1852 – The bark General Thomas, sailing from St. Marks to New York with a cargo of cotton and tobacco, went ashore on Middle Key, Dry Tortugas. Wreckers refloated the vessel by removing 300 bales of cotton, and it was towed to Key West for repair.
1891 – Key Wester Eddie Mathews shot a Cuban man named Julio at G.V. Johnson’s butcher pen, 917 Windsor Lane, injuring him about the face. The Key West Equator-Democrat newspaper alleged the incident was being covered up to keep it out of court.
1915 – The fishing smack Feles went aground at the Dry Tortugas during a storm and was a complete wreck. One crewman drowned; his body was recovered and buried on Bird Key.
1931 – The USS Constitution, “Old Ironsides,” the oldest ship in the Navy, was welcomed to Key West by a crowd of more than 600 who witnessed her moor at Porter Docks. Captain R.T. Menner, Commander of the Naval Base, and Mayor Leslie A. Curry welcomed the ship and crew to the city.
1938 – The new Trumbo Hotel on Trumbo Island opened. The 40-room facility featured a restaurant with a dance club, bathing beach, golf driving range, and tennis courts.
1939 – The Key West Amusement Park on Trumbo Island celebrated its grand opening, led by local dignitaries and a ribbon cutting ceremony by “Miss Key West,” Bernice Brantley. The park featured a multitude of rides and games, a wild west show, a hippodrome, trained animal acts and high-wire performers.
1969 – Florida Keys Junior College had an enrollment of 900 students, up 30% over the previous year.
Information compiled by the late Tom Hambright, Historian Emeritus, and Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Club Cayo Hueso in the Trumbo Hotel on Trumbo Point, Key West C 1940. Key West’s Coolest and Finest Night Club. The Scott DeWolfe Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center