MB 1674-5 John Bramanwere filled, was like that of other habitable keys near the Florida
Reef, having a high ridge extending along its water front on
the ocean or gulf side, where the deepest water lies,
and sloping back to ponds and lagoons, beyond which lie
high hammock lands. The early settlers naturally selected
the high ridge on the deep -water side to build the city,
and until the onward march of commercial progress and the
development as a naval station drove them further back, the
finest residences were built on and near the water front,
from the present location of the United States Marine
Hospital to the foot of Duval street. Back of the high ridge on
the southwestern end of the island was a large lagoo-T which
commenced in a swamp not very far from the southwestern end
of the island and continuing along, nearly parallel with the beach,
crossed Whitehead street near Caroline, and entered the water
near the north end of Simonton street. Where it crossed White-
head street it was so narrow that it was easily bridged for carts
and carriages by a few planks. After crossing this street, it spread
out into what was called a pond, which in 1836 covered about
two acres of ground. Duval street then crossed this pond in
about its center. The depth of water varied with the ebb and
flow of the tide, but it was generally about twelve to eighteen
inches deep. A foot bridge, made of piles and covered with planks,
commenced within about 100 feet of the corner of Duval and
Front streets, and extended to within about 75 feet of the corner
of Duval and Caroline streets. A more substantial bridge about
fifteen feet long afforded a passage across the entrance of the
pond, about on a line with Simonton street, which was used by
drays and other vehicles; it being the only way to get to and
from the northwestern part of the island. There was also a
small bridge across Whitehead street, which in 1850 was super-
seded by a wagon road.
No attempt was made to get rid of the lagoon or pond
because it was apprehended that if it should be closed to the
flux and influx of the tides, other portions of the inhabited city
would be subject to overflow, and to guard against this the
charter of 1836 not only restricted the authorities of the city
`:'ling up the streets, but the owners of lots covered by
the pond were also restrained from filling them.
The hurricane of 1846 so altered the configuration of the
island by washing up the sand, that the pond ceased to receive
the tides, and the consequences apprehended not having
occurred, the restriction against such filling was oinitted from
subsequent charters, and in November, 1853, an ordinance was
passed requiring the respective owners of the submerged lots
to fill them up.
These lots were in the hands of various owners, some of
whom complied with the terms of the ordinance, others suffered
the work to be done by Cir.- cit _ad paid :':e costs of the filling,
whilst otters refused/to fill in or pay the ex:ic: ts:. incurred thererar_
le
T ;�r
MIN .41i:
The city was surveyed and mapped by Mr. William A.
Whitehead in February, 1829, and like all new cities was more
pretentious on the map than in reality. None of the streets
extending southeasterly were cleared beyond Caroline street.
On the 8th of October, 1831, the city council adopted a reso-
lution giving free commission to the inhabitants of the town
to cut and remove the woods standing on Eaton street, which
caused it to be cleared of trees from Duval to Simonton streets.
As late as 1837 Eaton street beyond Simonton was covered
with its original small trees, heavy underbrush, vines, cacti,
etc., but in that year the woods were cleared and the brush
burned off on all that part of the island lying between White-.
17(1 and Elizabeth streets, as far out as Fleming street.
The first street opened through to the South Beach was
Whitehead street. Duval street was only cleared about half
way between Eaton and Fleming street as late as 1836, and the
only house on it at that time, after crossing Caroline street,
was one belonging to Captain Francis B. Watlington. This
house is still occupied by his immediate family, and though
built in the early thirties, weathered the great hurricanes of
1835, 1846, 1909 and 1910, and sustained little damage.
A large part of this work was accomplished in one day by
a party of fifty or more United States sailors sent on shore for
this purpose by the commanding officers of the United States
sloop Concord, and other vessels then lying in the harbor. Prof.
Coffin, instructor in mathematics to the midshipmen, and
leading townspeople, among whom were Judge Marvin, Mr. Jos.
B. Browne, Mr. Stephen R. Mallory and Mr. Asa F. Tift,
assisted in the work, which was done with a view to take away
from the Seminole Indians, who were at war with the whites on
the mainland, the means of concealing themselves, should they
attempt an attack on the town.
The following from the pen of Judge William Marvin, for
many years United States district judge at Key West, is interest-
ing reading of the old days:
"About the persons I found living in Ivey West when I
first landed there in October, 1836, from a little mail schooner,
which sailed from Charleston (the whole population was then
not very far from four hundred souls), James Webb, then about
forty-five years old, was the judge of the Superior Court. He
had been appointed by President Adams from Georgia. He was
a good lawyer, an impartial judge and a genial gentleman.
He resigned Y his office in 1839 and moved to Texas, where he
was appointed by President Lamar, secretary of State. Texas
had not then been admitted into the Union—it was the Lone
Star. Mr. Alden A. M. Jackson was clerk of the court and Mr.
Thomas Easton was marshal. They told in that day a good
story of the marshal. He had been only recently appointed. He
was calling in the court the names of the jurors. He did not
know the sound of a single letter in Spanish. He had come from
Tennessee. He came to the name on the list—Joseph Ximinez.
He called 'Joseph Eks-im-e-nez.' No person answered. Some one
whispered to him to call 'Joseph He -ma -nes,' which he did.
Whereupon Mr. Ximinez answered 'here' and walked up to
the clerk's desk to be sworn in. 'Phoebus! What a name!'
excla' ed the marshal.
"The only lawyers at that time at the bar were Mr. Adam
Gordon and Mr. Wm. R. Hackley. Mr. Chandler had, a short
time before, resigned the office of United States attorney and
moved away. I had succeeded to his place. Mr. Win. A.
Whitehead was collector of the port, Mr. Adam Gordon deputy,
7d Mr. S. R. Mallory, inspector.
"The principal merchants were Mr. Fielding A. Browne, a
Virginian; Mr. Pardon C. Greene,* from Rhode Island; Mr.
Oliver O'Hara, from South Carolina, and his partner, Mr.
Charles Wells, from New York. Mr. Wm. Shaw, Mr. Geo.
E. Weaver and Mr. Philip J. Fontane were grocers and ship
chandlers. Mr. Amos and Mr. Asa Tift kept a dry goods store.
Mr. Alexander Patterson was an auctioneer, and kept a store
located near a cocoanut tree at the foot of Whitehead street.
Mr. William H. Wall kept a little store, had been married a
a short time before to Miss Mabritty and lived in a small
house on Whitehead street a little beyond Jackson Square,
the farthest house out on that street. Mr. Lewis Breaker, the
father of Mrs. James Filor, was a justice of the peace. Mr. John
Geiger was pilot, captain of a wrecking vessel, a man of decided
character and a sort of commodore among his compeers. Mr.
Charles Johnson and Mr. Francis Watlington, both bright and
intelligent men, were pilots and wreckers. I am not quite certain
whether Mr. William Curry was living in Key West at the time
I am writing of or not. I am inclined to think he came there at a
somewhat later period. He was at one time clerk in Mr.
Wall's store. At a still later period he formed a partnership
with Mr. George Bowne in the business of buying and sell-
ing wrecked goods, and made money. But few people came from
the Bahamas before 1836. Among the first to come were Mr.
Wm. Curry's family, Mr. Samuel Kemp, Mr. John Braman, Mr.
Benj. Albury, and Mr. John Lowe, Jr.'s family.
"Among the young men about town are to be named Amos
and Asa Tift, Stephen R. Mallory, Joseph B. Browne, John P.
Baldwin and Lieut. Benjamin Alvord, United States Army,
afterwards paymaster general of the army. I do not know that
these young fellows ever 'painted the town red,' for they were
a well behaved and orderly set of young gentlemen; but they,
or some of them, were known to be in the streets very often in
the small hours of the morning, serenading some one or more
of the young ladies of the town. Among these young ladies
were Miss Mary Nieves Ximinez, who married Mr. •Joseph
Beverly Browne, Miss Whalton, Miss Breaker, aad at a •:ery
• pesd"..x £.
little later period, say in 1837-38, Miss Mary and her sister
Miss Nona Martinelli. Nothing pleased Mallory better than to
take his flute and get one or two friends, and Roberts, a colored
man with his fiddle, to join him and go out into the beautiful
moonlight nights and serenade some lady or ladies. Among
the married ladies were Mrs. Wm. A. Whitehead, Mrs. Adam
Gordon, Mrs. Wm. Randolph, sister of Mr. Fielding A. Browne,
Mrs. George E. Weaver, Mrs. Joseph Ximenez, Mrs. Alexander
Patterson, Mrs. Francis Watlington, Mrs. Johnson, Mrs. Whal-
ton and Mrs. Ellen Mallory.
"Messrs. Charles Howe, Winer Bethel, Stephen J. Douglas,
James Curtis, Thomas Ferguson, Walter C. Maloney, James
Filor, Fernando J. Moreno, Senac, Charles and Asa Tift, James
C. Clapp, Rev. Osgood E. Herrick and James Hicks all came
to Key West after 1836. Mr. Howe was living at that time at
Indian Key."
,,The first permanent settlers in Key West were Mr. Joseph
C. Whalton and family, Mr. Michael Mabritty and family,
Mr. Antonio Girardo and family from St. Augustine, Fla., and
Mr. William W. Rigby and family and Mr. Richard Fitzpatrick.
A territorial government was established in Florida in 1819
and Key West thenbegan to feel the benefit of an influx of
population. Probably few new cities have ever started out with
as high a class of population as Key West. Nearly all who came
here had some means, and were people of culture and refinement.
St. Augustine, Virginia, South Carolina, New York and
Connecticut furnished their quota of the early population.
Wrecking and fishing for the Havana market were the almost
exclusive sources of revenue, and as they were both very lu-
crative occupations, many substantial fortunes were made.
The little colony at Key West was not without excitement
at times. On December 7, 1831, the Key West Gazette said:
"Considerable excitement has existed here during this
week occasioned by the riotous conduct of a number of the
passengers from on board the wreck of the ship Maria. As soon
as they arrived here, every accommodation which the place
could afford was granted them; fifteen or twenty tents were
pitched for their convenience, and a number of them were taken
into different houses.
"On Thursday last, after a rather free indulgence to Bacchus,
they, from some imaginary cause, became dissatisfied and
threatened the lives of Captain McMullen and some of his
crew. They evidenced their feelings that night, by the most
boisterous behavior; in consequence of which the inhabitants
at the lower end of the town were prevented from sleeping and
were in momentary expectation of having their homes assaulted:'
On Friday afternoon they collected in such numbers on Browne's
wharf that the proprietor was obliged to suspend business.
Here a general battle ensued among them, in which it was
difficult to tell who or how many were engaged, and a disfigura-
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