Mayor Bill Frederick and Dr. Nelson Ying at Construction of Red Chinese Ting

Mayor Bill Frederick and Dr. Nelson Ying at Construction of Red Chinese Ting

Red Chinese Ting Construction

Orlando (Fla.)

Pagodas

Pavilions

Construction

Guilin (Guangxi Zhuangzu Zizhiqu, China)

Mayors--Florida--Orlando

Mayors--China

Monuments--Southern States

City of Orlando Mayor Bill Frederick and Dr. Nelson Ying placing the top piece of the Red Chinese Ting in Downtown Orlando's Lake Eola Park. Erected in 1988, the red Chinese pagoda-like structure is called a ting due to its single story. It was constructed out of wood, ceramic, brick, and mortar. Dr. Ying bestowed the ting to the City of Orlando and Mayor Frederick in 1987. Ying, director of The China Group Incorporated, chose to dedicate the pavilion to beautify downtown and offer a place for international exchange for the mayor and dignitaries. Two years before the ting was gifted, in 1985, Ying worked closely with Mayor Bill Frederick to secure a sister-city relationship with the City of Guilin by accompanying Frederick on a three-week goodwill trip to China. Guilin’s downtown landscape consists of four lakes, and downtown is easily recognizable by several pagodas that adorn these lakes. Ying intended to honor the young sister-city relationship with Guilin by placing his donation on the edge of Lake Eola in an effort to mirror the sister-city’s landscape. The ting was built in China by the Shanghai Construction Arts and Crafts Corporation, then disassembled for shipping to the United States, then finally rebuilt in Orlando. The ting is located in the northeast corner of Orlando’s Lake Eola.

City of Orlando

Original color photograph, 1988: City of Orlando Archives, Orlando, Florida.

1988

Borawski, Gianna

Digital reproduction of original color photograph, 1988.

City of Orlando Archives, Orlando, Florida.

Central Florida Monuments Collection RICHES of Central Florida.

"Hidden in Plain Sight: A Selection of Central Florida Monuments." RICHES of Central Florida.

image/jpg

640 KB

1 color photograph

Still Image

Red Chinese Ting, Lake Eola Park, Downtown Orlando, Florida

Guilin, Guangxi, China

Donation

History Teacher

Copyright to this resource is held by the City of Orlando and is provided here by RICHES of Central Florida for educational purposes only.

Dr. Anne Lindsay's Public History: Principles and Techniques Undergraduate Class

Borawski, Gianna

Cepero, Laura

Bacchus, James. "China 'You Are Watching Flowers From a Galloping Horse,' Said the Guide to the Visitors From the Other Side of the World. But What Flowers They Were." The Orlando Sentinel, July 21, 1985. http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1985-07-21/news/0310380141_1_china-marco-polo-bill-frederick.

Blumenstyk, Goldie. "Frederick Takes Off for China Orlando Delegation Leaves on Trip of 'Trade and Friendship'." The Orlando Sentinel, May 16, 1985. http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1985-05-16/news/0300100298_1_frederick-china-hong-kong.

Blumenstyk, Goldie. "Frederick Wants to Place a Chinese Gazebo in Park." The Orlando Sentinel, October 24, 1987. http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1987-10-24/news/0150380284_1_gazebo-pagoda-china.

"Two Rivers and Four Lakes." Visit Guilin - Guilin's Official Travel Website. http://www.visitguilin.org/index.php/en/sightseeing/57-attraction-list/117-two-rivers-and-four-lakes.

1 color photograph