Longboat Key

Longboat Key is a town in Manatee and Sarasota counties along the central west coast of the U.S. state of Florida, located on and coterminous with the barrier island of the same name. Longboat Key is south of Anna Maria Island, between Sarasota Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. It is almost equally divided between Manatee and Sarasota counties. The town of Longboat Key was incorporated in 1955 and is part of the Bradenton - Sarasota - Venice Metropolitan Statistical Area.The town's population was 6,888 at the 2010 census, down from 7,603 at the 2000 census.HistoryEarly History 1538-1848Longboat Key was originally inhabited by Native Americans. The area what is now Longboat Key was scouted by Juan Anasco who was the first known white man to explore the key and Hernando De Soto's scout. He spent about 2 months attempting to find a landing site, he was also most likely the first man to see and explore Sarasota Bay, Boca Ceiga Bay and the Manatee River. According to local legend he believed the Indians were hostile and when they reached land on the island and fled leaving their Longboat in a bayou. Pirate Jean Lafitte was said to have been shipwrecked near or on Longboat Key. For the next 304 years it was ignored.