September 14

The burned remains of Poucher's Super Market in Islamorada.

1876 – St. James Missionary Baptist Church was founded by the Reverend McIntosh and others who settled in Key West from areas of the South.

1899 – Key West reported 15 new cases of yellow fever and one more death from the disease. To date, the total cases from this outbreak stood at 278.

1925 – The motorboat Ventura of Key West, carrying assorted liquors valued at $20,000, was intercepted by a U.S. government patrol boat near Sombrero Key Lighthouse. The four men on board were arrested and taken to Key West.

1931 – Fire Chief Ralph Pinder resigned because of difficulties caused by firefighters not getting paid. He urged the men, though, to remain on the job until the city could work out its financial difficulties.

1945 – The 1945 Florida State Census showed the population of Monroe County was 18,718, of whom 17,774 lived in Key West.

1960 – Poucher’s grocery store in Islamorada was purposefully destroyed by fire when, after days without power from Hurricane Donna, it was determined the rotting meats and vegetables inside were becoming a health hazard.

1975 – Abraham E. Golan died while on vacation in Italy. In 1949, Golan, Vincent Conley, and Charles Helberg bought most of the eastern end of Key West. He had built the Key Ambassador Motel on South Roosevelt Boulevard and the Ramada Inn on North Roosevelt.

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

Image: The burned remains of Poucher's Super Market in Islamorada. From a collection of photos of the damage by Hurricane Donna taken by Bernard M. (Buzz) Cooper and his daughter Doris V. Cooper Caeter in September 1960. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.