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Geography | |
---|---|
Location | North Atlantic |
Coordinates | 27°33′25″N80°19′29″W / 27.55694°N 80.32472°W |
Area | 61.8 km2 (23.9 sq mi) |
Length | 45 km (28 mi) |
Administration | |
State | Florida |
Counties | St. Lucie, Indian River |
North Hutchinson Island is a coastal barrier island in Indian River and St. Lucie counties on the east coast of Florida in the United States. The island is adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean and is separated from the mainland on the west by the Indian River Lagoon. The portion of the island in Indian River County is known as Orchid Island.
North Hutchinson Island is an Atlantic barrier island located on Florida's Treasure Coast approximately 110 miles (180 km) north of Fort Lauderdale. The island extends from the Sebastian Inlet on the north to the Fort Pierce Inlet on the south, and is about 28 miles (45 km) long. [1] It has an area of 23.86 square miles (61.8 km2).
The island was once included with the barrier island (Hutchinson Island) to the south as "Hutchinson Island", even though the Fort Pierce Inlet split it into two islands. In 1985, Indian River County renamed its portion of the island "Orchid Island", to distinguish it from the high density development occurring on Hutchinson Island in St. Lucie County. [2]
State Road A1A is the main road for the length of the island, and four bridges provide access to the mainland. For most of its length, A-1-A is known as Atlantic Beach Boulevard. [3] North Hutchinson Island has many county and state parks and preserves, and is one of the few areas on the east coast of Florida with several accreting (growing) beaches.
A number of restaurants, hotels and shops are located on, or easily accessible to the island. Activities on North Hutchinson Island include fishing, snorkeling, boating, kayaking, hiking, biking, surfing, parasurfing, paddleboarding, and wildlife observation. On the northern end of the island is Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, the nation's first refuge was established by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1903 with over 5,400 acres (22 km2) of protected waters and lands. [4] Avalon State Park located on A-1-A near the St. Lucie County line provides a number of recreational opportunities and its beach is used by visitors for swimming, snorkeling, surfing, and scuba diving. The area ecosystem provides a habitat for varied marine wildlife including manatees, dolphins, sea turtles, many species of fish, and birds. [5]
The city of Vero Beach lies on both sides of the Indian River, with its main business and residential areas on the mainland. Two of the island's four bridges from the mainland lie within the city limits. Other communities on the island include the towns of Indian River Shores and Orchid, and the census-designated places of South Beach, Wabasso Beach and Windsor.
Sites of interest on/near North Hutchinson Island include:
Indian River County is a county located in the southeastern and east-central portions of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 159,788. Its seat is Vero Beach. It is Florida's 7th richest county and in 2000 was the 87th richest county in the U.S. by per capita income.
Martin County is a county located in the southeastern part of the state of Florida, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 158,431. Its county seat is Stuart. Martin County is in the Port St. Lucie, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area.
St. Lucie County is a county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 329,226. The county's seat is Fort Pierce, while the largest city is Port St. Lucie, making up 62% of the county's population. St. Lucie County is the principal county of the Port St. Lucie, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Windsor, formerly known as North Beach, is a gated community and census-designated place (CDP) on North Hutchinson Island in Indian River County, Florida, United States. The population was 256 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Sebastian–Vero Beach Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Orchid is a town in Indian River County, Florida, United States. The population was 415 at the 2010 census and was the ninth highest-income place in the United States. It is ranked sixth in Florida locations by per capita income. Orchid is part of the Sebastian–Vero Beach Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Sebastian is a city in Indian River County, Florida, United States at the confluence of the St. Sebastian River and the Indian River. It is two miles away from the Atlantic Ocean. It is the largest city in Indian River County and the biggest population center between Palm Bay and Fort Pierce. The city's economy is heavily reliant on tourism. It has numerous resorts in the local area, such as Disney's Vero Beach Resort. It is very close to many natural and scenic areas like the Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, Sebastian Inlet State Park, and St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park.
Winter Beach is a census-designated place (CDP) in Indian River County, Florida, United States. The population was 2,067 at the 2010 census, up from 965 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Sebastian–Vero Beach Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge is a United States National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), and part of the Everglades Headwaters NWR complex, located just off the western coast of North Hutchinson Island in the Indian River Lagoon east of Sebastian, Florida. The refuge consists of a 3-acre (12,000 m2) island that includes an additional 2.5 acres (10,000 m2) of surrounding water and is located off the east coast of Florida of the Indian River Lagoon. Established by an executive order of President Theodore Roosevelt on March 14, 1903, Pelican Island was the first National wildlife refuge in the United States. It was created to protect egrets and other birds from extinction through plume hunting.
Sebastian Inlet State Park is a Florida state park located 10 miles south of Melbourne Beach and 6 miles north of Vero Beach in Florida. The park lies on both sides of the Sebastian Inlet, which forms the boundary between Brevard and Indian River counties. The land for the park was acquired by the state of Florida in 1971. In 2010, it was the second most visited state park in Florida.
Jupiter Island is a barrier island on the coast of Martin and Palm Beach counties, Florida. It is bounded on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the north by the St. Lucie Inlet, on the west by the Indian River, and on the south by the Jupiter Inlet. Jupiter Island originally was two islands, Long Island on the north and Jupiter Island on the south, which were once separated by an inlet in the vicinity of North Jupiter Narrows and what is officially called Peck Lake, but commonly called Peck's Lake.
State Road A1A (SR A1A) is a major north–south Florida State Road that runs 338.752 miles (545.168 km) along the Atlantic Ocean, from Key West at the southern tip of Florida, to Fernandina Beach, just south of Georgia on Amelia Island. It is the main road through most oceanfront towns. Part of SR A1A is designated the A1A Scenic and Historic Coastal Byway, a National Scenic Byway. A portion of SR A1A that passes through Volusia County is designated the Ormond Scenic Loop and Trail, a Florida Scenic Highway. It is also called the Indian River Lagoon Scenic Highway from State Road 510 at Wabasso Beach to U.S. Route 1 in Cocoa. SR A1A is famous worldwide as a center of beach culture in the United States, a scenic coastal route through most Atlantic coastal cities and beach towns, including the unique tropical coral islands of the Florida Keys. SR A1A also serves as a major thoroughfare through Miami Beach and other south Florida coastal cities.
The Treasure Coast is a region in the southeast of the U.S. state of Florida. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and comprises Indian River, Martin, and St. Lucie counties. The region, whose name refers to the Spanish Treasure Fleet that was lost in a 1715 hurricane, evidently emerged from residents' desire to distinguish themselves from the Gold Coast to the south.
The Houses of Refuge in Florida were a series of stations operated by the United States Life Saving Service along the coast of Florida to rescue and shelter ship-wrecked sailors. Five houses were constructed on the east coast in 1876, with five more added in 1885 and 1886. There were also two life-saving stations built, one just south of the Jupiter Inlet, the other on the Gulf coast on Santa Rosa Island near Pensacola, Florida. A house of refuge was planned for the Marquesas Keys, but was never put into commission. The houses were staffed by civilian contractors who lived in the houses with their families. Most of these houses remained in service as life-saving stations until 1915 or later. Some of the locations became United States Coast Guard stations after the Life-Saving Service was merged with the United States Revenue Cutter Service to form the Coast Guard in 1915.
The St. Lucie Inlet, Florida is located between Hutchinson Island and Jupiter Island in Martin County, Florida, at coordinates 27°09′58″N80°09′24″W. The St. Lucie Inlet is one of six inlets into the Indian River Lagoon.
Fort Pierce Inlet State Park, a 340-acre (1.4 km2) part of the Florida State Park system, is located just north of the Fort Pierce Inlet, on North Hutchinson Island, near Fort Pierce. It consists of beaches, dunes and a coastal hammock between the Atlantic Ocean and the waters of Tucker Cove, an indentation of the Indian River Lagoon.
State Road 510 is a 2.606-mile-long (4.194 km) state highway in northern Indian River County, extending from U.S. Route 1 in Wabasso to SR A1A in Orchid. The route acts primarily as a bridge across the Indian River, known as the Wabasso Causeway, the northernmost crossing of the Intracoastal Waterway in Indian River County. The entire highway is on the Indian River Lagoon Scenic Highway.
Hutchinson Island consists of two barrier islands on the coast of Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River counties, in Florida. The two islands are separated by the Fort Pierce Inlet and are known as "North Hutchinson Island" and "South Hutchinson Island".
The following is an alphabetical list of articles related to the U.S. state of Florida.
School District of Indian River County (SDIRC), also known as Indian River County School District, is a public school district that covers Indian River County, Florida. The district headquarters are in Vero Beach.