Tamiami Trail and Monroe Station

Gateway arch to Collier County traveling from Miami west along the Tamiami Trail, soon after the road was open to the public ca. 1928.

In April 1928, the Tamiami Trail (Tampa to Miami Trail) was completed across the last great wilds of the eastern United States. The project was the first east/west corridor south of Lake Okeechobee on the Florida peninsula. The task of completing the trail from Miami to Fort Myers took more than 11 years at a cost of $7 million dollars and many declared the project an engineering feat comparable to building the Panama Canal.

History of the Tamiami Trail and Brief Review of the Road Construction Movement in Florida published by authority of the Tamiami Trail Commissioners and the County Commissioners of Dade County Florida, Miami 1928

 

Monroe Station

 

Soon after the Tamiami Trail was open six service stations were constructed along the most remote stretch of the road through Collier County, much of which is within Big Cypress National Preserve, today. The stations provided a welcome rest to the road-weary traveler, whose ultimate goal was the sun and sand of tropical Florida.