"Announcement Key West Extension of the Florida East Coast Railway Opened January 22nd 1912", Matthews-Northrup Co

This 38-page “announcement” was distributed at the inauguration of service of the Key West extension of the Florida East Coast Railway. The text provides an overview of the discovery and development of Florida, the origins of the Florida Keys, and the work required to construct the extension though “it is impossible in this space to enter upon any adequate attempt to describe the detail of the work and materials.” The pamphlet is illustrated by 3 small maps including Florida East Coast Railway Key West Terminal “America’s Gibraltar" (7.3 x 4.3”), Florida East Coast Railway Showing the Key West Extension and Important Railway and Steamship Connections… (4.2 x 7.0”) and Florida East Coast Ry Key West Extension (9.5 x 3.0”). The extension, an engineering marvel, operated for 23 years until it succumbed to the Great Labor Day Hurricane of 1935. Stiff pictorial wrappers. No past sales records were located.

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Condition: B+

The maps have some light foxing and the last map has a short fold separation that has been closed on verso with archival tape. Text is mostly clean and bright. Contents have separated from the wrappers, which are lightly soiled and foxed.