1837 – The schooner Lagrange of Bristol, Rhode Island, ran ashore on Pickles Reef but was refloated after wreckers removed part of its cargo.
1850 – The Austrian barque Graziata, sailing from New Orleans to Trieste with 758 bales of cotton, wrecked on the reef off Key Largo at Black Caesar’s Creek. The vessel bilged and turned on its side, damaging 100 bales.
1899 – Because of instability brought on by the yellow fever epidemic, Judge J.B. Wall postponed the fall term of the Monroe County circuit court until the middle of January.
1926 – The Key West Bottling Company announced that it was distributing Ward’s Chocolate Crush soda.
1933 – The Florida East Coast Railway company offered a special weekend fare of $1.50 round-trip to Miami, and 532 Key Westers took advantage of the deal.
1948 – President Truman, joined by his wife and daughter, took the yacht Williamsburg for a trip to Fort Jefferson at the Tortugas.
1954 – A total of 19.8 inches of rain fell flooding streets, cars and homes. Damage was estimated at more than $100,000.
1998 – Wilhelmina Harvey, 86 years old, was elected Mayor of Monroe County for the sixth time by her fellow commissioners.
Information compiled by the late Tom Hambright, Historian Emeritus, and Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: President Truman’s yacht Williamsburg at the Naval Station. The Heritage House Collection, donated by the Campbell, Poirier and Pound families. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center