-families. 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.68.
In the city the population was spread out with 17.3% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 32.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 110.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 111.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,010, and the median income for a family was $46,361. Males had a median income of $27,057 versus $24,592 for females. The
per capita incomePer capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $22,894. About 9.4% of families and 14.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.9% of those under age 18 and 13.5% of those age 65 or over.
Population history
| Year |
Population |
Notes |
| 1820 |
14 |
|
| 1830 |
28 |
|
| 1840 |
140 |
|
| 1850 |
280 |
|
| 1860 |
410 |
|
| 1870 |
480 |
|
| 1880 |
497 |
|
| 1890 |
568 |
|
| 1900 |
648 |
|
| 1910 |
990 |
Florida East Coast RailwayThe Florida East Coast Railway is a Class II railroad operating in the U.S. state of Florida; in the past, it has been a Class I railroad.Built primarily in the last quarter of the 19th century and the first decade of the 20th century, the FEC was a project of Standard Oil principal Henry Morrison...
arrives in 1907. |
| 1920 |
1,024 |
|
| 1930 |
1,105 |
|
| 1940 |
984 |
Pop. loss due to Labor Day Hurricane of 1935The 1935 Labor Day Hurricane was the strongest tropical cyclone of the 1935 Atlantic hurricane season, and one of the most intense hurricanes to make landfall in the United States in recorded history...
|
| 1950 |
1,527 |
|
| 1960 |
2,024 |
|
| 1970 |
4,497 |
|
| 1980 |
6,857 |
|
| 1990 |
8,857 |
Town incorporated in 1999. |
| 2000 |
10,255 |
|
| 2005 |
10,626 |
|
Languages
As of 2000,
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
as a
first languageA first language is the language a person has learned from birth or within the critical period, or that a person speaks the best and so is often the basis for sociolinguistic identity...
accounted for 78.10%, while
SpanishSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
as a mother tongue made up 20.95% of the population.
History
Though the area has been settled for some time, Marathon is a relatively new city, incorporated in 1999. The city's boundaries (according to both the city and a 2001
Rand McNallyRand McNally is an American publisher of maps, atlases, textbooks, and globes for travel, reference, commercial, and educational uses. It also provides online consumer street maps and directions, as well as commercial transportation routing software and mileage data...
road map of the Keys) extend from the east end of the
Seven Mile BridgeThe Seven Mile Bridge is a famous bridge in the Florida Keys, in Monroe County, Florida, United States. It connects Knight's Key in the Middle Keys to Little Duck Key in the Lower Keys...
(Mile Marker 47) to the west end of Tom's Harbor Bridge (Mile Marker 61), excluding that portion of the area within the city limits of
Key Colony BeachKey Colony Beach is a city in the middle Florida Keys, Monroe County, Florida, United States. The population was 788 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau is 852.-Geography:...
. Among the islands found within the city limits are
Boot KeyBoot Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys located adjacent to Key Vaca. Boot Key is within the city limits of Marathon, Florida, USA. The island is largely undeveloped despite having a bridge spanning Boot Key Harbor to Key Vaca, which is now closed to pedestrian and vehicular...
,
Knight's KeyKnight's Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys, located entirely within the borders of the city of Marathon, Florida.-Geography:U.S. 1 crosses the key at approximately mile marker 47, at the western end of Key Vaca and eastern end of the Seven Mile Bridge.-History:Prior to the completion of...
, Hog Key,
Vaca KeyKey Vaca is an island in the middle Florida Keys, located entirely within the borders of the city of Marathon, Florida. It is often incorrectly identified as "Marathon Key."- Geography :Key Vaca is located between Fat Deer Key and Knight's Key...
, Stirrup Key,
Crawl KeyCrawl Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys.U.S. 1 traverses the key between Grassy Key and Long Point Key, which is part of a long stretch of road known as the Grassy Key Causeway....
, Little Crawl Key, East and West Sister’s Island, Deer Key,
Fat Deer KeyFat Deer Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys.U.S. 1 crosses the key at approximately mile markers 53.5-56, between Long Point Key and Key Vaca....
(excluding the portion in Key Colony Beach),
Long Point KeyLong Point Key is an island in the middle Florida Keys.U.S. 1 traverses the key between Crawl Key and Fat Deer Key, which is part of a long stretch of road known as the Grassy Key Causeway....
, and
Grassy KeyGrassy Key, Florida is an island in the middle Florida Keys.It is located on U.S. 1 , at approximately mile markers 57—60, below the Conch Keys. It has an area of 3.65 km², with a population of 974 as of the census 2000....
.
The name Marathon dates back to the origin of the Florida East Coast Railroad. The name came about by the railroad workers who were working night and day to complete the railway – due to the unrelenting pace and struggle to complete the project, many of the workers complained that "this [the project] is getting to be a real
MarathonThe marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race...
", and was later used to name the local station along the railroad.
Economy & Infrastructure
Marathon is a major sportsfishing destination, with several charter fishing boats departing from local marinas every morning to both the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. Bountiful reefs around Marathon make it a popular diving, snorkeling, spearfishing, and
lobsterClawed lobsters comprise a family of large marine crustaceans. Highly prized as seafood, lobsters are economically important, and are often one of the most profitable commodities in coastal areas they populate.Though several groups of crustaceans are known as lobsters, the clawed lobsters are most...
tickling area. One of the last untouched tropical hardwood hammocks in the Keys is found at Crane Point Museum, just a few miles west of
Florida Keys Marathon AirportThe Florida Keys Marathon Airport is a public airport located along the Overseas Highway in Marathon, in Monroe County, Florida, United States. The airport covers and has one runway.-History:...
. This airport is also one of the most reliable sites in the entire United States to see the hard-to-find
Antillean NighthawkThe Antillean Nighthawk, Chordeiles gundlachii, is a nightjar.The adults are dark with brown, grey and white patterning on the upperparts and breast; the long wings are black and show a white bar in flight. The tail is dark with white barring; the underparts are white with black bars. The adult...
. Like the rest of the Keys in summer,
Gray KingbirdThe Gray Kingbird, also known as Pitirre, Tyrannus dominicensis, is a passerine bird. It breeds from the extreme southeast of the USA through Central America, from Cuba to Puerto Rico as well as eastward towards all across the Lesser West Indies, south to Venezuela, Trinidad, Tobago the Guiana and...
are often seen on telephone wires along US 1 and
Black-whiskered VireoThe Black-whiskered Vireo, Vireo altiloquus, is a small passerine bird, which breeds in southern Florida, USA, and the West Indies as far south as the offshore islands of Venezuela. It is a partial migrant, with northern birds wintering from the Greater Antilles to northern South America...
incessantly sing in the hammocks.
Marathon is the home of the Fisherman's Hospital in the west end of the city. It is one of just three hospitals in the Florida Keys. Marathon is home to another "hospital" –
The Turtle Hospital, one of a handful of facilities in the United States with the ability to rescue, rehabilitate, and release injured
sea turtleSea turtles are marine reptiles that inhabit all of the world's oceans except the Arctic.-Distribution:...
s.
The City of Marathon offers many restaurants, including the popular The Island Tiki Bar and Grill, Burdines, Keys Fisheries, Castaway, and The Stuffed Pig. Marathon derives much of its livelihood from the ocean and seafood is a staple at most restaurants.
Marathon holds the distinction of having the tallest building in the Keys, Bonefish Tower at 143 feet (43.6 m) on Coco Plum. Sombrero Country Club, the only Country Club in the Keys, is located here. It has been hit hard by several recent hurricanes. Marathon hosts
Burrowing OwlThe Burrowing Owl is a tiny but long-legged owl found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. Burrowing Owls can be found in grasslands, rangelands, agricultural areas, deserts, or any other open dry area with low vegetation. They nest and roost in burrows, such as those excavated...
s.
Churches
- San Pablo Catholic Church
- Church of Christ
- Community Church United Methodist
- New Life Assembly of God
- St Columba Episcopal Church
- Marathon Seventh Day Adventist
- First Baptist Church
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
- Marathon Church of God
- Calvary Baptist Church
- Presbyterian USA Kirk-Keys
- Jehovah's Witnesses Kingdom Hall
- Martin Luther Chapel
Schools
- Stanley Switlik Elementary (K-5 center)
- Marathon Middle/High School
- Martin Luther Children's Day School
- Kreative Kids Christian Academy
- Keys Fitness Center
Notable former residents
- Gary Burghoff (Radar from the TV series M*A*S*H)
- Nick Carter
Nickolas Gene "Nick" Carter is an American singer-songwriter, dancer, musician, entertainer and actor. He is best known as a member of the pop group, Backstreet Boys. He went on to release a solo album called Now Or Never during their hiatus. He has made occasional television appearances and...
(Backstreet BoysThe Backstreet Boys are an American vocal group, formed in Orlando, Florida in 1993. The band originally consisted of A. J. McLean, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, Nick Carter and Kevin Richardson. They rose to fame with their debut international album, Backstreet Boys...
member)
- Kenny G
Kenneth Bruce Gorelick , better known by his stage name Kenny G, is an American, adult contemporary and smooth jazz saxophonist. His fourth album, Duotones, brought him breakthrough success in 1986...
(musician)
- Bruce Willis
Walter Bruce Willis , better known as Bruce Willis, is an American actor, producer, and musician. His career began in television in the 1980s and has continued both in television and film since, including comedic, dramatic, and action roles...
& Demi MooreDemi Guynes Kutcher , known professionally as Demi Moore, is an American actress. After minor roles in film and a role in the soap opera General Hospital, Moore established her career in films such as St...
(actors)
- Tony Bryant
Tony Bryant is a former American football defensive end who played for the Oakland Raiders and the New Orleans Saints in the National Football League.He was born and raised in Marathon, Florida.-High school:...
(Former NFL player)
- Max Yasgur
Max B. Yasgur was an American farmer, best known as the owner of the dairy farm in Bethel, New York at which the Woodstock Music and Art Fair was held between August 15 and August 18, 1969....
(WoodstockWoodstock Music & Art Fair was a music festival, billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music". It was held at Max Yasgur's 600-acre dairy farm in the Catskills near the hamlet of White Lake in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969...
's farmer legend)
See also
- Florida Keys Marathon Airport
The Florida Keys Marathon Airport is a public airport located along the Overseas Highway in Marathon, in Monroe County, Florida, United States. The airport covers and has one runway.-History:...
- Florida Keys Keynoter
The Florida Keys Keynoter is a twice-weekly tabloid format newspaper owned by The McClatchy Company and is a sister newspaper to the Miami Herald. It primarily serves Monroe county in the U.S. state of Florida. In addition to publishing regular issues on Wednesday and Saturday, the Keynoter also...
- Crane point
Crane Point Museum, Nature Center and Historic Site is a non-profit natural history museum and nature center located in the City of Marathon on Key Vaca, in the heart of the Florida Keys in Monroe County, Florida, United States...
- George Adderley House
The George Adderley House is a historic home in the City of Marathon, Florida, United States. It is located at 5550 Overseas Highway. On September 10, 1992, it was added to the U.S...
- Boot Key Harbor
Boot Key Harbor is a natural body of water located in the middle of the Florida Keys, entirely within the city limits of Marathon, Florida, USA....
External links