Brad Bertelli

Brad Bertelli is a respected historian, author, speaker, and Honorary Conch based in the Florida Keys. Since arriving on Plantation Key in 2001, he has dedicated over 20 years to researching and interpreting the history of the island chain. Brad has published 10 books, including his acclaimed series Florida Keys History with Brad Bertelli (Volumes 1, 2, and 3), with Volume 4, The Great Florida Keys Road Trip, forthcoming. For regular updates on local history, you are invited to join the Facebook group “Florida Keys History with Brad Bertelli.” To learn more, please visit: www.bradbertelli.com.

KEYS HISTORY: SALVAGE ACT OF 1823 BRINGS ORDER TO LAWLESS INDUSTRY SEEN IN THE KEYS

I started a Facebook page the day before Christmas Eve and decided to call it Florida Keys History with Brad Bertelli. Fifteen years of...

KEYS HISTORY: 2 LARGE KEYS PROPERTY SALES OF 1946

I recently spent some quality time in a third-floor room at the public records office on Whitehead Street. The repository holds the documentation of...

KEYS HISTORY: APIARY BUSINESS BUZZES IN KEY LARGO

Key Largo’s Stellrecht Point, found on the bayside in the area of MM 105, is named for a German immigrant named Otto Stellrecht. Stellrecht...

KEYS HISTORY: LIEUTENANT DECLARES U.S. POSSESSION OF KEY WEST SOME 200 YEARS AGO

When East Florida and West Florida were still Spanish territories, they were wild, sparsely-populated frontiers.  The Spanish had established two ports. On the Atlantic coast,...

AN A & B STORY: FAMILY LEAVES MARK ON THE ISLAND CHAIN

This column appears weekly because the Florida Keys have more to offer than great fishing and diving, fantastic weather, spectacular sunsets and world-famous drinking...

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