1966 – The Navy submarine USS Marlin made its 2,500th dive with a descent off the Florida Reef. The 135-foot training sub, with a crew of 20 men and two officers, had been based in Key West since 1954.

1856 – The steamer Isabel arrived at Key West with an artillery company under the command of Col. Winder to replace Capt. Vodges’ Company A, who had been stationed at the island’s Army barracks for a considerable time. Vodges and his men then sailed for Fort Moultrie, Charleston.

1991 – The Key West City Commission backed down from renaming DuPont Lane for local businessman David Wolkowsky when they learned the original designation recognized Charles DuPont, the first Black man elected sheriff in Monroe County, and not the family of DuPont Chemical fame. Sheriff DuPont had lived at 725 Duval St., in front of the lane.

1989 – Noted Key Wester Hilario Ramos, Sr. died at age 82. He was president of Lopez Wholesale Liquors and had been a founder of Florida Keys First State Bank and Boulevard Bank. Ramos was long active in local, state, and national politics and had hosted many dignitaries in his “Southernmost Mansion” home at the ocean end of Duval Street.

1951 – Helicopter Scouting Squadron HS-1, led by Commander Joseph T. Watson, was commissioned in ceremonies held at the Seaplane Base in Key West. It was the first HS squadron in the Navy.

1966 – Bob Richman’s “The Country Gent” store in Key West’s Sears Town was destroyed in an overnight blaze. A faulty neon lighting fixture was thought to have been the cause. Richman had moved the store from Duval Street only nine months earlier.

1986 – Two groups were vying for control of the historic San Carlos building on Duval Street in Key West. A year earlier, Florida Governor Bob Graham had given the Cuban American National Foundation charge of the empty and deteriorating structure, but another group, the San Carlos Institute, claimed prior rights.

1941 – Five hundred local carpenters entered the third day of a strike at the Key West Naval Station as they demanded a 12½ cent increase in their hourly pay. Navy officials said they would not negotiate during a work stoppage and that the men risked losing their jobs.

1958 – The submarine USS Grenadier (SS-525) arrived at Key West, the last of five to reach the Naval Station in the past two months. The others were the Spikefish (SS-404), Bergall (SS-320), Atule (SS-403) and Tirante (SS-420). Over 400 men were attached to the five subs, roughly half of whom had families they planned to bring to the island.

1946 – In a special meeting, Key West city commissioners authorized the purchase of the Sweeny beachfront property at the south end of Duval Street for $37,000. The property was to be used as a bathing beach and to provide recreational facilities for the city.

1864 – A soldier stationed at Fort Jefferson wrote of the burial of his comrade Henry Wilson: “His body was put on a skiff at the wharf then a salute of eight guns at once, three times. I then by request was permitted to attend the body with those who went to inter it. It is on an island about 2 miles north of this fort & is called Sand Key.”

1945 – After being briefly halted with the ending of WWII, a contract was renewed for Fred Howland, Inc. to go ahead and complete the construction of 155 low-cost Navy housing units at White Street and Atlantic Boulevard.

1900 – Several thousand Key Westers watched a quarter-mile race at Barracks Beach between the horses Laconda and Levin. Laconda won by a length. The bet was $1000 per side, and much money passed hands outside of the official stakes.

1978 – David Wolkowsky bought the Kress Building at 500 Duval Street in Key West from Norman Artman for $210,000.

1964 – Bernie C. Papy, 62-year-old Key West political leader, died. He had served 14 consecutive terms in the state legislature before at last being defeated in 1962. Papy was a powerful and influential Monroe County politician, and at the height of his career was called “King of the Keys.”

1926 – Boy Scout Troop No.1 of Key West was encamped at Pigeon Key. “There is some of the best fishing and swimming in the world to be had two hundred feet from camp. The boys say that this is the best time they have ever had,” wrote scoutmaster Charles Sands.

1952 – Charles Cremata, a member of the Key West Fire Department for 15 years, was named fire chief. He replaced Leroy Torres, who had died two weeks before.

1995 – Fire destroyed the Copa nightclub and adjoining buildings in the 600 block of Duval Street. It was the worst fire in Key West in 72 years.

1951 – The Key West Police Department announced the start of a drive to rid bars of underage customers. The task was made difficult because over 2,000 Navy men in the area were under 21, but police said the crackdown would affect all minors, whether they were in uniform or not.

1926 – The new issue of the Lighthouse Service Bulletin explained how drinking water was obtained for the light stations along the Florida Reef: Rainwater that fell on the painted lighthouse structures was caught and carried by gutters and pipes to 8,000-gallon storage tanks, a method that had been practiced for nearly 75 years.