1898 – Five sailors’ bodies recovered from the Battleship Maine, sunk in Havana Harbor, were buried in the Maine Plot in the Key West City Cemetery.
1924 – It was expected that one or more Key West women would run in the upcoming primary elections. An unnamed woman was almost surely to run for Superintendent of Public Instruction, and another was thought to be interested in being state representative from Monroe County.
1933 – Wm. W. Demeritt submitted his two-year study of mourning doves to the U.S. Biological Survey in Washington. In his research, Demeritt captured, tagged, and released 706 doves in the vicinity of Key West and then kept records of what became of them.
1971 – Racial unrest resulting from the arrest of a 15-year-old led to two Key West buildings being firebombed. The Benitez Grocery at Simonton Street was damaged by an incendiary device, and Padron’s Grocery at 800 Whitehead Street was later destroyed.
1980 – Congressman Dante Fascell announced that the Navy would base a squadron of hydrofoil ships in Key West.
2000 — A man walking his dog on Big Pine Key came across the severed head of a Key deer. Fish & Wildlife staff were unable to locate the body, but they were confident the crime would be solved. 2009 – The commercial spiny lobster season ended on a low note, as multiple storms and low prices reduced both the catch and revenues. It was the worst season in 20 years.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Padron’s Grocery Store at 800 Whitehead Street ca. 1970. Photo by Don Pinder. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.