The Key West citizen., 1952-11-25

Capt. Thomas Moore who found
the body Of Sam Long while fish
ing off No-Name Key on Sunday
has seafaring tradition that goes
back to the days of Napoleon.
When l interviewed the IS year
old Key Wester yesterday on his
tragic find in shallow water, l
meant to rush right back to the
paper. Capt. Moore's eventful his
tory held me there an hour.
A reader of this column called
me at 8 on Monday to tell me
where to find fhe Captain. Though
she would not let me use her
name ! wish TO thank her for
leading me to the Moore family
whose history covers Key West
through the Civil War, through
Dry TortUgas, through the Keys
ferry, hurricanes, and drowninss.
Sam Longs water-logged body
was the third that has been found
by the sharp-eye whitehaired Key
West Captain Moore.
He found his own brother-in-law's
body off White Street in the sea
back in 1912. He found man with
his head cut off in the water some
years ago.
Capt. Moore's father, grand
father and great-grandfather have
all played part in the sea his
tory of this continent and that of
Europe.
His father, Thomas Moore the
first, was a lighthouse keeper at
TortugaS Light, Loggerhead Key,
68 miles from here. His maternal
grandfather was such an excellent
pilot in the treacherous waters off
the Keys, that the Union Army
tried to press him into service as
a pilot during the Civil War.
This grandfather, Capt. Dexter,
refused TO serve the Yankees. He
sided with the confederafes. He
was as q result imprisoned at
old Fort Taylor for the duration,
and his wife took in sewing TO
support her family.
Capt. Moore's great-grandfather
on his maternal side, was keeper
at st. Helena while Emperor Ma
poleon fretted away his last years
in exile. His grandmother was
dandled on the knee of the gener-
al. A piece of stone from the grave
of Napoleon at st. Helena was a
treasured relic of the family for
many years and when the Dexter
family came to Key West they
brought with them a stone from
Napoleon's grave.
Capt. Moore's own father be-
came nationally publicized back
in the 18th century while he was
lighthouse keeper in the Dry Tor
tugas.
Then as now the $50 foot light
lrh0use was the entrance to the
Gulf of Mexico for all shipping.
In those days Thomas Moore had to
climb the 1874 steps to light the
oil burning beacon. One day when
he was atop the tower and sur
veying the turquoise waters around
the TortugaS he noticed a ship
with limp sails northwest of Log
gerhead Key. He sent Broom, a
Negro helper, over in the skiff to
discover what was the situation.
Broom climbed aboard the silent
ship. He found blood all over the
deck. Frightened he went below,
There he was faced by a young
girl guarding the captains cabin
with a gun. Broom fled back to
Thomas Moore at Loggerhead, and
reported the scene.
Moore took boat over to Fort
Jefferson and asked Caretaker Cole
and another man to bring guns
with them to the blood covered
ship.
The armed civilians found that
the crew had mUtinied against
the captain. The young girl, the
captains daughter, was defending
her father at gun point.
Moore and his aides bound
the mUtinovs crew and brought
them back 10 Key West.
Lighthouse keeper Moore is fur.
ther immortalized by a stuffed
porcupine now in the Smithsonian
Institute, Washington, D. C,
Moore stuffed the dead animal
with wet beans which expanded