Boca Chita Key's History Carl Fisher, Mark Honeywell

Boca Chita Key has been an island ever since the last ice age when sea levels rose and turned a swampy area into Biscayne Bay. Much more recently it was owned by Carl Fisher, founder of the Indy 500. It was then sold to Mark Honeywell, owner of Honeywell heating controls. Parties were thrown for a club consisting exclusively of the 100 wealthiest industrialists of the time. Fisher would sometimes bring a pet elephant to the parties and Honeywell liked to fire the ancient cannon to signal the arrival of guests in their luxury yachts.

The area where the lighthouse stands was created from the bay using fill dug out when making the harbor. The original wood house built by Fisher is gone, but its foundation is still visible near where the bathrooms are today. At that time, the island sloped down in the direction of what is now the harbor to a beach where the harbor is now. Eventually most of the island was developed with many more buildings than exist today. A wall cuts the island in half, and everything south of the wall has been allowed to return to its natural state. Ariel photographs from that time are on display in the lighthouse which show cleared land and structures on the south half of the island.
Epic parties were thrown by the oligarchs which are echoed today by people from Miami who come out to spend weekends and holidays here. Typically there are more boats than the harbor can accommodate, music, barbecues and a good time for all.