Shorty’s Diner, circa 1980
1845 – Wreckers were at work salvaging the cargo of the ship Rizeni, aground on the reef near Rodriguez Key. The Rizeni, bound from New York to New Orleans with assorted cargo, was the first ship to have wrecked in the Keys quite a while, and the recovery effort was the talk of Key West.
1861 – Key West Mayor John P. Baldwin was removed from office when Florida officials were removed because of secession.
1913 – Cuban aviator Domingo Rosillo made the first successful fight across the Florida Straits, traveling from Key West to Cuba. Rosillo left the railroad facilities on Trumbo Island at 5:45 a.m. and landed in Havana at 8:10. The Havana City Council awarded him a prize of $10,000 for his pioneering achievement.
1916 – Palm Beach millionaire Russell Hopkins proposed to the Key West City Council to build a winter residence and a tourist hotel at the sites of the East and West Martello Towers. The Council, Board of County Commissioners, Board of Trade and the Rotary Club sent resolutions to the U.S. government in support of the idea.
1923 – Two dozen Greek spongers from Tarpon Springs had a hearing in Key West before Judge Hugh Gunn. The men had been arrested near the Marquesas Keys for using diving gear to retrieve sponges.
1926 – Mrs. Reca Peacon of Key West was building a new beachfront bungalow getaway on Matecumbe Key. The one-story frame construction home with six rooms was to sit over a 12,000-gallon cistern, and a modern electric plant would be on the grounds. Melville Russell was in charge of construction.
1937 – At 2 a.m., a bomb exploded outside a Passover Lane home near Olivia Street – the second such bombing in 10 days. The victims of the two attacks were sisters, and both homes were known for social gatherings, but there was no obvious motive for the acts. Sheriff Karl Thompson was coordinating a multi-department investigation to find the perpetrators.
1949 – General Eurico Gaspar Dutra, President of Brazil, arrived at Naval Air Station Key West and was taken to the Little White House where he spent the night.
1951 – More than 50 American and Cuban dignitaries and air enthusiasts dedicated a monument near the corner of Grinnell and Caroline Streets to mark the first successful flight by Major Domingo Rosillo from Key West to Havana. The 75-year-old Rosillo attended the ceremony as guest of honor.
1954 – An official party of Cuban dignitaries arrived to take part in the Fiesta Alegre y Beneficia to celebrate Cuban Independence. They were met by a Key West group that started the Fiesta led by Julio Cabanas Jr., president of the San Carlos Institute.
1980 – A Cuban refugee boat capsized, killing 14 of the 52 people reported aboard. The Coast Guard rescued the others.
1989 – Shorty’s Diner, an institution on Duval Street since 1942, closed for the last time. A.J. Galloway, son of the founder, announced he was moving to central Florida and taking a long rest.
1993 – The Monroe County Library branch on Fleming Street in Key West held its grand re-opening after a major renovation and addition.
Information compiled by Tom Hambright, Historian Emeritus, and Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Shorty’s Diner at 215 Duval Street circa 1980. Dale McDonald Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.