The Kentucky Military Institute (KMI) will
forever have its mark in Sarasota County fol-
lowing a ceremony scheduled for Saturday,
April 26, at 3 p.m. at Centennial Park in Venice,
Sarasota County has announced.
All members of the community are invited
to the event, hosted by the Sarasota County
Historical Commission, during which an his-
torical marker honoring KMI will be unveiled.
The institute's connection to the state of
Florida dates back to 1906, when a winter
campus was established near Melbourne, a
news release explains. The winter campus
was seen as a location where cadets could
escape Kentucky winters, making it easier
for them to improve their health and aca-
demic performance by reducing sick leave,
the release notes.
In 1932, the campus was relocated to Venice
after a fire at the Melbourne site. KMI ini-
tially rented and then later purchased the San
Marco Hotel (now the site of the Venice Centre
Mall), the Hotel Venice (now Park Place, a
retirement center) and the annex between
the two, which provided housing for faculty
and cadets, classrooms, kitchens, offices, an
infirmary and a dining hall, the release points
out. The contingent of KMI students, staff
and faculty, totaling 1,500, arrived in Venice
in January 1933.
According to the Sarasota County Historical
Commission, "the school breathed new life
into the city," the release says. Centennial
Park and the nearby municipal parking lot
served as parade grounds for KMI, it notes.
During those days, KMI held formal parades,
attracting residents and tourists to watch the
cadets demonstrating marching skills along
with the Kentucky Rifles, a precision drill pla-
toon, and the cadet band.
Although the KMI campus closed in the early
1970s, "the Venice community has never for-
gotten the cadets" and their importance in
the city's history, according to the Sarasota
County Historical Commission.
For more information about this event and
other Sarasota County historical markers,
call the Sarasota Call Center at 861-5000 or
visit scgov.net.
MILITARY INSTITUTE HISTORICAL MARKER TO BE UNVEILED IN VENICE
The Kentucky Military Institute's Venice
campus was an important part of the
community for decades, county historians
say. Image courtesy Sarasota County
Sarasota News Leader April 18, 2014 Page 87
