On this day in the Sunshine State …

1917  The Key West Naval Air Station was commissioned into service in ceremonies today.

1920 The first W. T. Grant store in Florida opened today at 903 Franklin Street in Tampa.

1956 The University of South Florida opened today with a charter class of 1,997 students.  Dr. John Lott Brown, president, supervised the creation of the first major state university created from scratch  in the United States in the 20th Century.  USF now has more than 35,000 students located on the 1,672-acre Tampa campus and the 11-acre St. Petersburg campus.  In addition USF operates branches in Polk County and  Sarasota.  USF is also responsible for the operation of New College in Sarasota.  USF offers a number of advanced degrees in a variety of professional fields.  In 1997, USF fielded its first football team, the Brahma Bulls.