September 10
1825 – Former North Carolina Governor William Miller died at Key West. President John Quincy Adams had appointed Miller as U.S. Envoy to Guatemala, and he was waiting on the island for a vessel to carry him to Central America.
1946 – A proposal to incorporate Tavernier as a city was withdrawn after two-thirds of the community’s residents said they feared their taxes would increase should such a measure pass.
1960 – Hurricane Donna passed over the Middle and Upper Keys with 150 mph winds, causing extensive damage: Over half of the structures from Marathon to Islamorada were destroyed; tides were 9 to 13.5 feet above normal; six highway bridges were severely damaged or washed away, and the water pipeline was wrecked in five places.
1983 – The new buoy-shaped, 16-ton concrete monument at the Southernmost Point in Key West was dedicated.
1986 – The Truman Annex ex-Navy base in Key West sold at government auction for $17.25 million to Massachusetts resident Pritam Singh. The 103 acres on Key West and Tank Island were initially offered to the City of Key West, but 12 years of negotiations failed to produce a satisfactory deal.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Key West's Truman Annex and Mallory Square, early 1980s. Dale McDonald Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
