All along the coast of Florida from Miami to north of Daytona Beach, these Houses of Refuge were built in the early-mid 1800's to watch for ship wrecks off the coast and rescue any survivors. These places were the precursors to the Coast Guard. These isolated families families had to battle hostile indians, wildlife, swarms of mosquitos and hurricanes in virtual isolation for years. A family lived in each one and every morning searched the beaches up and down in search of flotsam and survivors.