Saturday, March 9, 2013

ON THIS DAY IN:

1862 The case of the ship S.R. Mallory, owned by Wm. Curry Sons of Key West, which wrecked on the Middle Keys at the Tortugas, was heard in federal court. The vessel, sailing from New York to Fort Jefferson with troops, was saved. Federal Judge William Marvin awarded the salvors a fee of $200.

1871Ben and Henry Baker grew the first pineapples on Key Largo for commercial purposes.

1896Juana Borrero Pierra, poetess, Cuban patriot and painter, died in Key West at the age of 18.

1911 Key West had five newspapers: the weekly El Centinela, editor Jose L. Ferriol; the weekly Key West Advertiser, editor E.P. Ball; the daily Key West Citizen, editor Marcy B. Darnall; the daily Key West Morning Journal, editor F.H. Mathews; and the weekly Labor News, editor T.J. Russell.

1917 The R.L. Polk Key West City Directory listed 41 cigar factories.

1937Stephen Cochran Singleton launched a movement to reorganize the Chamber of Commerce, which had been dormant for many months.

1953 Miss Etta Patterson's famous coconut cake recipe was featured in "This Week Magazine" by food editor Clementine Paddleford.

1976 Mrs. Jean Duval landed two world-record catches in a week of fishing with Capt. Bob Montgomery. She landed a 56-pound, 4-ounce cobia on a 12 pound-test line for a record in that line class, and a 56-pound cobia on a 6-pound test line for a record in that line class.

1976 The newly developed Windsor Village Condominium compound sold units to a number of famous authors, including Richard Wilbur, John Hershey, Ralph Ellison and John Ciardi.

1994 Ed Little of National Marine Services reported that for the first time in 10 years, the shrimp harvest was on the rise. The 1993 catch was reported to be $7.7 million at dockside, up from $4.4 million in 1992.