April 7

Fausto's Food Palace at 522 Fleming Street ca 1960s.

1930 – A golf match was held at the new course on Simonton Street, between Caroline and Eaton, in Key West.

1939 – The schooner Western Union was launched. It was the last large schooner built in Key West. Norberg Thompson built the ship for lease to the Western Union Telegraph Company.

1949 – Fausto’s Food Palace, a new, “ultra-modern” store, opened at 522 Fleming Street. The store was owned and operated by Carl and Ana Weekley. Ana Weekley was the daughter of the late Fausto Castillo, who had founded the business originally.

1950 – Milk in Monroe County was generally 5 cents more per quart than in Miami. The Florida Milk Commission said they had no control over prices in the Keys, prompting Key West Commissioner Louis Carbonell to introduce a resolution capping it at 25 cents per quart in the city.

1975 – Three men escaped from the Big Pine Key Prison “honor farm” by breaking a window and crawling out. Roadblocks were established, but the trio, “wearing standard prison garb,” had not yet been spotted.

2010 – The Monroe County unemployment rate stood at 8 percent, which was significantly lower than the Florida rate of 12.2 percent and the national rate of 10.4 percent.

Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.

Image: Fausto's Food Palace at 522 Fleming Street ca 1960s. Photo by Don Pinder. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.