1898 – The Battleship Maine arrived at Havana, Cuba, at 11 a.m.
1911 – A prankster started a rumor at the carnival at Key West’s Jackson Square that a lion from the animal show had broken loose. There was a “grand stampede” as hundreds of panicked attendees fled the fairgrounds for the relative safety of Duval Street.
1928 – The first Overseas Highway from Key West to Miami via Card Sound and with a ferry from No Name Key to Lower Matecumbe was opened.
1935 – The cabanas at Rest Beach were fully booked by winter visitors for the season. The thatched waterfront shelters had been developed by Key West’s federal administrators to help foster tourism.
1946 – The submarine tender USS Howard W. Gilmore arrived in Key West. The big tender was the flag ship for the submarine squadron assigned to Key West.
1998 – The World Wildlife Fund backed a plan to put a toll on US 1. The last push for a toll road in 1995 ended when the Department of Transportation said that tolls could only be used for road improvements.
2000 – The History Channel was taping “Haunted History: Key West” on the island, including scenes at Fort Taylor, Dean-Lopez Funeral Home, the Audubon House, and La Concha Hotel. The story of Wendell Gardner, a Civil War soldier who died of yellow fever at Fort Taylor, was to be featured.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: A couple sitting on the front porch of a cabana on Key West's Rest Beach, ca. 1935. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.