1908 – Harry Goodson, butcher at Key West’s Palace Market, broke his leg in a bicycle accident that occurred as he tried to avoid a frightened runaway horse near the Mallory Dock.
1933 – The lighthouse on Tennessee Reef was lighted for the first time. The new light was 40 feet above mean high water and could be seen for 15 miles.
1933 – The U.S. Army denied reports that it intended to abandon Fort Taylor and the Key West Barracks.
1936 – The Interstate Commerce Commission approved a request by the Florida East Coast Railroad to abandon the Overseas Railroad. This action cleared the way for an automobile highway to be built over the railroad’s right-of-way and bridges.
1994 – The Lower Keys Chamber of Commerce came out in support of short-term rentals, adding to the debate among Keys residents over the appropriateness of private homes being used as de facto hotel rooms.
2004 – Segway Safaris was offering tours of Fort Taylor State Park with battery-powered, self-balancing, single-rider scooters that allowed visitors to explore the park’s natural and historical features. The park manager dubbed the tours “the wave of the future.”
Information compiled by Dr. Corey Malcom, Lead Historian, Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.
Image: Fort Taylor and Key West, 1937. Photo by Aero-Graphic Corporation; gift of Jack Thompson. Monroe County Public Library, Florida Keys History Center.