A Guide to KEY WEST; Monroe Co, FL
Contributor: Joy R. Fisher <sdgenweb AT yahoo.com> Date Contributed: 18 Jun 2010
A Guide to KEY WEST
Compiled by workers of the Writers' Program of the Work Projects Administration in the State of Florida AMERICAN GUIDE SERIES Illustrated FLORIDA STATE PLANNING BOARD PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Part Two
POINTS OF INTEREST
1. MUNICIPAL SPONGE DOCK (auction sales 9 a.m. Mon.,
Wed., Fri.), N. end of Grinnel St., in years past one of
the busiest spots on the island, still remains a place
of interest. The present dock was built with funds of
the Civil Works Administration during the winter of
1933-34, but sponge fishing and trading has been going
on for nearly a century in Key West. The trading reached
its peak shortly before the turn of the century, and the
auction today is still worth seeing. Sponge dealers come
here from New York and other cities, and the revenue
derived by Key West spongers once played an important
part in the economic life of the community. At one time
the yield had a value of more than $375,000 annually,
but in 1940 the crop was worth little.
In the spring of 1939 a sponge blight affected the
beds of the Bahama Islands to such an extent that
sponging in that area was stopped completely. The United
States Bureau of Fisheries assigned Dr. Paul S. Galtsoff
to study the nature of the blight in the Bahamas.
Springing from east to west, the blight appeared in Key
West waters. Experiments at first indicated that there
were several causes for the blight, such as excessive
rains, underground rivers of fresh water, "black water"
draining from the Everglades, and a mysterious slime
which was extremely prevalent in Key West waters at that
time. Dr. Galtsoff was hurried to Key West. In a few
months the blight had destroyed, Dr. Galtsoff found, 90
per cent of the wool sponges, 80 per cent of the yellow,
and 70 per cent of the grass varieties. The
investigation revealed that the blight was caused by a
microscopic fungus organism. Various civic and
governmental agencies sought to help the WPA establish a
Rehabilitation Project, which would give employment to
the spongers and at the same time survey the extent of
the blight and to conduct experiments in artificial
sponge propagation by means of cutting. The WPA plans
did not mature and the United States Bureau of Fisheries
then sought an appropriation for that purpose. This
fund, however, was denied by Congress. A report by the
Florida Department of Conservation in the Tarpon Springs
area indicated that the blight had affected many sponges
there: but whereas sponging had declined in Key West,
Tarpon Springs sales remained unaffected. By 1940
experimental Key West sponging trips revealed that the
blight had diminished considerably, and the Key West
operations have improved steadily since that time. The
catches are still small, however.
The method of selling is unique. The auction is
carried on in comparative silence, as the buyers are men
of experience and require no advice as to the value of
the various lots of sponges. The hour before the sale is
spent by the buyers in examining the merchandise and
making note of the highest price they will pay per bunch
for each of the various lots. During the sale the
auctioneer announces the number of bunches in the lot
being offered and receives the offer of each bidder
written on a small piece of folded paper. The highest
bidder is awarded the sponges without argument, provided
the owner considers the amount suflBcient. No more
ceremony enters into a $6,000 sale than one of $5. The
prices paid for any one variety of sponge may vary
considerably according to quality and size.
2. The TURTLE CRAWLS AND CANNERY (open weekdays; adm.
15c), N. end of Margaret St., consists of underwater
pens where hundreds of giant sea turtles are kept alive
until ready for canning, and a long, single-story,
wooden factory built beside the crawls. The inclosures
are made of evenly spaced concrete pillars, extending
from the ocean bottom to a point above high water level.
The pillars do not impede the free flow of water, but
prevent the turtles from escaping. The turtles are
caught principally off the Central American coast and
brought here at intervals by schooners manned by natives
of Grand Cayman. Of the varieties captured by fishermen,
the green sea turtle is considered the most desirable.
From it come the famous Key West turtle steaks and the
clear turtle soup manufactured by the cannery. The
hawksbill, or tortoise, sea turtle is valuable for its
shell, which serves in the manufacture of tortoise-shell
spectacle frames, brooches, and combs. Other types, of
no value as food, are the loggerheads and trunk-backs.
The turtles range in weight from 50 to 500 pounds.
Cannery employees butcher several turtles each afternoon
about 3:30.
3. The FISH MARKETS, N. end of Elizabeth St., line the
water front. Here, tied to the docks, are "fish cars"
containing live fish. The buyer selects his fish; it is
taken out of the car with a dip net, killed and dressed
immediately. Tied to the dock are the boats of the petty
fishermen, and the fish are sold directly from the boat
wells. The boats usually reach port at four in the
afternoon.
4. The AQUARIUM (open 7-6:80 daily; adults 15$,
children 5$), N. end of Whitehead St., built with CWA
and FERA funds, exhibits many varieties of marine life.
Brilliantly colored tropical fish play in the tanks, the
atmosphere of which is as nearly natural as possible.
The sun-warmed water pulses through the tanks, and no
artificial heat is needed. Mr. Robert O. Van Duesen,
Director of Philadelphia's Fairmount Park Aquarium, on
one of his visits to Key West, suggested the idea of the
open-air exhibit.
5. The UNITED STATES NAVAL STATION (not open), Greene
and Whitehead Streets, is noted for the beauty of its
tropical foliage. The radio station, established in
1908, still retains much of its importance as a link in
the Navy's communication system, and the first sight
which meets the eye of a tourist upon approaching Key
West is its group of tall graceful towers. The machine
shops, foundries, storehouses and other buildings are
filled with great activity. The Key West station is
playing an important part in the national defense
program. The buildings are well-preserved and painted
and the grounds are well-kept. Many naval officers
during the past years have had trees and shrubs brought
in from other naval stations at Panama, Guam, Honolulu
and Manila, to add to the already numerous varieties
native to the Florida Keys. Opposite the entrance gates
of the Naval Station in a triangle is a monument erected
to the officers and men of the Federal forces who lost
their lives in the Civil War. A Romanesque building just
outside the naval station gates houses the radio
station. It was formerly the post office, customhouse
and Federal courthouse.
6. KEY WEST LIGHTHOUSE (open daily), Whitehead and
Division Sts., a 100-foot conical stuccoed brick tower,
with a lantern of 11,000 candle power, has a light
visible for 15 miles. The first lighthouse, built in
1825 on Whitehead Street, where Fort Taylor now stands,
was washed away in the 1846 storm. The present
lighthouse was put into operation that year. Views of
the city and environs are obtained from the railed
balcony.
7. The ERNEST HEMINGWAY HOUSE (private), SE. corner
Olivia and Whitehead Sts., is a two-story white stucco
residence with a flat roof and one of the few chimneys
in Key West. Double porches have iron grillwork around
three sides, and an outside staircase ascends to the
second-story porch. A high wall encloses the beautifully
landscaped premises. Built shortly after the War between
the States it is one of the older houses in the city.
Hemingway's novel To Have and Have Not (1937) has a Key
West background, as have many of his short stories and
articles on fishing.
8. FORT TAYLOR (not open), entrance W. end of United
St., is a Coast Guard base with artillery mounted.
Construction, begun in 1845, and delayed by hurricanes,
was partly completed the following year. Unfinished, it
was occupied by Union forces at the beginning of the War
between the States, and the finest armament of the
period was mounted. Reduced from three tiers in 1899, it
now has modern equipment, and each summer the 265th
Coast Artillery, Florida National Guard, encamps here.
9. The HARRIS HOUSE (private), S. end of Duval St., an
ornate red brick structure with a tower, veranda, and
second-story balcony, surrounded by landscaped grounds,
is the southernmost home in the United States.
10. The PUBLIC LIBRARY (open 3-6 daily), Duval between
Division and Virginia Sts., is housed in a white frame
building and maintained by the Key West Woman's Club.
11. SAN CARLOS INSTITUTE, Duval St. between Fleming
and Southard Sts., a two-story stucco structure, was
erected by the Cuban Government in 1924 in honor of
Carlos Manuel de Cespedes, Cuban patriot. The Palace
Theater occupying the ground floor was formerly the
Cuban Opera House. On the second floor, interesting for
its majolica tiles, are the offices of the Cuban consul,
and a grade school maintained by the Cuban Government as
part of the Cuban school system.
12. The WATLINGTON HOUSE (private), Duval St. between
Eaton and Caroline Sts., is a weathered and shuttered
story-and-a-half house with a porch across the front and
three dormers, each of different size. Built in 1825, it
is said to be the oldest house in Kev West= The wood
used in its construction is cedar, probably from Cuba.
It was built by Captain Cousins, who sold it to Francis
Watlington, captain of the schooner Activa, which ran
between Dry Tortugas, Key West, and Cuba. In about 1832
the house was moved on rollers from its original site on
Whitehead Street to its present location, and anchored
to stone and cement piers. Mrs. Watlington brought her
furniture and accessories from the Bahamas, and most of
them are still in the house, ownership of which remains
in the family. There is an old red-brick oven in the
backyard.
13. The BAHAMA HOUSES {private), SW. corner Eaton and
William Sts., stand side by side, the Bartlum residence
on Eaton Street and the Roberts home on William Street.
The first was built on Green Turtle Key, Bahama Islands,
by Captain Joe Bartlum in the early part of the
nineteenth century, and when the family moved to Key
West, the house was taken apart, loaded aboard a
schooner and rebuilt on its present site. The Roberts
place was also brought from the Bahamas by Captain Dick
Roberts, the owner.
The Bahama houses are reputedly constructed of white
pine. Unpretentious, they have a simple dignity and
possess the provincial Georgian characteristic of
comfort. Different from most Key West buildings are the
low ceilings, but typical of the city are the delicate
balustrades on the porches, the large shuttered
openings, and the roof with twin gables.
14. The KEY WEST CEMETERY, main entrance Margaret St.,
near Passover Lane, oldest of city's burial grounds, has
one section devoted to soldiers and sailors who lost
their lives on the U. S. S. Maine. Another section is
devoted to Cuban patriots who lost their lives during
the Spanish-American War.
15. The WEST MARTELLO TOWER {not open), water front
between Reynold and White Sts., is all that remains of a
U. S. Army Coast Defense, one of two forts of this kind
begun in 1861. This type of structure—usually a small
circular fort with very thick walls—is built chiefly on
seacoasts to prevent enemy landings. Authorities differ
as to the origin of the name martello. Some say it is
derived from the hammer (Italian, martello) used to
strike an alarm. Another says the type derived its name
from a Corsican who constructed one on the coast of his
native land, which was used in resisting an invasion of
the English in 1794. This type of fort was used as early
as 1541.
16. The EAST MARTELLO TOWER, S. Roosevelt Blvd., most
imposing of Key West's old forts, is one of the finest
examples of an old fortification in the country. It was
built in 1861, and some of the Irish bricklayers who
worked on the masonry settled in the town.
17. RAUL'S CLUB, S. Roosevelt Blvd., is the source of
a tall fish story. Ripley in "Believe it or not" and
Lowell Thomas, radio news commentator, have told the
story of the domesticated fish which come when called to
the side of the pool in the rear of the club, and take
food from the owner's hands. An interesting part of the
demonstration is the "side scratching." Without other
persuasion than the promise of a morsel, a snapper,
grouper, or muttonnsh swims obediently to a submerged
rock, stretches itself upon it, while the demonstrator
strokes its side. The reward is a morsel of food which
the demonstrator holds an inch or so above the fish's
head. From its reclining position the fish flops into
the air to snatch the food from the hand of the
demonstrator.
The club's ballroom has a series of murals by Avery
Johnson depicting native dances of Africa, China, Cuba,
and other nations.
18. The U. S. ARMY BARRACKS (not open), Leon St.
between White St, and Palm Ave., was established in the
1860's. A few years later the government constructed a
road leading from the barracks to Fort Taylor. Within
the spacious, walled reservation are fine specimens of
cacti.
19. REST BEACH, water front, E. of White St., with its
palm-thatched cabanas and acres of glittering white
sand, is a popular playground.
20. The 7th DISTRICT LIGHTHOUSE HEADQUARTERS,
adjoining the aquarium, contains an exhibit showing the
evolution of the lighthouse service during the past
century. Lighthouse models of the present and past are
displayed. Three vessels, moored here, are kept in
service to make near-by channels safe for shipping. The
establishment of lighthouses, lighted buoys, stakes, and
other aids to navigation brought to an end the city's
lucrative occupations of salvaging wrecked ships and
their cargoes.
21. The PAN-AMERICAN AIR FIELD, N. of East Martello
Tower, was the scene of the take off of the first
international flight from the United States when a
Pan-American plane departed for Havana. The field is now
abandoned, and fliers land at their own risk.
22. The ICE PLANT, near the turtle crawls, is one of
the few in the country manufacturing ice from distilled
sea water. The process is similar to that used on ships.
23. The MARINE HOSPITAL, Emma St., established in
1844, is maintained by the Department of the Treasury's
Public Health Service for treatment of ill and injured
officers and men of the merchant marine service.
Nationals of all countries are treated. When passing
vessels wireless for assistance, coast guard cutters and
sometimes planes, are sent out to bring in patients.
24. The SUBMARINE BASE, rear of the Marine Hospital,
with its sea wall and finger piers, was established
during the World War, The wooden piers are beinsr
replaced with those of steel and concrete. The basin is
used during winter to accommodate visiting yachts. A
landing barge moored to one of the piers is used by Pan
American Airways for planes flying between Key West and
Miami. In the grounds surrounding the basin is a grove
of 300 mahogany trees planted by citizens.
25. RADIO STATION, Roosevelt Blvd. and County Rd.,
originally owned and operated by the U. S. Navy, is now
used as part of the intra-communication system of the
lighthouse service of the Department of Commerce.
26. BAYVIEW PARK, Roosevelt Blvd., and Leon St., is
the city's principal recreational center. Baseball,
diamond ball, and tennis are played on lighted grounds.
Public meetings and band concerts are held here.
Prominent is a monument to the New York Volunteers
stationed here during the War between the States.
27. The OLD ISLAND TRADING POST, N. end of Duval St.,
occupies the site of an Indian trading post. Auctions
were held here in later days, for Key West was at the
point of a triangle in the courses of coastwise ships. A
curio shop and library is maintained in the building
today.
28. TRUMBO ISLAND, N. end of Caroline St., a tract of
marl pumped in by Henry Flagler for a terminal of the
Florida East Coast Railway, is also site of the docks of
the Peninsular & Occidental Steamship Company. Before
rail service was suspended in 1935, passengers stepped
from train to steamer for the short voyage to Havana.
Ferries carried 28 loaded freight cars to Cuban ports
during this period.
29. A TRAVELER'S PALM stands near the corner of
Whitehead and Virginia Sts. The large fronds of this
species almost invariably point north and south, and in
desert countries travelers often tap the trunk to obtain
cool water.
30. The CONVENT OF THE MARY IMMACULATE, Division St.
between Simonton and Margaret Sts., was built in 1878 by
the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, a
Canadian organization that had established a school in
Key West 10 years before. The building was enlarged in
1904. Many of the Sisters perished while on duty as
nurses during the yellow fever epidemic of 1898.
Throughout the Spanish-American War the Convent, school
buildings, and personal services of the Sisters as
nurses were placed at the disposal of the U. S. Navy.
31. KEY WEST COMMUNITY WPA ART CENTER (open 9-4
weekdays), NE. corner Whitehead and Front Sts., occupies
a two-story, white frame building. The center holds
classes for art students whose work, and that of others,
is exhibited in the gallery on the second floor.
Lectures by prominent artists visiting the city are
given during the winter.
POINTS OF INTEREST IN ENVIRONS
KEY WEST BOTANICAL GARDEN, Stock Island, adjoining Key
West on the east, established as part of the Key West
rehabilitation program, is planted with thousands of
exotic trees and shrubs furnished by the U. S. Plant
Introduction Station. A narrow blazed trail winds
through an original hammock growth where trees and
plants indigenous to the keys have not been disturbed.
FORT JEFFERSON NATIONAL MONUMENT, on Dry Tortugas, 65
miles west of Key West, can be visited by chartered or
private vessels and planes. Dry Tortugas is the name
given to a group of seven keys or small islands, the
principal ones being Loggerhead, Bush, and Garden Keys,
each with its points of interest. Tidal action
constantly changes their contour; some islands are
disappearing, and new ones forming.
The islands were visited in 1513 by Ponce de Leon
whose men captured 160 tortoises in one night. He named
the islands Tortugas, the Spanish word for tortoises.
The Fort Jefferson National Monument comprises all the
islands and is under the jurisdiction of the National
Park Service, Department of the Interior. A custodian is
in immediate charge and visitors should register in the
Monument Visitors' Book on arrival. There is excellent
anchorage and docking space for yachts.
DRY TORTUGAS LIGHTHOUSE was originally built in 1825
on Garden Key, and reduced to a harbor light in 1858,
when the present 150-foot lighthouse on Loggerhead Key
was erected. Its 1,500,000 candlepower light flashes
white every 20 seconds.
THE ROOKERIES, on Bush Key, were visited in 1832 by
John James Audubon, the ornithologist, who described the
bird life on Bird Key. Due to tidal action the island
has been submerged and the terns have transferred their
breeding grounds to Bush Key. Thousands of terns,
chiefly noddies, sooties, and least terns lay their eggs
here from April to October. Formerly, the Dry Tortugas
rookeries were pillaged by eggers from Cuba and Florida,
who took away bushels of eggs for marketing. This
destruction has been discontinued since the proclamation
of the Tortugas as a National Monument. Visitors
interested in birdlore are permitted to visit Bush Key
and take photographs under the supervision of the
Custodian.
FORT JEFFERSON, on Garden Key was reserved by the
United States for military purposes on December 17,
1845. Preliminary steps toward the construction of the
fort were taken in 1846. Lieutenant Horatio G. Wright,
U. S. C. E., was assigned the task of constructing the
mammoth six-sixed, three-tiered, casemated fortress.
Many difficulties were encountered in
building—settlement, hardships in living conditions due
to bad food, loss of cargo in ships wrecked on their way
to the site. Until 1863 much slave labor was used,
slaves from Key West and St. Augustine being hired out
by their owners. Periodically hurricanes destroyed
thousands of dollars worth of property, and fever broke
out among the workers every few years.
By the beginning of the War between the States the
curtains and casemates of the fort were carried to the
height of the second floor arches; by the end of the war
the fort was almost as it stands today.
In 1861 the fort was garrisoned under the command of
Major L. G. Arnold, USA, who four days after arrival
mounted six eight-inch columbiads and six field pieces.
Now obsolete, the columbiad was a muzzle-loading, heavy,
long-chambered gun, used for shooting at angles of high
elevation. More guns were added later, and a
supplementary battery mounted on Bird Key. Arnold's
activities are said to be responsible for keeping the
fort in the hands of Union forces, A Confederate vessel
arrived in the harbor and the captain sent a messenger
to the fort to demand its surrender to the State of
Florida. The guns were not mounted, yet Major Arnold's
reply was, "Tell your captain I will blow his ship out
of the water if he is not gone away from here in ten
minutes." The bluff worked and the ship sailed away.
The major role played by the fort was that of a
prison. The most famous prisoner incarcerated here was
Dr. Samuel A. Mudd, a Maryland physician who gave
medical attention to Booth, President Lincoln's slayer,
unaware of the identity of his patient. Dr. Mudd,
together with several others tried by military
commission for conspiracy in the assassination plot, was
sentenced to life imprisonment at hard labor. He was
brought to Fort Jefferson, and confined here, sometimes
in irons, for four years. He suffered many hardships at
the hands of his jailors, had to do the most menial
work, and once made a fruitless attempt to escape to a
place where the writ of habeas corpus might be active.
Prisoners sometimes escaped from the fort, despite the
report that the moat swarmed with man-eating sharks.
An epidemic of yellow fever ravaged the fort in 1867,
and claimed many victims, among them the post surgeon,
Brevet Major Joseph Sim Smith. Dr. Mudd offered his
services as physician and his offer was accepted by the
commanding officer. Dr. Mudd's services were praised by
the garrison, and a petition was made for his release.
Major Valentine Stone, the commanding officer, promised
to see that the petition reached the proper officials in
Washington, but contracted the disease en route to Key
West and died. Dr. Mudd's letters, published in The Life
of Dr. Samuel A. Mudd, by his daughter Nettie Mudd, give
harrowing accounts of the terror-stricken population of
the fort and the hasty burials of victims of the
disease* After the epidemic Dr= Mudd was again placed in
confinement until March 11, 1869, when he was released
and pardoned by President Johnson. Dr. Mudd died at his
Maryland home in 1883.
In 1873, another epidemic as well as a hurricane swept
the fort, which was abandoned for thorough disinfection
and the garrison removed. Only a caretaker and
lighthouse keepers remained.
When war with Spain seemed imminent in 1898, the Navy
Department took over the fort. It was from Dry Tortugas
that the ill-fated U.S.S. Maine sailed to Havana on her
last voyage. The Navy abandoned the fort in 1906, and
since then hurricanes and fire have wrecked some of the
buildings. A salvaging company partly demolished the
coal rigs in 1934, and later the same year a group of
World War Veterans was sent to clean up and partially
rehabilitate the fort.
On January 4, 1935, the Dry Tortugas Islands were
proclaimed "The Fort Jefferson National Monument" by
President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
The only entrance to the fort is by the sally-port on
the southeast side. On the right and left are narrow
slits in the wall that ventilated the guard room cells.
The southeast side of the fort has been wired and
electric lights made available for inspection of the
magazines, sometimes used as confinement cells. In the
bastion towers are magazine chambers. The remains of
some of the gun carriages are seen on the first tier.
Each of the casemates was designed for a gun. Of
interest are the perfectly aligned rows of arches
separating the casemates, and the great thickness of the
walls. Underneath the casemates are cisterns for the
storage of rain water conducted from the terreplein or
roof of the fort. Each of the six bastions contains a
circular granite stairway leading to the terreplein. The
structures on the top of the fort are magazines from
which the terreplein guns were to be supplied with
ammunition. Some of the 15-inch smooth bore and 10-inch
rifled guns are still in place.
Directly opposite the sally-port across the parade
ground are the officers' quarters, wrecked by hurricane
and fire. Right of the sally-port are the ruins of the
soldiers' barracks. Two uncompleted magazines are seen,
their enormous arches intended to carry a bomb proof
roof. There is a hot-shot furnace, used for heating shot
in the hope of its setting fire to wooden ships. On the
parade ground is a monument erected to the memory of
Brevet Major Joseph Sim Smith and his small son. Dr.
Smith, post surgeon, died during the epidemic in 1867.
Along the walls inside the fort are trenches, part of
the sewerage system, designed to be flooded by the tide
twice a day. Outside the fort are the gaunt ruins of two
coaling stations erected by the Navy Department, their
structural steel twisted and bent by hurricane shortly
after erection.
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