August 1

1887 – A new Spanish daily newspaper named “El Pueblo” began publication at Key West.

1923 – The City of Key West began digging three wells, 40 to 60 feet deep, along Seidenberg Avenue. The quality of the wells would be tested by fire engines before hydrants were installed.

1935 – A Blackfish (pilot whale) weighing more than 2,500 pounds was towed ashore by bridge workers at Bahia Honda.

1943 – Key West Mayor Willard Albury announced that Bessie Lowe, 1610 Flagler Ave., would be the “sponsor” of a new U.S. Navy frigate to be named after the island city. Mrs. Lowe was selected because her brother, Lt. C.H. Felton was the first Key Wester to be killed in WWII. Her other brother and her son were also in the service, and her husband worked for the local Navy yard.

1958 – The Armed Forces Disciplinary Control Board warned that the Mambo Room at 227 Duval Street in Key West would be placed off limits to military personnel “unless undesirable conditions are cleared up.” The board said it had evidence that the cocktail lounge was a “gathering place for known homosexuals.”

1963 – The new Marathon Post Office was opened.

1988 – Filming began in Key West for a new James Bond adventure movie tentatively titled “License Revoked.”

2011 – Islamorada’s Cheeca Lodge was purchased for $100 million by a subsidiary of New York-based Northwood Investors. In 2003, the property had sold for $33 million.

Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.

Image: Aerial of Cheeca Lodge, Upper Matecumbe Key, on October 7, 1987. Photo taken by the federal government. From the Wright Langley Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.