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Brief
History
of
Linderman
Key
By
Jerry
Wilkinson
The
history
of
North
Key
Largo
would
not
be
complete
without
at
least
a
mention
of
"Linderman
Key."
While
presenting
the
little
I
know
about
Linderman
Key,
at
the
end
I
will
mention
the
even
lessor
known
"Grayvik."
Together,
both
locations
will
show
how
little
we
have
documented
the
history
of
the
Upper
Keys.
I
am
kind
of
embarrassed
to
show
so
little,
but
there
will
never
be
more
unless
I
start.
If
not
familiar
with
the
North
Key
Largo
area
please
refer
to
the
chart
at
the
right.
You
will
probably
have
to
'click'
to
enlarge
the
chart
to
read.
Most
of
this
information
on
Linderman
Key
I
obtained
from
Pete
Perdue,
survivor
of
the
1935
hurricane,
former
owner
of
Perdue-Dean
Marina
former
resident
of
Ocean
Reef
and
now
deceased.
Other
than
possibly
of
the
Tequesta
Indians,
the
island's
original
owners
were
Dr's.
Linderman.
At
the
time
I
did
not
ask
Pete
for
their
first
names.
In
the
real
world,
both
were
PhD's
of
medicines
of
plants.
The
Linderman's
had
traveled
the
world
and
used
the
Florida
Year-Round
Club
(later
the
Angler's
Club)
as
their
land
base
when
in
this
area.
I
will
insert
here
info
from
my
later
research
on
early
Florida
Year-Round
Club's
operations
that
there
were
two
Canadians,
Bert
and
Jean
Linderman,
who
donated
two
gasoline
Delco
electric
generators
for
its
operations;
therefore,
I
feel
certain
that
they
were
the
same
Linderman
family.
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|
Back
to
Pete,
some
time
around
the
1930s
they
started
work
on
a
magnificent
two-story
Spanish
style
main
house
with
very
elaborate
wrought
iron
work.
In
addition,
a
guest
house,
staff
house
and
a
utility
building
for
generator
with
banks
of
batteries
and
two
huge
water
cisterns.
Per
Pete
Perdue,
the
photo
to
the
right
was
the
mansion
looking
it
from
the
water's
edge.
It
was
far
enough
up
a
small
creek
off
of
Broad
Creek
to
have
protection
from
the
strong
squall
winds
that
occur
without
much
warning.
It
is
rumored
to
have
been
called
Liar's
Lair.
With
close
examination
the
location
of
the
house
can
be
seen
at
the
tip
of
the
black
arrow
point
in
the
chart
above.
Few
will
disagree
that
even
with
today's
standards,
this
house
with
all
its
amenities
was
an
opulent
house.
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|
There
were
other
early
1900s
grand
private
residences
in
the
Upper
Keys.
There
is
no
surviving
photo,
but
a
Fargo,
North
Dakota
resident
and
avid
fisherman,
W.A
Scott,
built
a
fine
two-story
coral-rock
house
several
miles
to
the
south
which
was
expanded
into
the
Key
Largo
Angler's
Club
main
dining
room.
Another
is
the
Key
Largo
Sound
Dr.
George
Engel's
house
built
in
about
the
same
time
period
-
but
without
additional
buildings.
This
castle
home
was
styled
after
an
European
castle
and
survives
today
on
Oceana
Drive,
just
north
of
the
Marvin
Adams
Waterway.
Below
the
Largo
Sound
Castle
photo
is
a
photo
of
another
coral
rock
castle-like
home
was
built
for
L.
E.
Goetz
on
Jewfish
Key,
Fiesta
Key
today
(2005),
allegedly
around
the
same
time
period.
Note
a
sizable
boat
tied
to
the
dock
and
an
automobile
to
the
center
left;
therefore,
this
photo
is
post
1938.
The
Greyhound
Corporation
purchased
the
Key
in
the
late
1940s
and
later
a
propane
tank
explosion
damaged
the
house
to
the
extent
that
it
was
torn
down.
Continuing
with
Pete
Perdue's
recollection,
the
Linderman's
used
the
Grayvik
Basin
and
the
Key
Largo
Year-Round
Club
as
land
bases
to
oversee
construction
of
Liar's
Lair.
He
believed
Dr.
Linderman
died
just
before
World
War
II
and
his
wife,
Jean
Linderman
took
over
the
site.
When
WW-II,
began,
she
became
very
involved
in
the
U.S.
Coast
Guard
Auxiliary
and
actually
patrolled
the
waters
herself.
There
were
recollections
of
Jean's
ventures
with
her
36
foot
Chris
Craft
but
few
are
recorded.
Pete's
recollection
was
the
Mrs.
Linderman
moved
away
and
donated
the
island
to
the
University
of
Miami,
which
in
turn
leased
to
the
CIA
for
its
training
operations
for
the
Bay
of
Pigs.
For
us
in
the
Keys
this
period
is
a
period
of
hear-say;
however,
from
the
National
Park
Service
book
"Cold
War
in
South
Florida"
we
have
some
information
on
the
Linderman
Key
site:
1)
It
was
used
by
the
CIA
as
a
safe
house
known
as
'Pirates
Lair'
and
for
maritime
training
operations.
The
safe
house
consisted
of
four
houses
dispersed
on
three-acre
island.
and
that
only
one
building
could
be
seen
from
the
deep-water
canal.
2)
The
complex
was
used
to
teach
Cuban
exiles
the
V-20
boat,
Boston-Whaler
type
vessels
and
rubber
rafts
with
silenced
motors
assault
techniques
and
operations.
3)
The
crafts
were
specially
rebuilt
to
CIA
specifications
by
South
Florida
boat
yards
so
of
which
included
reinforced
hulls,
armor
plating,
modified
engines,
electronic
gear
and
hardened
points
to
mount
automatic
weapons.
Back
to
Pete's
recollections,
he
said
that
shortly
after
the
CIA
pulled
out,
there
was
a
terrific
explosion
in
the
main
house.
The
explosion
hurled
bricks
and
steel
beams
clear
across
the
island.
Folks
assumed
it
was
plastic
explosives
left
from
the
training
camp
set
off
as
a
grand
finale
to
the
failed
invasion
of
the
Bay
of
Pigs.
"Miami
Vice"
and
the
Manos
films
shot
scenes
there.
-
Grayvik
-
My
thanks
to
Pete
Perdue
and
now
to
the
place
that
Pete
referred
to
as
"Grayvik"
and
misspelled
by
me
in
the
above
chart.
People
at
Ocean
Reef
know
the
name
"Grayvik,"
but
that
is
about
all.
This
chart
is
the
sole
primary
documentation
that
I
have
of
General
Ivor
Thorn-Gray
building
of
"Grayvik."
This
is
not
to
say
that
I
cannot
find
plenty
of
documentation
of
Ivor
Thorn-Gray
as
the
Internet
and
other
sources
have
plenty.
The
following
data
is
from
a
multitude
of
researchers
all
trying
to
pin
down
his
final
days
in
the
U.S.
'Ivor
Thord-Gray
was
born
in
Stockholm
17th
April
1878
as
Thord
Ivar
Hallström.
His
parents
were
August
Reinhold
Hallström
(1840-1913)
and
Hilda
Svensson
(1845-1925).
August
Hallström
was
a
teacher
in
Maria
Elementary
School
in
Stockholm,
which
young
Thord
attended
for
four
years.'
After
many
international
escapades,
'in
1933,
Thord
divorced
and
on
11th
June
1933
married
Winifred
Ingersoll
(1884-1960)
and
settled
down
in
Miami.
When
his
house
Grayvik
on
North
Key
Largo
was
destroyed
in
a
hurricane,
the
family
moved
to
Coral
Gables,
Florida.'
A
Swedish
researcher
feels
that
'Grayvik'
would
be
an
appropriate
Swedish
name
that
he
would
have
given.
This
places
Thord-Gray
in
Miami
and
he
could
have
easily
built
a
place
on
Key
Largo
where
the
Ocean
Reef
Club
will
originate
in
1944.
Ocean
Reef
does
have
a
street
named
Grayvik
and
it
is
on
the
narrow
peninsular
shown
on
the
chart
above.
What
is
more
there
is
documentation
that
on
8
April
1935,
he
became
'Major
General
of
the
Florida
Militia
and
Chief
of
the
Personal
Staff
to
the
Governor
of
Florida,
David
Sholtz,'
yet
I
cannot
find
anyone
in
Tallahassee
who
even
remembers
the
name.
The
great
Labor
Day
Hurricane
of
1935
could
have
been
the
hurricane
that
destroyed
his
house
at
Grayvik,
if
so
I
think
that
he
would
have
made
an
appearance. |
