September 12
1871 – John Bartlum died at age 57. He was born in the Bahamas and was working in Key West by 1835. He was the leading shipbuilder of Key West working for the firm of Bowne and Curry. His greatest achievement was the clipper ship Stephen R. Mallory, the only clipper ship built in the South with native labor. In 1847, he moved his home from Green Turtle Cay in the Bahamas to 730 Eaton Street, Key West.
1935 – A tally of casualties from the Upper Keys hurricane showed 285 veterans employed as bridge workers were dead or missing, and 101 were injured and hospitalized. Of civilian residents, 125 were dead, and 151 were hospitalized.
1972 – The following were winners in the elections: Harry Knight, tax collector; Bill Chappell, circuit court judge; Harry Harris, county commissioner; and Harry Pritchard, county commissioner.
1987 – The nuclear-powered fast attack submarine the USS Key West was commissioned in Norfolk, VA. This was the third Navy vessel to carry the name Key West.
1991 – The State of Florida designated Key West’s Bahama Village as a “Main Street” community eligible for three years of funding to develop and begin implementing plans to revitalize the neighborhood.
2001 – After the attack on the World Trade Center buildings, flights were grounded nationwide, leaving many visitors to the Florida Keys with no way in or out. Car rental agencies were swamped with requests for vehicles, but few were available.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Mass burial in Miami's Woodlawn cemetery for 116 veterans killed in the 1935 Florida Keys hurricane. From the DeWolfe and Wood Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
