The Sugarloaf Key Bat Tower in Florida is commonly known as Perky's Bat Tower. It is a historic site and is located in Monroe County in Florida. The Sugarloaf Key Bat Tower was built in 1929 by a fish lodge owner named Richter Clyde Perky. He built the tower to control the mosquito problem in the Lower Keys.
Perky's Bat Tower was based on the plans of a Dr. Charles Campbell. Dr. Campbell was an early pioneer of bat studies and his intent was to create a structure that would act as a roost for bats. It was supposed to be a deluxe bat house that the bats would continue to inhabit and in return would feast on the mosquitoes in the area that caused malaria.
Mr. Perky installed the huge wooden Bat Tower at great cost and shipped in hundreds of bats from Texas and Cuba. Unfortunately, the Bat Tower never worked out the way he would have liked. As soon as the bats were put into the tower, they all flew away and never came back.
Perky's Bat Tower is only one of fourteen Campbell towers that were built around the world. It is also one of the three towers that remain standing till today. The other two are in Comfort and Orange in Texas. The Temple Terrace Bat Tower in Florida is thought to be the first Campbell tower. However, it burned in 1979 and now consists of the concrete base and legs. Temple Terrace is in the process of rebuilding their 1924 tower.
The Perky's Bat Tower has been on the U.S. Register of Historic Places since 1982. Even though the tower is on the register of historic places, maintenance is rarely, if ever, undertaken. But ultimately the tower appears much the same as it did when it was first erected.
Perky's Bat Tower was based on the plans of a Dr. Charles Campbell. Dr. Campbell was an early pioneer of bat studies and his intent was to create a structure that would act as a roost for bats. It was supposed to be a deluxe bat house that the bats would continue to inhabit and in return would feast on the mosquitoes in the area that caused malaria.
Mr. Perky installed the huge wooden Bat Tower at great cost and shipped in hundreds of bats from Texas and Cuba. Unfortunately, the Bat Tower never worked out the way he would have liked. As soon as the bats were put into the tower, they all flew away and never came back.
Perky's Bat Tower is only one of fourteen Campbell towers that were built around the world. It is also one of the three towers that remain standing till today. The other two are in Comfort and Orange in Texas. The Temple Terrace Bat Tower in Florida is thought to be the first Campbell tower. However, it burned in 1979 and now consists of the concrete base and legs. Temple Terrace is in the process of rebuilding their 1924 tower.
The Perky's Bat Tower has been on the U.S. Register of Historic Places since 1982. Even though the tower is on the register of historic places, maintenance is rarely, if ever, undertaken. But ultimately the tower appears much the same as it did when it was first erected.
