Jupiter Inlet District

Through the Jupiter Inlet and Out to Sea...

Historical accounts from the U.S. Army Corps Engineers date the Jupiter Inlet’s first appearance to 1671 when the Spanish first came to the area and produced maps. At first, the Jupiter Inlet was the only outlet for the Jupiter Sound, Lake Worth Creek, the Loxahatchee River (anchor link), and parts of the Indian River and St. Lucie River. The total flow was enough to maintain adequate depth throughout the Inlet with the exception of severe storm occurrences, in which case the Inlet would temporarily close.

The Jupiter Inlet was first known as Hobe, or Jobe for a tribe of aboriginal Jeaga Indians who lived on the banks of the Inlet and river. And so, when the Spanish explorers first came to the area, they named the river that ran into the Inlet the Jobe River in observance of the native tribe. Later, when the English settlers came upon the area in 1763, they interpreted Jobe as Jove, the mythological god, which in turn became Jupiter. Hobe or Hoe-Bay continues today as Jupiter’s neighbor Hobe Sound.

Before 1922, Jupiter Inlet was a natural inlet without any man-made structures at the Inlet mouth. Under the combined effect of tidal flow through the Inlet and the predominant littoral drift in the southward direction, the Inlet joined the Atlantic Ocean with an orientation in the southeastern direction. That year, chief engineer of Lake Worth, Florida, J. C. Wagen issued a permit to construct two, 400-foot long entrance jetties that were 122 meters apart from each other, on the north side and one on the south side of the Inlet. These jetties would provide the Inlet with stability and flow direction to the East. In order to do this, a channel was dredged in the easterly direction across the sand barrier. The channel was 30 meters wide at bottom with a 6-foot depth below the mean low water level. Following natural cycles of opening and closing, as well as years of maintenance, including extensions and modifications of the jetties and further dredging along the inlet, the Jupiter Inlet gradually became the main accessing channel from Jupiter to the Atlantic Ocean that many locals and tourists enjoy today. The Inlet offers a scenic view of the Jupiter Lighthouse before a day of boating and sport fishing ensues.

Things To Do In The Jupiter Inlet District: