Welcome to the Key West Maritime Historical Society

Who we are: The Key West Maritime Historical Society is an all-volunteer, non-profit educational and cultural society. We are dedicated to the study and preservation of the rich maritime heritage of Key West and the Florida Keys. We organized as a Florida not-for-profit corporation in 1981. Since 1985 the IRS has granted us 501(c)(3) status.

What we do: The Society sponsors free public lectures, field trips, special events and interpretive projects to increase public awareness and appreciation of maritime history. We also publish the quarterly Florida Keys Sea Heritage Journal. That periodical is mailed directly to our members (and back issues can be seen here on our Journal Archive page). The Journal has been published for over seventeen years, and contains many articles and illustrations not available elsewhere. It is a tremendous aid in learning why the Keys are such a special place.

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Upcoming Events

Maritime Day: A Commemoration of the Merchant Marine Service

Tuesday, May 22, 2012 - arrive at dock at 6:15 p.m. CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS

LECTURE:

USE OF AUTONOMOUS UNDERWATER VEHICLES FOR WATER MONITORING OF OIL SPILLS

David E Vaughan PhD
Executive Director, Mote Tropical Research Lab,
Florida Keys

DATE AND TIME: Wednesday, May 23, 2012, 7 pm
PLACE: Monroe County Public Library, Key West, Auditorium

Dr. Vaughan will describe and explain the use of underwater robots which can detect signs of undersea oil plumes. Known as autonomous underwater vehicles or AUVs, these robots can patrol the undersea waters off the Keys for about three weeks - the length of their battery life. The robot gathers data every two seconds and transmits via satellite to researchers every three hours.

Dr. Vaughan directs the operations of the Mote Tropical Research Lab on Summerland Key, It is one of three organizations which can deploy an AUV. Dr. Vaughan is a marine research scientist who has designed built and operated many marine projects and programs in the area of sustainable aquaculture. He has over thirty-two scientific publications to his credit and has made over one thousand dives including more than five in manned submersibles to over two thousand feet.

Special Media: Hear an open forum from the members about treasure ships and underwater archeology in Key West,
February 22, 2012

Produced and published by Jeffery Parker Aldrich