1926 – Herman Wolkowsky of Key West erected a 16-by-24-foot promotional sign in Miami that read “You Have Not Seen Florida Until You See Key West.” On the back it said, “The Only Frostless City In The United States.”
1928 – Adjutant General Vivien B. Collins authorized National Guard units from Miami and Key West to Matecumbe Key to quell disturbances caused by striking veterans employed on FERA bridge projects for the Overseas Highway.
1936 – Florida Governor Dave Sholtz appointed Rogelio Gomez of Key West as Monroe County Judge to replace Hugh Gunn, who had died.
1941 – E.J. Gosselin of Key West replaced Wilbur Dale of Miami as carpenter’s foreman on a low-cost housing project. Dale was ordered to leave the island as part of a move by Key West workers to oust “out-of-town” men. “We’re tired of having all the jobs taken by workmen from other cities,” said a spokesman.
1953 – Rev. W.N. Everett was named pastor of the Bethel A.M.E. Church at 907 Thomas Street, Key West.
1953 – The Islander, Monroe County’s first modern drive-in theater, opened for business on Stock Island. It had the largest screen in the state of Florida. The featured film was “The Cimarron Kid” starring Audie Murphy and Yvette Dugay. The theater had space for 600 cars with about 2,000 patrons.
1983 – St. Mary Immaculate High School was threatened with closure unless funds demanded by the archbishop as a show of good faith by the community could be raised.
1996 – The Key West High School baseball team was rated number one in the country by USA Today.
2019 – The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary reported that three vessels had wrecked on Keys reefs over the previous week – one in Pennekamp State Park off Key Largo, one at Little Conch Reef near Tavernier and another at Ballast Key.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Aerial view of the Islander Drive-in on Stock Island, ca. 1980. Dale McDonald Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.