1964 – At 3:30 a.m., the Beatles landed at Key West International Airport, greeted by a mob of screaming fans. The group had been scheduled to perform in Jacksonville, but a hurricane diverted them to Key West. The wildly popular musicians spent two days at the Key Wester Motel on South Roosevelt Boulevard.

1905 – Three hundred men were working on Key Largo to build the railroad bed for the Florida East Coast’s Overseas Railway, and five miles had been graded on the island to that date. Another crew was making soundings and drilling bore holes at Knights Key to determine the best foundation to cross it.

1925 – A celebration was held for the opening of the Boca Chica bridge, the first step in the new Overseas Highway being built through the Florida Keys. A “mammoth motorcade” left Key West, crossed Stock Island and then traversed the new bridge to Rocky Point on Boca Chica Key for the celebration.

2010 – Buyers from China, Taiwan, and other overseas markets were paying between $5 and $7 per pound for spiny lobster, making Florida Keys crawfishermen very happy. These prices were double what they had been the previous year.

1945 – The Key West Drug Company, at the corner of Simonton and Fleming streets, featured a window display of trophies collected in the South Pacific by Key Wester Leo Braxton Warren, Chief Pharmacist Mate, USN, during his wartime service.

1925 – A freight train derailed at Marathon. A wrecking crew from Key West was dispatched immediately after receiving the news, but clearing the tracks delayed the arrival of the passenger train from morning to afternoon.

1940 – Wallace Kirke, director of the Key West Housing Authority, issued a call for bids on the construction of the J.Y. Porter Place and Fort Village housing projects. Porter Place was to be on Trumbo Island with 136 units. Fort Village, at Virginia and Fort streets, was to have 84 units for “colored” families of Key West.

1935 – The most intense hurricane to hit the United States passed over Long Key and Lower Matecumbe Key. The category five storm had a barometer reading of 26.35, winds estimated at around 200 mph, and tides 18 to 20 feet above normal. The storm killed over 400 people, many of them WWI veterans employed in building new highway bridges, and put the already financially troubled Overseas Railroad out of business.

1976 – President Gerald Ford signed the authorization to transfer ownership of Key West’s Fort Taylor to the State of Florida.

1919 – A general strike was called by 3,000 Key West cigarmakers and tobacco workers. The laborers were demanding wage increases comparable to those paid in Tampa.

1994 – More than 17,000 Cuban refugees had crossed the Florida Straits during the month. It was the largest Cuban exodus since the 1980 Mariel boatlift.

1951 – Developer Joe Sirugo agreed to sell 3,500 cubic yards of marl to the City of Key West. It would help satisfy the city’s need of 10,000 yards of marl to fill United Street between Leon and George streets and to fill George Street along the site of the new city housing project.

1963 – Rear Admiral L.J. Kirn, Commander of Naval Station Key West, reported the Keys’ Navy population numbered 21,000, including military and dependents. In addition, the military employed 1,860 civilian workers.

1945 – Blas Zarate of the White Inn on Division Street (now Truman Avenue) in Key West was arrested for selling beer on a Sunday, and customer Harvey Stirrup was charged with consuming beer on Sunday. The men were given bonds of $250 and $25, respectively.

1863 – One hundred sixty-five masons and laborers had recently arrived at Key West to work on the East and West Martello Towers, though some of the force was dispatched to Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas for work there.

1945 – The Midget Bar, at the corner of Greene and Ann streets in Key West, featured music by the Melody Boys, Gibly and Tuba, and “the beautiful blonde singer” Van. Also on the evening’s bill was an eating exhibition by Jimmie, “the eatingist woman in South Florida.”

1945 – A contract was renewed for Fred Howland, Inc. to complete the construction of 155 low-cost Navy housing units at the end of White Street across from Rest Beach in Key West.

1940 – Mabel McKinney sold her Key Largo property fronting the highway and known as “Mabel’s Place” for $1500 to A.K. Gray of Miami.

1941 – Naval Station Key West was running low on water, as rain had been scant, and the cisterns were nearly dry. Two water tankers were brought from Miami to help fill demand, but rationing was likely if rain did not come.

1937 – The Public Works Administration announced that it had 600 men working on the new Overseas Highway, and the road would be open to the public by the start of the new year.