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1956 – Government beach erosion experts inspected Rest Beach at the request of Key West city officials, and they said the site had “possibilities” as a recreation area. They noted the beach had been satisfactorily used years earlier and that a supply of sand appeared to be continually deposited there.
1968 – Formal ceremonies consecrating the ground on United Street in Key West where the new B’nai Zion Synagogue was located were held by Rabbi Nathan Zwitman.
1973 – Prominent Key Wester Willard M. Albury died at the age of 88. Albury had served on the School Board and City Commission before becoming mayor of Key West in 1937, a role he held until 1945 when he resigned to become superintendent of schools. In 1950, he became administrator of Monroe General Hospital, from which he retired in 1958.
1986 – A community meeting organized by Monroe County Mayor Wilhelmina Harvey and the Informed Families of Monroe County was held in Marathon to address the scourge of crack cocaine plaguing the Keys.
1994 – Key West’s “Good Will Ambassador” William “Bill” Kroll died at the age 89. Kroll started the Conch Tour Train, which began operating on January 18, 1958. He sold it to Wometco Enterprises in 1972.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: In a ceremony on the Bahia Honda Bridge, Key West Mayor Willard M. Albury, center, watches as Miss Key West Bernice Brantley cuts the ribbon to officially open the Overseas Highway on July 2, 1938. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
