March 30

A map of Key West with a blackened area showing the extent of the Great Fire of 1886.

1886 – At 10 o’clock in the morning, a fire started near the San Carlos Theater in Key West. Over the next 12 hours, it consumed over 50 acres of the island city’s commercial district. Seven people were killed and 15 injured. Damages were estimated at $2 million.

1945 – The Key West Fire Department had battled six blazes over the previous 24 hours, including at a Duval Street store, two homes, and three grass fires. Chief Leroy Torres said that as a result, his men had “become accustomed to sleeping with one eye open.”

1950 – New York City Mayor William O’Dwyer and his wife Elizabeth arrived for their annual visit to the Key Largo Angler’s Club.

1962 – Monroe County schools stood to lose federal funds beginning September 1963, after Washington moved to deny aid to segregated schools serving children who lived on federal property. Superintendent Horace O’Bryant noted that 48 percent of Monroe students were military dependents, and that the loss of revenue would “seriously affect the entire operation.”

1979 – The U.S. Army announced that the First Battalion of the 65th Air Defense Artillery would leave Key West during the next fiscal year. The unit had 740 military and 10 civilian personnel in Key West. The Air Defense Artillery first came to Key West during the Cuban Missile crisis in 1962.

1995 – Marathon’s Action Express Taxi company outfitted its cabs with rooftop signs proclaiming, “Say No to NOAA.” The signs, provided by Keys-based alliance the Conch Coalition, expressed concerns about the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.

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

Image: A map of Key West with a blackened area showing the extent of the Great Fire of 1886. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.