From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
American politician
Wilhelmina Celeste Goehring Harvey
(1912 - May 3, 2005) was a philanthropist and the first female mayor of
Monroe County, Florida
. A "grand dame of
Keys
politics", she was frequently a public face of the
Conch Republic
.
[1]
Outside of politics, she was a science teacher and scuba diver.
[2]
Biography
[
edit
]
She was born in 1912 to one of Key West's original families.
[3]
[4]
By 1935, she was a science teacher and taught summer school at
Tulane University
. She graduated from
Florida State College for Women
in 1937.
[5]
She served as treasurer and board member of a local volunteer credit union (later Keys Federal Credit Union) in the 1940s.
[6]
She married C.B. Harvey, who served as mayor of
Key West
in the 1950s.
[3]
Harvey earned a master's degree in public administration in 1980.
[5]
In 1982, she was inducted into the
Florida Women's Hall of Fame
in its first year.
[5]
She served as the first female mayor and the first female commissioner of Monroe County, and was the first to be elected Mayor Emeritus.
[7]
[5]
In April 1982, citizens of
Key West
formed the
Conch Republic
, a satirical micronation, in response to a
Border Patrol
checkpoint that disrupted travel and tourist activity. Harvey became Admiral and First Sea Lord of the Conch Republic's navy, whose actions included attacking
a Coast Guard cutter
with loaves of stale
Cuban bread
.
[8]
[4]
The Conch Republic became a Key West mainstay as a tourist attraction and a humorous method for the city to negotiate with state and federal governments. During the
1995 "invasion"
, she stopped and accepted surrender from Army Reserve troops.
[9]
She often served as the Republic's ambassador and met several presidents and foreign leaders in that capacity.
[3]
In 1991, she hosted
Queen Elizabeth
at
Dry Tortugas National Park
, acting as both Monroe County mayor and Conch Republic ambassador.
[3]
[2]
In 1986, she ran for
Florida House of Representatives
from the 120th District, ultimately losing to
Ron Saunders
in the Democratic primary runoff.
[10]
[11]
In 1997, the Monroe County commissioners voted to name the new county government building as Harvey Government Center at Historic Truman School after Harvey and her husband.
[1]
In November 2000, she lost her re-election bid as Monroe County Commissioner, but remained a popular local figure.
[3]
Harvey died on May 3, 2005, at the age of 93. She received a large public funeral.
[4]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
Filosa, Gwen (February 28, 2016).
"Here is the name of Key West's new city hall in 9 words"
.
Miami Herald
. Retrieved
January 19,
2017
.
- ^
a
b
"Queen Takes a Break From Tour to Visit Florida Island"
.
Los Angeles Times
. May 18, 1991
. Retrieved
January 19,
2017
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
"
'Wild Willie' is part of the history of Key West"
.
St Petersburg Times
. May 27, 2001
. Retrieved
January 19,
2017
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Parade memorializes Wilhelmina Harvey, matriarch of Florida Keys"
.
Florida Times-Union
. May 12, 2005
. Retrieved
January 19,
2017
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Wilhelmina Celeste Goehring Harvey"
. Florida Commission on the Status of Women.
- ^
Myers, Britt (October 9, 2015).
"Credit union marks 75th year of business"
.
Keys Weekly
. Retrieved
January 19,
2017
.
- ^
Sloan, David L.; Casey, Matthew Sean (2003).
Haunted Key West / Strange Key West
. Phantom Press. p. 25.
ISBN
9780967449838
.
- ^
"History of the Conch Navy"
. Conch Republic Navy
. Retrieved
January 19,
2017
.
- ^
Shearer, Victoria (2008).
It Happened in the Florida Keys
. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 82?83.
ISBN
9781461746850
.
- ^
"Election Results: September 2, 1986 Primary Election"
.
Florida Department of State’s Election Reporting System
. Florida Department of State: Division of Elections.
- ^
"Election Results: September 30, 1986 Runoff Election"
.
Florida Department of State’s Election Reporting System
. Florida Department of State: Division of Elections.