Key West: History of an Island of Dreams / Edition 1

by Maureen Ogle

Overview

Parrotheads, Hemingway aficionados, and sun worshipers view Key West as a tropical paradise, and scores of writers have set tales of mystery and romance on the island. The city’s real story—told by Maureen Ogle in this lively and engaging illustrated account—is as fabulous as fiction. In the two centuries since the city’s pioneer founders battled Indians, pirates, and deadly disease, Key West has stood at the crossroads of American history. In 1861, Union troops seized control of strategically located Key West. In the early 1890s, Key West Cubans helped José Martí launch the Cuban revolution, and a few years later the battleship Maine steamed out of Key West harbor on its last, tragic voyage. At the turn of the century, a technological marvel—the overseas railroad—was built to connect mainland Florida to Key West, and in the 1920s and 1930s, painters, rumrunners, and writers (including Ernest Hemingway and Robert Frost) discovered Key West. During World War II, the federal government and the military war machine permanently altered the island’s landscape, and in the second half of the 20th century, bohemians, hippies, gays, and jet-setters began writing a new chapter in Key West’s social history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780813029931
Publisher:	University Press of Florida
Publication date:	07/01/2006
Edition description:	First
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Maureen Ogle is the author of Ambitious Brew: The Story of the Immigrants and Entrepreneurs Who Invented American Beer and All the Modern Conveniences: American Household Plumbing, 1840-1890.

Table of Contents

	Acknowledgments	vii
	Introduction	1
1	"Capitalists Will Always Go Where Capital Is to Be Found"	3
2	The Stuff of Which Legends Are Made	25
3	Winds of Change, Winds of War	44
4	Soldiers and Sympathizers	60
5	Cigar Makers and Revolutionaries	81
6	"Like No Other Place in Florida"	110
7	The Haves, the Have Nots, and the Men of Vision	139
8	"A Greenwich Village Nightmare"	161
9	Boom Town	187
10	The End of the Road	220
	Sources	243
	Index	263

Editorial Reviews

"Ogle captures this island city in all its quirky charm. Her story breezes along in typical Key West fashion--full of gossip and humor, with the jolt of a good cup of Cuban coffee."

From the Publisher

"Before you go... pick up a copy of "Key West," and you will acquire enough knowledge to make your visit exciting and fun. A must read for those who have already formed their own opinion of Key West, as well as for those who have never visited the captivating Florida Keys."

Island Sun

"An interesting perspective on the island that served as a crossroad for international cultures, fostered an entrepreneurial spirit and has a long history of social progressiveness."

Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers

Ogle captures this island city in all its quirky charm. Her story breezes along in typical Key West fashion-full of gossip and humor, with the jolt of a good cup of Cuban coffee.
—University of South Florida, St. Petersburg

Lee Irby