Today in Keys History – April 30, 2024
- Keys History Center
- Apr 29, 2024
- 2 min read
1898 – War prices ruled in Key West. A tall glass of soda cost 15 cents, lemonade 20 cents, and beer 25 cents. Drinking water, too, was valuable, as there was shortage due to a lack of rain.
1924 – Renowned Key West sailor Capt. James A. Lowe was presumed drowned after his boat was found near the Marquesas Keys and he had not been seen for 13 days. Lowe had worked on the water for 60 years, and it was said he was never content on land, seldom remaining ashore more than three or four days before returning to sea.
1936 – The bridge linking No Name and Big Pine keys was destroyed by fire, cutting off access for highway ferry travelers to the Lower Keys. Officials promised to rebuild as quickly as possible, though it would take weeks to deliver construction materials to the site.
1966 – Three Key West High School seniors were killed and one critically injured in a car crash on Old Boca Chica Road after the Junior/Senior Prom.
1980 – Six boats with about 200 refugees came from Mariel, Cuba. This brought the number of migrants to arrive in Key West over the past two weeks to more than 4,700.
2009 – Key West was expecting 19 previously unscheduled cruise ships over the next month, as swine flu forced them to be rerouted from Mexico.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Overloaded refugee boats at Key West during the Mariel Boatlift, 1980. Dale McDonald Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.