Promoting the preservation of history

Wilkinson wonders who will carry the torch in Upper Keys

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David Ball

dball@keysreporter.com

Posted - Thursday, September 04, 2008 03:07 PM EDT

Upper Keys historian Jerry Wilkinson goes through his extensive photo collection like he normally does, sitting on the floor.

Tavernier. The French name stands out among the Keys’ islands and towns that carry more common Spanish and Native American titles.

Also unique, then, must be the circumstances surrounding how the southern end of Key Largo got its name.

One story is that Tavernier was named in honor of 17th Century French explorer Jean-Baptiste Tavernier (pronounced “Tav-en-yay”), who pioneered trade routes to India and dealt diamonds to some of the wealthiest aristocracies of the time.

The Miami Herald gave further hints at who assigned the name in an article chronicling how famous French pirate Jean Lafitte supposedly rested on “Tavernier Key” on his way to and from New Orleans.

A romantic story, but local historian Jerry Wilkinson is skeptical. In fact, he spent a summer rummaging through New Orleans libraries and historical archives only to find the name has much less to do with pirates and explorers and more to do with…SWAT!… bugs.

Watch Jerry tell the stories

Click on the links below for video of Jerry Wilkinson telling stories about Upper Keys history.

How Tavernier
was named

The loss of
Planter

Preserving the
Lowe House

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“We found [Tavernier] on a map in 1775, year’s before Jean Lafitte was even born,” Wilkinson said. “It had the name Tabona, which is Spanish for horsefly, and the English name Tavernier. It was rare for an Island to have two names on a map.”

Wilkinson uncovered stories of early mariners apparently driven off the island because of the large, biting flies.

Other maps labeled the area as Tavona, Tabanoe, Tabernero, Tabinier and similar variations, but by the 1860s the names Tavernier and Tavernier Creek were firmly established in written publications, such as Harper’s New Monthly Magazine. A Tavernier post office in 1911 made it official.

This story, and hundreds of others, exists only because of Wilkinson. As president of the Historical Preservation Society of the Upper Keys, he’s chronicled the earliest history of Key Largo, Tavernier and Islamorada, including the first settlers, the construction of the railroad and Overseas Highway and deadly 1935 Hurricane.

And beyond the famous history are local gems, such as photographic proof that Rodney Albury, of the early settling family, did in fact own the boat, “The Tavernier,” which famously escorted president Franklin D. Roosevelt on a fishing expedition.

He has debunked a widely held belief that rubber pioneer Charles Goodyear lived for a time on Indian Key at the turn of the century. It was actually his son, and family letters sent from Indian Key preserve the details.

But more important to Wilkinson, he’s led efforts to save historic sites from redevelopment and preserve standing remnants of Keys history for future generations.

The house of Leonard Lowe, an early Keys settler, in Tavernier (now the office of Barbara Eads Realty) is one recent example. Wilkinson is currently fighting to preserve the old Tavernier School building (formerly occupied by the Monroe County Health Department) that is now vacant.

“This is scary,” he said. “When old buildings become not used, something seems to be along with not being used as being no good or condemnable, so we tear it down.”

Wilkinson said he had $500,000 in restoration funds lined up from the county before the current budget shortfall. He even has an aluminum flagpole in his yard waiting to be installed where it was when the school was in operation.

It was a preservation effort when he and wife, Mary Lou, first moved to the Keys in 1988 that led Wilkinson into the study of Keys history, namely restoring his oceanfront home in Harry Harris Park and then fighting for the last remains of the village of Planter, a group of farms and homesteads in what is now Harry Harris.

Only a few telltale date palms mark the location, which is now the site of the Ocean Pointe condominium development.

“I actually thought, being naive with Monroe County, thought we had a chance,” he said. “Well, we didn’t. They passed a midnight thing down in Key West. They even changed name. It was going to be Planter’s Pointe condominiums.”

That effort led Wilkinson to other history enthusiasts and to the historical preservation society, which was more or less dormant. He was willing to take up the lead with Mary Lou as “behind the scenes” support, he said.

But as he approaches his 80th birthday later this year, Wilkinson worries about the future of Keys history, namely one without him in it.

“That’s my concern. A huge concern. I’ve been talking about it for three or four years,” he said. ‘The wheels of time are grinding to a stop, and somebody needs to come forward.”

Others share the concern.

“I’m worried too about what’s going to happen with this organization whenever something does happen with Jerry,” said society vice president Uldine Henderson. “I just don’t’ have any answers. I don’t know anyone who can come close to taking his place.”

Wilkinson’s home is part library and part museum. It’s filled with filing cabinets of photos, negatives, maps, articles and other pieces copied from archives across the South.

He developed photos in his own darkroom, but now he’s gone digital and already filled one hard drive with photos and files. As for the day-to-day work of the historical preservation society, it’s all him.

“If it’s to be done, I’m going to have to do it or find somebody that’s a volunteer,” said Wilkinson, who spends his time writing newsletters, publishing a 16-page quarterly, managing www.keyshistory.com, hosting monthly speaking programs and being a chief source for Keys documentary makers and other history researchers.

“That’s the attention-getters to get people interested, also to stimulate them to take a step forward, finding out and researching something about Keys history,” he added.

But that doesn’t happen as often as he would like.

Although he has to mind his future and the future of Keys preservation, he’ll likely continue to enjoy its history.