Hobe Sound - Hutchinson Island - Jensen Beach - Jupiter Island - Palm City - Port Salerno - Sewall's Point - Stuart

About the Town:

Part of Florida’s Treasure Coast, South Hutchinson Island is bordered by the Fort Pierce and St. Lucie Inlets to the north and south, and the Indian River Lagoon to the west. The barrier island, essentially miles of uncrowded beaches interspersed with hotels, condominiums and town houses, is located off the Atlantic coast of Martin and St. Lucie counties. Known to double in population during the winter months, South Hutchinson is home to the historic Elliot and House of Refuge Museums, as well as the Florida Oceanographic Society and St. Lucie Nuclear Plant.

History:

The barrier island along most of the Treasure Coast has the name Hutchinson attached to it in one form or another.

Once, the island was an almost unbroken strip of sand dunes and coral outcroppings stretching from what is now Pepper Park in St. Lucie County to Peck’s Lake or the Gilbert’s Bar Inlet in Martin County. Today, the name Hutchinson Island applies to the land mass from the St. Lucie Inlet to the Indian River-St. Lucie counties line.

Early Spanish maps give the island the name “Barra de Ayes” or Bar of the Ayes Indians, whose villages, shell middens and burial mounds dotted the land. It was a wild, desolate stretch with low trees and bushes through which brown bear ambled, and to which sea turtles came to lay eggs. Fresh water was scarce, usually found in shallow wells fed by rain water The Quaker merchant Jonathan Dickinson, who was shipwrecked on the island in 1696 gives a vivid description of the hardships of life on the island in his book “God’s Protecting Providence.”

James Hutchinson, a Georgia plantation owner, gave the island its modern name when he obtained a Spanish grant to at least 2,000 acres on the mainland and the island in August 1803. He moved his family and slaves onto the island to escape the predations of the natives. He grew beans.

He was sometimes attacked at sea by pirates or slavers. He sailed to St. Augustine in April 1808 seeking protection from the governor, but drowned on a return trip.

The island became embroiled in a series of legal battles, finally ending with his heirs winning title. But the island remained so desolate that in 1876, the U.S. Life Savings Services ordered construction of rescue stations along its east coast. The House of Refuge Museum in Martin County is the only remaining structure from that project.

Members of the Armed Occupation Act Colony of 1842 made the first opening of the modern St. Lucie Inlet which would be completely opened before World War I.

The modern development of the island came slowly with a few building on the beach opposite Fort Pierce, across from Jensen Beach, and near the House of Refuge in Martin County. Construction of the Fort Pierce Inlet and the Port of Fort Pierce was in 1922. The Indian River Inlet at Pepper Park was also filled in at this time.

The construction of new bridges in Martin County in 1956, and later the extension of A1A along the island from Fort Pierce, opened the way for the construction of condominiums, restaurants, clubs and hotels along the island.

Fast Facts:

• Hutchinson Island is named for James Hutchinson, a farmer in the early 1800’s.

• FPL’s Energy Encounter at the St. Lucie nuclear plant features exhibits on energy, electricity and nuclear power. They also offer guided sea turtle excursions in June and July, where participants may get to see nesting turtles.

• Loggerhead, Green and Leatherback are three species of sea turtles that nest on Hutchinson Island.

• Hutchinson Island is bordered by the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean.

• Every year, local volunteers join the International Coastal Cleanup to remove trash from Hutchinson Island.

• Sea horses, sting rays and other coastal creatures are featured at the Florida Oceanographic Coastal Center.

• Bathtub Beach at the south end of Hutchinson Island is a popular beach for families.

• St. Lucie nuclear power plant (unit 1) began operation in 1976.

 Hobe Sound - Hutchinson Island - Jensen Beach - Jupiter Island - Palm City - Port Salerno - Sewall's Point - Stuart