October 3
1900 – Ship carpenters at Curry Sons & Co., working on the lighthouse tender Laurel, went on strike. The men normally received $4 for a nine-hour day, but because the Laurel’s repairs were under a government contract, they wanted the same for an eight-hour day. The company hired men from Jacksonville for 40 cents an hour.
1926 – The Red Cross held a benefit program and parade in Key West to raise money for the victims of the recent hurricane that struck Miami and other parts of South Florida. Hundreds of island residents attended.
1935 – The Works Progress Administration offered to help rebuild and repair the hurricane-damaged highway ferry slips at Lower Matecumbe Key if Monroe County would contribute $12,000 toward the effort. County officials responded that they had no money.
1960 – Kathleen Davison was sworn in as clerk and matron and as the first woman to serve on the Key West Police force.
1974 – Circuit Judge M. Ignatius Lester ruled that the Key West City Clerk must proceed with certifying signatures on the petitions to put two anti-high-rise issues on the ballot.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Remains of Veterans Camp & Ferry Landing at Lower Matecumbe. From the Postcard Series 'Views of Storm Struck Florida Keys Following Hurricane of 1935.' Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
