BUNCE VILLAGE

NAME: Bunce Village COUNTY: Pinellas ROADS: 2WD GRID: 3 CLIMATE: hot most of the year, mild in winter BEST TIME TO VISIT: anytime

COMMENTS: This is one of several fishing villages that Capt Bunce owned and operated around the Tampa Bay key islands. There was one in Sarasota, Passage Key, Desoto Point and others. Bunce Village is located at the NW edge of Mullet Key, on the shore of Bunce Pass. From Saint Petersburg take Route 682 to Route 679 (toll road). Head south to Mullet Key, bear right and follow Rt 679 until it ends (it loops next to a parking lot) An unmarked trail at the loop area leads to the site. REMAINS: none

The first permanent settler on Mullet Key was Capt. William Bunce, a Baltimore Sea Captain and Key West merchant. In 1837 he set up a fishing village there, growing to have 40 structures on the island. Bunce employed Spanish fishermen, Spanish-speaking Indians, Blacks, Cubans, and Seminoles for his fishing business. In 1848 Robert E. Lee, at the time a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. army, recommended that Mullet Key be used for coastal defense in Florida. Soon after, Bunce's fishing village was destroyed, considered by the U.S. Army to be a hiding place for renegade Spaniards. Submitted by: Jim Pike

Site of Bunce Village Courtesy Jim Pike

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