Today in Keys History – March 25, 2024
1851 – Stephen R. Mallory of Key West was elected by the Florida Legislature as one of the U.S. Senators from Florida.
1929 – Ty Cobb, the famous baseball player, was in Key West on a fishing trip.
1946 – Former President Herbert Hoover paid a visit to the Naval Station while on his annual fishing trip to the Keys.
1954 – The renovated Key West fishing pier at the Clyde-Mallory Docks opened to the public. The 75-foot pier featured new railing, benches, pilings, and planking.
1961 – The beach on South Roosevelt was dedicated and named for Florida Senator George Smathers. The Senator attended the ceremony, which was held on the beach.
1974 – Controlling interest of Key West’s WKIZ AM radio station was purchased by Gayle Swofford and former newspaper publisher Norman Artman. WKIZ had made its debut broadcast in 1959.
1986 – The General Services Administration warned the City of Key West that it had until April 30 to finalize the sale of Truman Annex to its preferred buyer, or the former Navy base would be sold at auction to the highest bidder.
1986 – The National Marine Fisheries Service issued an emergency ruling closing the commercial fishing season for kingfish in the Gulf of Mexico. Kingfish had been declared a threatened species.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Aerial of Truman Annex ca. 1980. Wright Langley Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.