Geo G. Brooks was a lawyer.
1847 – A ship’s boy rescued from the schooner St. Mary’s, wrecked at the Dry Tortugas, was discovered to instead be a girl, surprising both her crewmates and rescuers. The girl, Johanna, was taken to Key West and placed with a family there. The community was divided over her “donning attire not belonging to her:” Some admired her pluck, others found it offensive.
1861 – U.S. Marshal Daniel Davis was alerted that enslaved Key Westers were about to be illegally transported to Indian Key. He found seven people on William Lowe’s schooner Young America and seized them as “contraband of war.”
1906 – Key West Police Justice George G. Brooks ruled that a city ordinance outlawing women from entering barrooms or buying liquor was unconstitutional. The board of aldermen asked the circuit court to override Brooks’ ruling and compel enforcement.
1918 – A liberty boat returning to the USS Salem overturned and 18 men drowned. Eight of the bodies were recovered and buried in the Battleship Maine Plot in the Key West Cemetery. The Salem was flagship of the 12 submarine chasers based in Key West.
1938 – Charles F. Dupont died at age 77. He was the first African American to be elected Sheriff in Florida after reconstruction. He was elected Sheriff of Monroe County in 1888 and served until 1893.
1970 – In the Democratic Primary Election Bill Carter of Marathon pulled an upset and unseated Monroe County Mayor Gerald Saunders who had served on the commission for 24 years. Other winners were Fred Tittle, state representative and Nathan Eden, county solicitor.
1998 – State officials said that Hurricane Georges had damaged or destroyed 1,536 Florida Keys homes, including 614 mobile homes and 75 house boats. Insured damage was estimated at $200 million, but over half of the affected properties were uninsured.
Information compiled by Tom Hambright, Historian Emeritus, and Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: George G. Brooks, Key West attorney. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.