November 11
- Florida Keys History Center
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
1825 – The schooner George left from Boston with workmen and materials to complete the lighthouses at Cape Florida, Key West, and the Dry Tortugas. After delivery, the George would then remain in the Keys to serve as a tender to the construction workers.
1890 – Commander J.H. Winn, Commander Naval Base Key West, moved into the newly built commandant’s quarters (now known as the Little White House).
1923 - Captain Benjamin Felton said his crew was finding great success at the sponging grounds near Bahia Honda. In just a few days they had taken 55 bunches of fine wool sponge.
1940 – County prosecutor Allan B. Cleare Jr. dismissed all charges against Karl Tanzler, aka Count von Cosel. Tanzler had been charged with keeping the body of Elena Hoyos Mesa in his home for seven years.
1975 – Judge Lew Schlegel called a session of court to order at the county’s branch courthouse in Marathon, marking the first time a jury trial had ever been conducted by a Monroe County Court outside of Key West.
1980 – Heavy rain began about 8 a.m. and continued for the next 24 hours at a rate of about one inch an hour. The Weather Bureau recorded a total of 21.76 inches of rain, and flooding occurred throughout the city. One man water-skied down Duval Street behind a red Volkswagen, past a wildly cheering crowd at Sloppy Joe’s.
1985 – Prince Rainier, Prince Albert, and Princess Caroline of Monaco’s royal family arrived in Key West to support Caroline’s husband Stefano Casirghi, who was competing in the World Championship Offshore Powerboat Race.
2015 – After a year of construction, the new Vietnam Living Memorial in Key West’s Bayview Park was unveiled. Hundreds attended the event, many of them veterans, along with their families and supporters.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Key Wester Eckwood Solomon Jr. (R) who was killed in action in Vietnam on July 27, 1966. Photo by Wil-Art from the Wright Langley collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
