The dubious title of “Southernmost Point” of the “Continental U.S.A.” is asserted by the city of Key West, Florida.
Has the city forgotten it is an island connected to the continent by the “Overseas Highway,” a network of 42 bridges?
Or the fact that there are more islands slightly further south owned by Florida?
Key West’s Monument to Being the Most Southern City
Regardless, Key West is more than just a carnival sideshow trap with an obscure claim to fame.
For being approximately five squares miles, this island has interesting connections to our economic, political, and literary spheres.
Industries here have ranged from sea sponge harvesting to shipwreck salvaging to cigar manufacturing. At one point over 100 million cigars were produced annually here.
Presently, tourism is the main industry, where influxes of thousands of tourists a day are not uncommon.
“We Seceded Where Others Failed!” is the official motto of the Conch Republic, the alter ego to Key West. Which also happens to be more exciting than Key West’s official motto, “One Human Family.”
In 1982, the United States Border Patrol setup a checkpoint on United States Route 1 in the vicinity of Key West allegedly searching for illegal immigrants. This caused severe traffic jams and added hours to travel in and out of the city.
Starting Marker For U.S. Route 1
Keep in mind U.S. Route 1 is the only motorway; there was no avoiding the checkpoint.
Unsurprisingly, the checkpoints stifled tourism because Border Patrol Officers are not exactly known for their welcoming demeanor.
After city officials tried legal remedies to discontinue the checkpoint, the city seceded from the United States and declared war.
A new nation was born, which proclaimed:
“…Key West shall now be known as the Conch Republic, and as the flag of our new republic is raised, I thereby state to Washington and the rest of the United States, and the world that the Conchs are and were.
When Jamestown, Virginia was settled by Englishmen fed up with the arrogance, the derision, the abuse of rights by a despot, a King without compassion or a sense of humanity, another group was settling in the Bahamas and they were called “Conchs.” They were known as “Conchs” because they hoisted flags with the tough, hard conch shellfish indicating they’d rather eat conch than pay the King’s taxes and live under his tyranny.
…We serve notice on the government in Washington to remove the roadblock or get ready to put up a permanent border to a new foreign land…”
Official Flag of Conch Republic Retrieved From Google Image Search
If the Federal Government was going to treat Key West as being outside the U.S., the town reasoned it might as well no longer be in the Union.
The dispute was resolved after a few days with the checkpoint being withdrawn.
However, the Conch Republic has continued to operate in parallel alongside the city government. Even today passports are issued, which have been honored by some foreign countries.
Fortunately, my visit required no immigration formalities.
Ernest Hemingway, who lived here in the 1930’s, is among the Island’s recognized residents.
Front of Hemingway’s Home
His backyard studio has been preserved as it looked back then, showcases the original furniture and his actual typewriter is on display. The author wrote over 70 percent of his works there.
Inside Hemingway’s Studio
The property is also home to over fifty cats, many of which descendants of his first cat, Snow White.
Hemingway was known for being superstitious. A friend gave him this cat due to its peculiar anatomy: six toes. Six-toed cats were believed to be good fortune. Many of the cats continue to display this unique trait.
One of Hemingway’s Chairs or as a friend said, “Not Sitting in Hemingway’s Chair”
Interestingly, Hemingway’s Bronze Star citation is on display for his service as a war correspondent. It partially read:
Hemingway “displayed a broad familiarity with modern military science, interpreting and evaluating the campaigns and operations of friendly and enemy forces, circulating freely under fire in combat areas in order to obtain an accurate picture of conditions. Through his talent of expression, Mr. Hemingway enabled readers to obtain a vivid picture of the difficulties and triumphs of the front-line soldier and his organization in combat.”
Another well-known figure in Key West is President Harry S. Truman.
President Truman’s health was in decline following his transition from vice president and making the historic decision to drop not just one, but two nuclear bombs.
His doctors, for medical reasons, urged him to seek respite from the daily pressures of being the leader of the free world.
On the recommendation of a military friend, Truman went to recuperate on the naval base located in Key West.
Weather here averages a daily temperature of 77 degrees Fahrenheit. Unsurprisingly, Truman was very satisfied with the arrangement and his well being improved.
He wrote to his wife he was further pleased that the comfortable commandant’s quarters had been vacant, meaning he had not displaced anyone.
Inside, a bar was staffed daily, where Truman would receive his morning shot of Bourbon or as he called it his “engine starter.” It was something he insisted his doctor’s had prescribed in addition to his absence from Washington.
His bookshelf was stocked with several of Winston Churchill’s writings such as Their Finest Hour and The Hinge of Fate. Other texts included A Complete History of the United States by Clement Wood, Strange Lands and Friendly People by Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas, and The Flying Carpet by Richard Halliburton.
This setting would serve Truman for 175 days spread over eleven working-holidays during his presidency and came to be called the “Harry S. Truman Little White House.”
Outside of Harry S. Truman Little White House
Subsequent to Truman, other presidents and government officials have utilized this site. Secretary of State Colin Powell hosted the peace talks here between the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan in 2001.
For what looks on a world map to be an insignificant speck, there sure was more substance than I expected.
// Oliver – Day 10 – Key West