As they say today, this is where the rubber hits the road. The coral blocks were transported here from Camp 1 to be inserted into the bridge piers forms. The State Road Department had its quarterboat acting as an office and living space. About 250 veterans had wooded living quarters - 8 people to a buildings. The civilian workers had the same quarters but 4 to a building - a serious point of contention.
      This was the southern tip of Lower Matecumbe Key to the west of the railroad, highway and ferry landing. Also there was a small fish camp of the Crosland Fish Company of Miami. This was just a dock for fueling, supplying, loading and unloaded fish, generally
       The Bradson family, Cardy, his wife Elizabeth and his father Carson operated a cafe serving highway traffic, fishermen and the veterans, mackerel, to it processing plants in Miami.
        All the above commercial operations were concentrated on around an acre of property. The property west of these was VRC 3.
       Camp 3 was a large and complex operation including operating as a mini seaport. It was not a seaport in the sense of incoming and outgoing ocean traffic, but it serviced the Sarasota quarterboat, a huge dredge, several pile drivers, coffer plate drivers, barges, several tug boats, a floating concrete plant, a mosquito control boat, etc. Potable water was brought in by rail tank cars and pumped into an elevated tank for gravity supplying. A desal plant was under construction. It was by far the largest mini port operation other than Key West which supported the sponge, shrimp, P&O steamship line not mention the US. Navy. I will estimate it was 20 to 30 acres in size allowing for expansion. No actual plans have ever been found, which to me is surprising. No management or operating plans have been found to my knowledge. No surveys for the bridge and highway construction. These almost must be archived someplace, but until they are found we will try of interpret from often perspective deceiving aerial photos if not directly overhead. The headquarters for the administration of the veteran work force was at the Matecumbe Hotel at Islamorada.
        For images I begin with five photos at the right to portray the camp 3 area of the past - left clicking on the photos should slightly enlarge them. Other than the quarry, all construction work was in or out of Camp 3. On a typical work day there would be the 250 veterans who lived there, from 125 to 150 from Camp 5 and around 50 to 75 technical and operational workers primarily under the SRD.
        The first photo is one half of an undated panoramic image representing the easter portion of camp 3. The background is the Atlantic Ocean. Closer to us from across the upper portion is the railroad and just this direction is the highway. At the center left is a group of 64 cabins which housed from 4 to 8 people per unit. At the center right is the transportation building with a a few other offices. The other half of the photo has a few more cabins, an open air storage area of lumber, etc. plus some uncleared land. To the right of this image would the work area of docks, concrete plants, fuel storage, etc. I would estimate that the photographer was facing about east.
        The second photo was taken from the Channel 2 bridge approach looking back at the ferry landing to the right and the eastern part of Camp 3 to center and left. The docks and bridge construction area is seen in this photo. Again estimating the photographer is facing about north.
       The third photo is of the same U.S.G.S. 1935 aerial survey that I used to show the Windley Key camp 1 living area. For some reason the resolution is not as good here and all that I can detect is a warehouse and 16 either square tents or cabins. The negatives of this U.S.G.S. survey are not dated and I attempt estimating a date for object seen which provide a reasonable date. We know that the Windley Key camp was not started until November 7, 1934; and it was destroyed September 2, 1935; therefore, the date is within this range. My estimate the third photo is December, 1934 in the early construction stage.
        The fourth photo shown at the right is from the the U.S. Coast Guard seaplane that flew over on an inspection and photo-op during Wednesday, September 4, 1935. Actually on one flight, possibly this one, it landed and took some wounded out - Camp 3 was totally isolated when two causeways to its north was washed out. Even though this image is slightly out of focus, the entire end of Lower Matecumbe Key is in view. At the left is Hurricane Creek, in the center is the remains of Camp 3, to its right is ferry landing, then the railroad. At the lower right is the SRD quarterboat, Sarasota. To the left is Miami and to the right Key West. The ferry landing at No Name Key was not damaged and I am not certain why it was not used for relief efforts.
       The fifth photo below right is a March 16, 1958 aerial which at the bottom, shows the area known as Toll Gate Shores subdivision which had recently been developed. It was named after the vehicle highway toll gate that was there from 1938 to 1954 and/or the Toll Gate Inn restaurant and motel that was in operation on the highway with a long fishing and boating pier diagonally out into the water. The Boy Scouts of America's Sea Base Camp is where the ferry landing, Crosland Fish Co. and Bradford store were. The left two closed water inlets were the two used for docking the Camp 3 marine equipment. I feel almost certain that the subdivision developer dredged the other canals plus modifying Hurricane Creek.
       Recently named Veterans Key which is the remains of the earthern road approach leading to the surviving eight bridge piers are clearly seen.
       Channel 2 bridge is top-center.
       The Key Veteran News (KVN), the local veterans' produced newspaper, in its June 8th 1935 issue pub ished a collage of eight photos taken by Lenny Picata. The collage had a printed description below the group.  I scanned and extracted each as a separate photo and added a caption from their selection. Remember, photos from newspapers are half-toned meaning shades of gray is done with the density of dots - solid dots black, no dots white paper - in this case stained light brown; therefore of degraded resolution.
       Again I will have to do some space management as I have little text to accompany each photo. Photo number one shown at the right is titled - Pioneers arriving on the site of Camp No. 3. This was a collage of photos and meant to viewed as such. Please follow the black numbers in white circles. I will resist making up text just to fill space. There is a second collage that will further explain the purpose - to build a concrete arch bridge much as Henry Flagler did for the railroad. Follow the numbers and some are portrait photos and some are landscape, so they do not fit nicely together - there is more.
       Below left in photo 1 are the work crew who were the first veteran laborers at Camp 3. The June 1935 date is the issue date of the KVN's.
   

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-     The skyline image above is earlier than the August 10, 1935 publication. The pile drivers here are contract machines and crews (G.O. Reed, Inc.) and were to show progress in the project. These were probably the three groups that were completed when the Hurricane hit. It is difficult to see but considerable dredging has been done to make the eventual earthern approach to connect the concrete bridge to Lower Matecumbe Key. The remains of this fill was responsible for Veterans Key coming into existence - both ends of the approach were washed out.
         The piles shown in the above photo were to support the sheet piles for a steel cofferdam. A cofferdam, aka coffer, is a sealable enclosure which allows work surrounded by water. In this case steel corrugated coffer piles were driven into the bottom to form a rectangular form. Another name is a caisson. Next the steel coffer dams were sealed, the water pumped down and more piles driven in the center to anchor the entire pier when completed, then a wooden form built to contain the concrete and coral block combination . Then the concrete plant and a combination of derricks anchored and the two (coral blocks and concrete) were placed and poured, then allowed to cure. Both outer casings were removed and reused if serviceable.
       The following images are from the July 13, 1935 issue of the Key Veteran News. This images are of technical nature and I ask not to forget the men how labored to make these photo possible. Unfortunately this issue's photos are very poor, but hopefully good enough to portray the construction scenario. Photo number one was too poor to be used; therefore, I begin with number two:
   The photo at the left (2) with two hoppers, one for portland cement and the for sand/gravel is the barge mounted concrete plant. I am not certain how the concrete was mixed or transported to the cofferdam.
   The photo to the right (3) shows the concrete plant with two barge mounted derricks filling a cofferdam with coral blocks surrounded with concrete.

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    Number 4 photo shows a 5-ton coral block from Camp 1 quarry being lowered above an open cofferdam for placement inside, then surrounded by a concrete mixture.

   Number 5 photo shows an empty wooden form after it has been anchored at the bottom with driven piles and sealed with concrete. This cofferdam is ready to be filled with coral blocks and concrete.
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   The photo to the left shows two workers distributing new concrete in layers in preparation for placing a coral block as a filler; thereby, reducing the amount of concrete required.  I see nothing to connect the layers together.


   At the right is a coral block being lowered into proper placement for enclosing with concrete. Note the simple tongs apparatus for holding the block of coral. This lifting and lowering procedure was a function of the derrick and a team of riggers. Note the blocks are being lowered across the pier and each block is 8-feet across.
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- Below left in photo 8 is a worker according to the caption "tamping" new concrete. The vertical pipe is in a number of photos and I am not certain what use it was - most likely to evacuate water or bring in concrete. Below right in photo 9 is the wooden form for concrete containment and the sawed off tops of pilings that have been driven down into the cap rock of the Channel 2 area.
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