Pine Island is an island located in Lee County, Florida, on the Gulf coast of southwest Florida. It is the largest island in the state of Florida, and the 118th largest island in the United States. The Intracoastal Waterway passes through Pine Island Sound, to the west of the island. Matlacha Pass runs between Pine Island and the mainland. Pine Island lies west of Cape Coral.
Contents |
Unlike the sandy barrier islands of Sanibel to the south, Captiva to the southwest, and North Captiva to the west, Pine Island has no large beaches and is made from the same coral rock as the mainland. Sanibel owes its unique shrimp-like shape (and orientation perpendicular to the coast) to being on the leeward side of the Gulf Stream from Pine Island. Pine island is surrounded by mangroves and includes three aquatic preserves. Residents and visitors are attracted to Pine Island's natural rural character, fishing and boating. Pine Island is mostly agricultural zoning; some visitors travel over a hundred miles to purchase tropical fruit such as lychee and mangos grown and sold on Pine Island.
Pine Island is home to four unincorporated towns: Pine Island Center, St. James City, Bokeelia and Pineland. Matlacha is also considered one of the communities but is actually on its own small island. Pine Island has a small town atmosphere, with no traffic lights and mostly agricultural zoning. Each community has its own largely volunteer fire station, marinas, shops and fine casual restaurants. According to the 2000 census the population of Pine Island is about 9000. However, the population varies seasonally, Pine Island being a winter home for many residents.
Pine Island Center is located at the intersection of Pine Island Road and Stringfellow. Pine Island Road (State Road 78) is the only road on and off Pine Island. Pine Island Center is the location of the island's single large grocery store, elementary school, library, museum, swimming pool and a large park. Sixteen mile long Stringfellow Rd (County Rd 767) is Pine Island's main road and connects St. James City on the south end of the island with Bokeelia and Pineland on the north side of the island. St. James City, Pine Island's most heavily populated area, offers a splendid view of Sanibel Island and the Sanibel Causeway.
Bokeelia extends to the far northern tip of Pine Island ending at tiny Bokeelia island which is accessed by a small bridge. Bokeelia is at the mouth of Charlotte Harbor. On clear days you can see across the water to Cape Haze and Boca Grande Pass where the Gulf meets the Harbor. Pineland is also on the northern portion of Pine Island, west off Stringfellow Road, about halfway between Pine Island Center and Bokeelia. Pineland features a golf course and country club as well the Randell Research Center. The Randell Research Center is located near several shell mounds which are the remains of a Calusa Indian village located at the sight for over 1500 years. The center is dedicated to learning and teaching the archeology, history, and ecology of Southwest Florida and the Calusa people.
East of Pine Island Center, along a two mile (3 km) stretch of Pine Island Road, is Little Pine Island. Little Pine Island is a 4,700-acre (19 km2) development free wild life preserve and the former location of a sewer treatment plant. The island community of Matlacha (pronounced "MAT-la-shay") is east of Little Pine Island and west of the city of Cape Coral on the main land. The Matlacha Bridge, a small drawbridge nicknamed "The fishingest bridge in the world", is almost always occupied by people fishing. Matlacha also has a large park and pier, as well as several shops, bars and restaurants.
Pine Island is also home to Matlacha Pass National Wildlife Refuge. Little Pine Island is a state-owned wildlife refuge, currently being "de-developed" and returned to its natural state. Ospreys, herons, egrets and ibises, and, roseate spoonbills are often seen, as well as owls, hawks, bald eagles, and songbirds.
The local form of the marsh rice rat has been recognized in some classifications as a separate subspecies, Oryzomys palustris planirostris.[1]
Skeletons unearthed on the island have been dated to about 6000 years ago. The Calusa are thought to have inhabited Pine Island since around the year 300, with a cultural center called Tampa (or Tanpa or Toempe) at the mound-site now known as Pineland, where an archaeological dig is underway. Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León landed near the city in 1513, and careened his ship for repairs in Pine Island Sound. After the Calusa empire collapsed in the 18th century due to war and diseases, the island was only sparsely inhabited until the 1870s.
Pine Island was hit hard in 2004 when Hurricane Charley passed through the area.