1884 – The plant on Emma Street for manufacturing gas from coal for home and street lighting was completed.
1924 – Jailor Joe Kemp completed an overhaul of the Monroe County Jail. All cells had been painted inside and out; the walls were freshly painted; and bedding renovated. In a new policy, prisoners were being required to work, but they appreciated the way they were being treated.
1926 – A. Dice (aka Lorencio Ortega) was apprehended in New York after he fled Key West on a Mallory steamship. Dice was wanted for killing Mercedes Carmancho and Manuel Jimenez on Whitehead Street six days earlier. Monroe County Sheriff Cleveland Niles planned to retrieve Dice as soon as extradition papers were signed.
1938 – The grand opening of the new Overseas Highway was held on the Bahia Honda Bridge. The new highway used some of the old railroad bridges to eliminate the auto ferries.
1942 – The merchant vessel Edward Luckenbach was sunk when it strayed in the U.S. Navy minefield north of Key West. The Luckenbach was sailing from Kingston, Jamaica, for New Orleans with a cargo of tungsten, zinc, antimony, and tin. One man was killed in the accident.
1994 – A film crew from the White House was in Marathon to document the success of the “Bay Watch” monitoring program. Bay Watch had been organized by the Nature Conservancy in conjunction with government agencies to document the health of Florida Bay by both air and sea. “This is a model project,” said an EPA representative.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: The wall around the jail yard behind the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office at 500 Whitehead street ca. 1920s. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.