Cottrell Key is an island in the

Florida Keys The Florida Keys are a coral island, coral cay archipelago off the southern coast of Florida, forming the southernmost part of the continental United States. They begin at the southeastern coast of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami a ...

in Monroe County,

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It is within the boundaries of the Key West National Wildlife Refuge. Located in the Outlying Islands of the Florida Keys, it is the northernmost of the

Mule Keys The Mule Keys are a group of scattered islets in the Florida Keys in Monroe County, Florida, United States. They are between west of Key West, separated from it by the Northwest Channel. On the west, they are separated from the Marquesas Keys by ...

that are 9 miles (15 km) west of

Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...

. It is named for Captain Jeremiah Cottrell, who was the captain of a

lightship A lightvessel, or lightship, is a ship that acts as a lighthouse. It is used in waters that are too deep or otherwise unsuitable for lighthouse construction. Although some records exist of fire beacons being placed on ships in Roman times, the ...

that was anchored at the key in the early 19th century.

References

Islands of the Florida Keys Islands of Monroe County, Florida Islands of Florida {{monroeCountyFL-geo-stub