KEYS HISTORY: ‘ALLIGATOR’ LIBERATES SHIPS FROM PIRATES
The U.S. Schooner Alligator cultivated a rich story over its short life. It begins in the Charlestown Navy Yard near Boston, where the 86-foot...
KEYS HISTORY: LANTERN FUEL PUTS LIGHTHOUSE KEEPERS LIVES AT RISK
The story reprinted in the Boston Globe on Nov. 22, 1896, originally appeared in the New York Sun. Jacob Bethel was visiting New York...
KEYS HISTORY: SAND KEY LIGHTHOUSE SAVED LIVES & MARKS THE DECLINE IN WRECKING INDUSTRY
The Havana Hurricane of 1846 is thought to be the first recorded Category 5 hurricane to strike Cuba. As the storm crossed the Straits...
KEYS HISTORY: TRUMAN LITTLE WHITE HOUSE MARKS 30 YEARS AS STATE HISTORIC SITE
Key West’s Truman Little White House on Nov. 8 celebrated the 30th anniversary of its dedication as a state historic site and museum.
On that...
OPPORTUNITIES & DANGERS OF FLORIDA TREATY’S KEYS ACQUISITION
When the United States acquired the Florida Territory, it was a bigger version of Florida than is mapped today. During British ownership (1763-1783), the...
KEYS HISTORY: CIGARS & FARMING APLENTY
It is difficult to tell a Key West or a Key Largo story without telling a Florida Keys story.
What time has done is produce...
KEYS HISTORY: ETCHING KEYS TREASURE HUNTERS INTO HISTORY
Art “Silver Bar” McKee is a celebrated Florida Keys treasure hunter. He was born in Bridgeton, New Jersey, on Nov. 2, 1910, and always...
KEYS HISTORY: A NEW SPANISH FLEET MYSTERY
Hurricane warnings: sometimes you listen and sometimes you do not
This time of year always makes me a little anxious. Not only is it hurricane...
KEYS HISTORY: FLAGLER’S DREAM COMES TO STORMY END
Henry Flagler arrived in Key West on Jan. 22, 1912. Thousands attended the heralded event. One of those attendees was a 12-year-old boy named...
KEYS HISTORY: CAPTAIN BAKER’S PINEAPPLE EXPRESS
In the mid to late 1800s, Captain Ben Baker was the King of the Florida Wreckers. His 13-ton, three-masted schooner “Rapid” was the pride...
