May 30

A "red shawl lady," with her gift cart, greets passengers from the cruise ship Pacific Princess at Key West.

1902 – Movie star Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry, popularly known as “Stepin Fetchit,” was born in Key West.

1936 – President Franklin Roosevelt approved a loan of $3.6 million to build a highway through the Florida Keys over the old Overseas Railroad bridges.

1960 – The Navy announced that a mysterious object discovered during a training mission a week earlier by the submarine USS Tirante was an old shipwreck. The remains of what appeared to be an old barge loaded with iron was found off American Shoals, south of Sugarloaf Key. 

1975 – The cruise ship Pacific Princess made its third visit to Key West in a month. Greeters presented hibiscus flowers to lady passengers as they disembarked, and tea towels from Key West Hand Print Fabrics were given to all passengers. 

1980 – The number of Cuban refugees arriving at Key West had slowed, but reports said that as many as 70 boats were seen leaving the Harbor of Mariel.

1985 – In federal court 12 of the 14 persons charged in what was known as the “Bubba Bust” drug case were found guilty.

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

Image: A "red shawl lady," with her gift cart, greets passengers from the cruise ship Pacific Princess at Key West. Photo published in Miami Herald on May 6, 1975. Wright Langley Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.