Today in Keys History – July 19, 2024
1909 – The Florida East Coast Railway chartered the schooner Helen Thomas to bring 1,600 to 1,700 tons of iron rails from Baltimore to the Keys. Part of the cargo would be delivered to Bahia Honda and the other part to Key West.
1924 – L.L. Mowbray of the New York Aquarium urged that the end of the closed season for crawfish be extended from June 20 to August 1. He said that without such change, egg-bearing females would be taken, and crawfish would gradually disappear from the Florida Keys.
1942 – The merchant vessel Baja California was sunk 42 miles northeast of the Dry Tortugas by the German submarine U-84.
1942 – The merchant vessel Port Antonio was sunk 95 miles of southwest of the Dry Tortugas by German submarine U-129.
1974 – A federal grant of $74,737 was awarded to the newly-created nonprofit Key West and Lower Keys Development Corporation. The group, formed to boost tourism, planned to study beaches, historical areas, and the possibilities for “family tourism” in the Lower Keys.
2008 – Robert the Doll traveled outside of Key West for the first time to make an appearance at a paranormal conference in Clearwater.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Mizpah and Gene Otto, ca. 1905. Gene is wearing the sailor’s suit currently worn by Robert the Doll. Otto Family Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.