Tuesday, February 12, 2013

ON THIS DAY IN:

1929Frank Reshore, 606 Grinnell St., introduced the African tulip tree (spathodea bignoniaceae) to Key West with seeds he obtained in Coral Gables.

1963Mary Hemingway, widow of the late Ernest Hemingway, was in Key West inventorying materials in a storeroom behind Sloppy Joe's bar where the famous writer left his material in care of the family of his old fishing friend Joe Russell.

1964 Old Island Restoration Foundation completed the Pelican Path, the first self-guided walking tour of Key West.

1971 The Lions Club formally opened the Dr. Jose Sanchez Eye Clinic at the Lions Den on North Roosevelt Boulevard.

1974 Mayor Charles Sonny McCoy proposed to the City Commission that a major restoration of Duval Street and other parts of downtown be finished in time for and as part of the nation's bicentennial.

1976 Former Key West Fire Chief Joseph "Bum" Farto was found guilty on three drug violations and faced a maximum of 31 years in prison.

1997 A ground breaking ceremony was held for the new fire station on North Roosevelt. The station was named for former Fire Chief Richard "Dickie" Wardlow who, with his wife, died in a car crash in April 1996.