1832 – A reporter visiting Key West wrote, “We visited the Salt Ponds, which are now in operation; the pans have been filled for some time with water, and evaporation to a considerable extent has taken place. There can be but little doubt of the success of the experiment – salt having been formed in very considerable quantities by solar evaporation, unaided by artificial means, on the site now occupied by the ponds.”
1838 – Tomas Sachetti was elected Mayor of Key West. He was the candidate of a group of merchants opposed to occupational licenses that former Mayor William Whitehead had passed to pay the city expenses.
1934 – Lou Gehrig, the New York Yankees first baseman, was spending a few days fishing with Mrs. Gehrig at the Long Key Fishing Camp.
1946 – The City of Key West was set to begin construction of a municipal scavenger pier at the end of Grinnell Street which would be used for a barge and tug. As it was, waste was being taken to the northside of Stock Island to be dumped and burned, a smoky and unsightly method of disposal. The pier would allow garbage to be put on the barge, so it could be disposed of offshore.
1948 – The County Home on Stock Island was opened and the 18 occupants of the old home, on Poorhouse Lane, were moved to the new facility.
1950 – Igor Sikorsky, famed aviator and plane manufacturer, arrived at the La Concha Hotel for a short vacation.
1964 – Former President Harry Truman and wife Bess arrived at Indies House on Duck Key to start a three-week vacation.
1978 – William E.P. Roberts Jr. was hired as the first Monroe County Administrator. The appointment was effective on April 1 with a four-year contract with a salary of $30,000 per year.
1993 – The 147-foot freighter Miss Beholden was aground on Western Sambo Reef. The captain, fearing the ship was sinking during the winter storm March 13, had it run aground for safety.
2007 – The Monroe County School Board was deliberating the need for employee housing on the Sugarloaf School grounds. Public opposition to the proposed project had been strong.
Information compiled by Tom Hambright, Historian Emeritus, and Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Former President Harry Truman and John Spottswood at Duck Key. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.