1832 – The ship Shepherd, from Havana to Hamburg, went ashore in a gale at Conch Reef near Tavernier Key. The crew and part of the cargo were saved, but the ship itself was a total loss.
1846 – The ship St. Mark, sailing from Mobile to Liverpool, wrecked near the lightship on Carysfort Reef. The cargo of 1,700 bales of cotton was saved, but the vessel bilged, so it was stripped and abandoned.
1885 – The Cigarmakers Union went on strike at Key West, closing almost all the island’s factories. The workers were demanding uniform pay rates for different classes of cigar from factory to factory.
1917 – All saloons in Key West were closed in accordance with President Wilson’s proclamation prohibiting the sale of liquor within one-half mile of a military reservation. The island’s bar owners submitted a petition for 30 days reprieve to dispose of their stock, but no answer was returned.
1935 – A crowd estimated at 3,000 greeted the 265th Regiment Coast Artillery of the Florida National Guard when it arrived at the train station for its encampment at Fort Taylor. The troops marched to the Fort led by the American Legion Drum and Bugle Corps and the 29-piece Regimental Band under the command of Caesar LaMonaca.
1955 – A 26-year-old Navy man died of bulbar type of polio, the first death from the dreaded disease for the year.
1992 – The Lower Keys Ministerial Association met with Fantasy Fest organizers to voice concerns over the “Halloween in the Devil’s Triangle” theme for the year’s event. Fantasy Fest staff agreed to modify some of the promotional artwork that could be perceived as satanic.
1994 – A Coast Guard Cutter arrived in Key West with 117 Cuban refugees who had made a dash for freedom on a ferryboat, but which ran out of fuel 30 miles from Havana.
1995 – Captain Linda V. Hutton relieved Captain Jay Munninghoff as Commanding Officer Naval Air Station Key West.
2016 – The Key West City Commission banned the sale of dogs, cats, rabbits, ferrets, and guinea pigs from local pet stores to help lower the number of animals turned over to the SPCA and to discourage “puppy mill” pet breeding businesses.
Information compiled by Tom Hambright, Historian Emeritus, and Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: National Guard encampment at Fort Taylor C 1930s. Wright Langley Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.