The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1934-06-12
Citizen Republishes Items Taken
From Publication Aboard Perry
Subjects Deal With Activi-
ties OF Personnel Dur
ing Travels On Vessels
OF u. S.

In the Perusai of a copy of =
publication issued on board the U.
5. S. Perry at Key West, a vessel
which belongs TO the United States
Fleet Of Destroyers. The Citizen
is herewith repabIi.hins several of
the items. which viii no doubt
prove of much interest TO the
reading public.
The ships paper is edited by
Ben F. Dixon. and contains quite
a volume of interesting happen
ings and historical events as ex-
perienced by Uncle Sans sea dogs
during their wide travels in con-
nection with their duties in
trayersiny the seven seas. The
following are some of the items
as pertain to Key West, the others
being of a general nature:
How Key Wsst Got Her Name
key West is the westernmost
of the principal line Of keys or
coral sand spits. lying westward Of
the southern tip of the Florida
Peninsula. But don't jump at
conclusions. It isn't Key West
because it is the west key.
I'm the olden days. 200 or more
years ago. there were two tribes
Of Indians in southern Florida.
One was the Big Tribe the Semi
noles. The other wah the Little
Tribe. the Key Indians The Key
Indians would sometimes 70 to
the mainland for deer-huating.
and in the course Of time en-
lhsaiIed themselves ii . Lille, war
with the SeminoIess The latter
drove them from Key 10 Key, UNI
til at length the Little Tribe was
pushed back to this island. A
great battle was fought. in which
the Key Indians were almost ex-
terminated. A few survivors
reached the mainland Of Cuba in
small boats and were given refuge
there. The carcasses Of hundreds
of slain Indians were left to rot
on the sands Of Key West. and the
island became covered with bleach
ing bones.
From this fact. the Spanish
gave the island the name Of 'cayo
Hueso' which means Bone Island
Tor keyl. And when the English
came along they corrupted the
name, Cayo Hueso into Key West.
Although attempts were made by
Matthew G. Perry and Commodore
Porter 20 change the name, that 81
Key West stuck and remained
the permanent name Of the Ia
land"
How FlasIer Buils The Railway
''Most Of Florida was stiIl =
Jungle and a swamp when Henry
Flagler bought . little narrow
gauge railway from 81. Augustine
TO South jacksonville IN 1885.
ut was = tremendous engineer
ing feat % build a railway out
from the mainland over keys and
bridges 10 Key West. but the
work. once started. pushed steadily
forward. and on January %,
1912, Henry Flagler himself rode
the first train over the seven mile
bridge and into Key West"
Fleet concentrated al Key
West when war wilh Spain ap-
preached. The Oregon finished
her famous cruise around The
Horn At Key West"
Jack Wilson. the Cook. i .
Spanish War Veteran. who helped
and Sehley sink The
Spanish ships in Cubs IN 'es. lie
showed "a = cartoon which the
chief engineer had pasted up IL
his pantry. Il vas the picture 81
= sailor patching . hole IN ths
bulkhead with > hot cake. Aaa 4
rad; II you have any bot cakes
left. don't put them 10 the gar
bAEe. They make good gaskxss.s
What ship do you think yoa
are on. anyway! growled Psppz.
The Tusearors. We dnn't have
bliiwsa. We axe z0th Csnsafg