April 9
- Florida Keys History Center
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
1927 – W.H. Malone of Key West took office as president pro tem of the Florida senate.
1932 – The Secretary of the Navy announced that the activities of the Seventh Naval District were to be combined with the Sixth Naval District and transferred to Charleston. The Naval Station was to be closed to a bare maintenance status as soon as practicable and not later than June 30, 1932.
1935 – A film crew from Pathé News was in Key West to film interesting aspects of the island. On this date, they documented Raul’s Aquarium on Roosevelt Boulevard.
1942 – The Norwegian freighter Benwood, loaded with phosphate, collided with the tanker Robert C. Tuttle, killing one man. The Benwood lost power and drifted until she grounded in her final resting place on the reef in what is now the John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park. Both ships had been operating at night without lights because of the fear of German U-boats operating in the area.
1946 – An old cannon that had been used as a hitching post at the end of Elizabeth Street on the Key West Bight was removed during improvements and given to St. Paul’s Church. Father MacConnell there intended to give it to a historical organization but could find no takers, so he was considering displaying it on church grounds.
1956 – Mrs. Francisca Zamora of 1402 Sixth Street in Key West was Monroe County’s oldest registered voter at age 96. Mrs. Zamora was born in Cuba and became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1946.
1960 – Southern Bell Telephone Company installed the first dial telephone line on the Lower Keys. State Representative Bernie C. Papy signaled the opening of the new system by making a call from his home on Sugarloaf, the first time he could do so without using an operator.
1984 – The Monroe County Tourist Development Council held its first meeting at the Holiday Inn Key West. This was formerly the Key West Tourist Development Council until a referendum included the rest of the county.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Sign for Raul's Club (and trained fish) on South Roosevelt Boulevard, Key West, ca. 1940. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
