Today in Keys History – June 18, 2024
- Keys History Center
- Jun 17, 2024
- 1 min read
1890 – The first brick of the new Monroe County Courthouse was laid. Beverly B. Whalton, chairman of the county commission, spoke for the occasion, and afterward all in attendance drank sparkling champagne to celebrate.
1967 – Baseball great Ted Williams won the five-day Islamorada Gold Cup Tarpon Tournament as the grand champion.
1972 – Hurricane Agnes, a Category 1 storm, passed into the Gulf of Mexico well west of the Dry Tortugas, but spawned several tornadoes through the Florida Keys. The worst damage was on Big Coppitt Key, where trailer homes were destroyed and 35 people injured. In Key West, a home at 615 Elizabeth Street was knocked off its foundation. Conch Key was struck by a tornado, too.
1979 – Dr. William Seeker was named president of the Florida Keys Community College (now the College of the Florida Keys).
1991 – The Key West City Commission passed a resolution urging the Navy to permanently cease underwater ordnance testing off the Florida Keys. Commissioners questioned the logic of exploding bombs in a marine sanctuary.
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: A damaged 1891 photo showing part of the original, wooden Monroe County courthouse in front of the newly-built, brick courthouse. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
