1822 – Excerpt from the Logbook of the U.S. Schooner Shark LCDR M.C. Perry commanding. Remarks, Tuesday, September 24th Light variable Winds making but little progress. Lat. 12.19 N. Long. 21.34 W. On the Sick List 6. Expenditure of Water 63 Gallons, Remains on Board 2197 Gallons. Exp. Provisions 70 lbs. Beef, 7 lbs. Butter, 4 1/2 Gls. Spirits.
(NOTE: This is the last entry in the Shark logbook at the library’s Florida Keys History Center. The next Shark logbook in the National Archives begins in October 1822.)
1864 – Former Mayor John P. Baldwin died in Lake City, FL. He had served as mayor of Key West from 1858 to May 1861 when all officials elected under Florida law were removed by the federal government when the state seceded from the Union.
1897 – Sylvanus Johnson was executed on a gallows erected in Jackson Square between the courthouse and jail. Johnson, who was Black, was convicted of raping a white woman.
1923 – The legendary jazz trumpeter Theodore “Fats” Navarro Jr. was born at 828 Thomas Street.
1957 – Key Colony Beach became the second city in Monroe County when the 11 qualified voters at a town hall meeting approved incorporation.
1985 – A study of multiple sclerosis in Key West was conducted by the Monroe County Health Department, The State Department of Health and The United States Center for Disease Control. The study failed to find any reason for the high number of cases of the disease in Key West.
1997 – The Harvey Government Center at Historic Truman School was dedicated by County Commissioner Wilhelmina Harvey before a large crowd.
Information compiled by Tom Hambright, Historian Emeritus, Florida Keys History Center, Monroe County Public Library
Image: Key Colony Beach in 1973. Photo by Charlie Anderson, Wright Langley Collection, Florida Keys History Center, Monroe County Public Library. https://www.flickr.com/photos/keyslibraries/22228251500/