The Watlington Family

A House Becomes a Home

Francis and Emeline Watlington were the family who transformed 322 Duval Street from a newly built house into a lasting home. Married in New York City, they moved to Key West in the mid-1830s as Francis pursued a career in the island's growing maritime industry. Over the next 21 years, they raised nine daughters in the house, seven of whom survived to adulthood.

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The Civil War brought profound changes to the Watlington family. Francis joined the Confederate Navy, while Emeline remained in Key West with their daughters. Following the war, Francis remained on the mainland and eventually Emeline acquired ownership of the house, which remained in the Watlington family for more than 140 years. Passed down through three generations, the property was continuously occupied by Watlingtons until the 1970s.

Holiday celebration with family and friends on the back porch of 322 Duval. Date is unknown, presumed early 20th century

The Original Family

Captain Francis B. Watlington was a mariner, pilot, and sea captain born on the island of St. Croix in the Danish West Indies (present-day U.S. Virgin Islands). He and his wife, Emeline, moved to Key West in the mid-1830s and raised their nine daughters in the Oldest House.

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A prominent member of the early Key West community, Watlington helped found St. Paul's Church and the local temperance union. By the 1850 U.S. Census, he had become a naturalized U.S. citizen and listed his birthplace as New York City, although other records, including those of his daughters, identified St. Croix as his birth place. Prior to the Civil War, he served in the Florida State Legislature.

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During the Civil War, Watlington left Union-held Key West to serve as a lieutenant in the Confederate Navy around Mobile, AL until his capture in 1865. Following the war, he remained on the mainland apart from his family for several decades, returning to Key West after the death of his wife, Emeline, in 1881. He died at the Oldest House in 1887 at the age of 83.

Emeline Matilda Watlington (née Johnson) moved to Key West in the 1830s with her husband, Francis, and made 322 Duval Street her lifelong home. Over twenty-one years, she gave birth to nine daughters, endured the loss of two children to yellow fever, and supported her family through generations of change and hardship.

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Six of her daughters married and brought their families into the home, which became a gathering place for three generations of Watlingtons. A respected member of the early Key West community, Emeline was a founding figure of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church and one of the first female property owners on the island, purchasing 322 Duval Street in her own name in 1869.

Surviving Watlington Daughters mourning the death of Captain Watlington

1887

Back: Hannah Amelia, Mary Amanda, Florence Earle, Elizabeth Lillie

Front: Emeline Frances, Sarah Maria, Mariah Louisa