1822 – Excerpt from the Logbook of the U.S. Schooner Shark LCDR M.C. Perry commanding. Remarks, Wednesday, September 11th Pleasant Trade winds, observed considerable quantities of Gulf Weed, an indication of our being in the Sargasso Sea. Lat. 28.07 N. Long. 35.09 W. On the Sick List 8. Expenditure of Water 75 Gallons, Remains on Board 3061 1/4 Gallons. Exp. Provisions 70 lbs. Pork, 169 lbs. Bread 4 1/2 Gls. Rice,4 1/2 Gls. Spirits.
1932 – Rear Admiral George P. Colvocoresses died at age 85. He was Commandant of the Key West Navy Yard from 1904 to 1905.
1946 – In a special meeting the city commission passed a resolution authorizing the purchase of the beach property at the south end of Duval Street. The purchase price was $37,000.
1951 – The 1,000-unit Navy housing project being built on Dredger’s Key was named Sigsbee Park for the late Admiral Charles Sigsbee, who was Commanding Officer of the Battleship Maine when it was destroyed in Havana Harbor in 1898. The Navy Housing project at the old Army Barracks was named Peary Court for Robert E. Peary, who was stationed in Key West in the 1880’s, and later was the first man to go to the North Pole.
1960 – President Eisenhower declared the Middle Keys a major disaster area because of damage from Hurricane Donna.
1968 – Work began on the 800-foot jetty that will provide protection to boats tied up in Key West Bight. The contractor will also dredge a turning basin behind the breakwater. The fill from the dredging will be used to fill city property between Simonton and Duval Streets.
1982 – Former Key West Citizen Reporter and Lower Keys Historian Pat Parks died in California. For 17 years her column appeared three times a week and concentrated on local history and environmental topics.
Information compiled by Tom Hambright, Historian Emeritus, Florida Keys History Center, Monroe County Public Library
Image: Postcard of South Beach and Southernmost point of land in the United States. The Scott DeWolfe Collection, Florida Keys History Center, Monroe County Public Library. https://www.flickr.com/photos/keyslibraries/14290711976/