1858 – At 3 a.m. the residence of Capt. Charles Johnson was found to be on fire. No assistance was given for 15 minutes, but because it had rained for the previous three days, the flames did not spread to the adjacent home of Capt. Geiger. The Johnson house was torn down, and his loss was $500.
1871 – John Bartlum died at age 57. He was born in the Bahamas but was working in Key West by 1835. In 1847, he moved his home from Green Turtle Key in the Abacos to 730 Eaton St. Bartlum became the leading shipbuilder of Key West, working for the firm of Bowne and Curry. His greatest achievement was the 959-ton clipper ship Stephen R. Mallory, the only one of its kind built in the southern U.S.
1899 – Key West had documented 201 cases of yellow fever in the recent outbreak.
1906 – Barrooms were of much discussion in Key West. The city council had recently passed an ordinance prohibiting women from entering bars and from anyone dancing therein; the liquor association planned to appeal it as unconstitutional. Local ministers were asking that bars be prohibited within 400 feet of churches or schools.
1924 – A project to install beacons for the entire length of Hawk Channel from Miami to Key West was underway, and the lighthouse tender Sandew had already completed work as far as Soldier Key.
1939 – T. Jenkins Curry, Monroe County commissioner and key lime grove owner, noted that the market for Florida Keys limes was suffering because of competition from Mexico. Local limes once brought $8 per crate, but that price had dropped to $1.
1987 – The nuclear-powered fast attack submarine the USS Key West was commissioned in Norfolk, VA. This was the third Navy vessel to carry the name Key West.
Information compiled by Tom Hambright, Historian Emeritus, and Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Mrs. John G. Sawyer and George Bartlum with the portrait of John Bartlum. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.