September 24

Aerial view of Key Colony Beach, late 1950s.

1897 – Sylvanus Johnson was executed on gallows erected between the courthouse and jail in Key West’s Jackson Square. Johnson, an African American, was convicted of raping a white woman.

1920 – The Key West Box Company’s factory, one of the largest manufactories of cigar boxes in the U.S., was destroyed by fire at a loss of $150,000. The owners of the Caroline Street facility promised to rebuild at once.

1923 – The legendary jazz trumpeter Theodore “Fats” Navarro Jr. was born at 828 Thomas Street in Key West.

1935 – Cash vouchers began to be given to Key West’s needy by the Florida Emergency Relief Administration. The vouchers were to be accepted by merchants who would be reimbursed in full. Vouchers made out specifically for clothing or food could not be exchanged for cash.

1957 – Key Colony Beach became the second city in Monroe County when the community’s 11 qualified voters approved incorporation at a town hall meeting.

1997 – The Harvey Government Center at the Historic Truman School was dedicated by Monroe County Commissioner Wilhelmina Harvey before a large crowd.

2010 – A groundbreaking reef restoration project began when the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute partnered with the Coral Restoration Foundation to transplant corals on Davis Reef off Plantation Key. It was the first time for marine scientists to monitor the placement and progress of nursery-raised corals in the Florida Keys.

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

Image: Aerial view of Key Colony Beach, late 1950s. Wright Langley Collection. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.