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is a census-designated place in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located on the east coast of the state on the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2000 census, the population was 36,090. It is part of the Palm Bay–Melbourne–Titusville Metropolitan Statistical Area. The name "Merritt Island" also refers to the extent of the former island, which is now a peninsula.
Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge and NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center are located on the northern part of Merritt Island. The area is heavily residential, with centralized light commercial and light industrial areas.
Merritt Island's recent history dates back into the mid-1800s and centers on the growth of citrus, stressing the cultivation of pineapples and oranges. The famous Indian River oranges and grapefruit come from this sandy area. The Island became a huge draw in the 1950s and '60s as the Space Race began and NASA expanded. Construction of a barge canal to the Intracoastal Waterway from the Atlantic Ocean (for power plant oil shipments) cut off the northern half of the island for many years and to this day it remains slightly less developed with few areas remaining cattle pasture or citrus land. Now though a 4-lane highway connects to the Space Center, moving workers rapidly from the more densely populated central and southern sections of the Island. The small towns on the island known as Georgiana, Courtenay, Tropic, Fairyland, Orsino, Angel City, Wilson, Lotus, Shiloh, Merritt City, and Indianola vanished with the coming of the Space Age, and now only live on in the names of streets and historic churches. The island does not belong to any official city. The central part of Merritt Island, previously known as Merritt City, is home to the majority of the population and includes the local high school, library, and shopping district.
With the lack of a municipal government Merritt Island is left to the administrative care of the local county government and the water and sewer (where available) are handled by neighboring Cocoa, Florida. As a result, there are no city taxes. The county maintains sheriff, fire, and EMS coverage.
With Merritt Island's central location within Brevard County, between Titusville and Melbourne, the region is a commercial economic hub with the crowded beaches to the east and the older mainland cities of Rockledge and Cocoa to the west.
The origin of Merritt Island's name is a matter of some debate. Most agree it's either named for a Spanish surveyor, Captain Pedro Marratt, or for a Revolutionary war hero, a Frenchman by the name of Murat.