1825 – U.S. Navy vessels were successfully patrolling Cuban waters against pirates, and a report from Key West said, “…no piracy can be well committed without being discovered, and none has been heard of for some months past.”
1923 – On account of the death of President Warren Harding, all amateur and military league sports in Monroe County were postponed for 30 days.
1933 – So many had applied for the Key West Postmaster position that additional application forms were requested from Washington. Five applicants were expected, but as of this date 45 had put in for the job.
1952 – Charles Cremata, a member of the Key West Fire Department for 15 years, was named Fire Chief. He replaced Leroy Torres who had died two weeks before.
1967 – The Florida State Racing Commission approved a new dog track for Key West.
1976 – President Gerald Ford named Sidney Aronovitz, a Key West native, as United States District Court Judge for the Southern Florida District.
1984 – The freighter Wellwood ran aground just south of Molasses Reef inside the boundaries of the Key Largo Coral Reef National Marine Sanctuary.
1986 – An elephant carcass was found floating in a Marathon canal. Officials suspected it had died on a passing ship and was thrown overboard.
1993 – The Sheraton Suites Key West and the Jupiter Crab Company Restaurant held their grand opening celebration.
2011 – Key West-based NOAA Fisheries statistician Ed Little died. Little’s research into the life cycles of various marine species, particularly spiny lobster and bonefish, was crucial to understanding how they develop in the Florida Keys.
2016 – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave Oxitec, a British company, the go-ahead to release genetically modified mosquitos at Key Haven, after concluding the experimental release would have “no significant impact.”
Information compiled by Tom Hambright, Historian Emeritus, and Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Tony Trujillo, Charles Cremata and Jack Carey in front of the 12th Street Fire Station C 1950. Jeff Brodhead Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.