<Li> SR <Ul> <Li> Former </Li> <Li> Pre-1945 </Li> </Ul> </Li> <Ul> <Li> Former </Li> <Li> Pre-1945 </Li> </Ul> <P> The Overseas Highway is a 113 - mile (181.9 km) highway carrying U.S. Route 1 (US 1) through the Florida Keys . Large parts of it were built on the former right - of - way of the Overseas Railroad, the Key West Extension of the Florida East Coast Railway . Completed in 1912, the Overseas Railroad was heavily damaged and partially destroyed in the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 . The Florida East Coast Railway was financially unable to rebuild the destroyed sections, so the roadbed and remaining bridges were sold to the state of Florida for $640,000 . </P> <P> Since the 1950s the Overseas Highway has been refurbished into a main coastal highway between the cities of Miami and Key West, offering travelers an exotic roadway through a tropical savanna environment and access to the largest area of coral reefs on the U.S. mainland . Many exotic animals such as the American Crocodile and Key Deer inhabit the tropical islands of the Florida Keys . </P>

When was the road to key west built