Distinguished Speaker Series: The Florida Sponge War, Culture, Competition, and Conflict

Thursday, December 10, 2026, from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. Dr. Rina Bousalis takes the Florida Sponge War to Williams Hall for the Key West Art & Historical Society, framed here as culture, competition and conflict.

This is Key West’s own story. Sponging was one of the industries that built the island’s fortune, and when Greek divers brought deep-water technique to Tarpon Springs in 1905, the Gulf coast took the trade. The rivalry that followed involved sabotage, threats and violence between fleets, and it ended only when synthetic sponges made the whole argument moot.

Bousalis is a faculty affiliate with FAU’s Center for Peace, Justice and Human Rights and the author of The Florida Sponge War.

Tickets are $13 to $17. Williams Hall is at 729 Fleming Street.