Letter from Sydney Octavius Chase to Mayo Dade (March 12, 1925)
An original letter of correspondence written by Sydney Octavius Chase to Mayo Dade. Dade worked with Chase & Company and was a respected professional in the Florida citrus industry. In the letter, Chase urges Dade to continue recruiting former Florida Citrus Exchange members to Chase & Company. Former members mentioned in the letter include the Babson Park Sub-Exchange, the Davenport Sub-Exchange, and other Exchange members in DeSoto County. With an increased membership in the company, Chase hoped that including more growers would help balance out the less productive crops in the previous growing season. The letter also shares some of the doubts and distrust Chase & Company felt toward the Florida Citrus Exchange, a state organization comprised of a large number of Florida citrus growers. While members who trusted the Exchange praised the organization as a united group of growers that promoted better distribution and marketing of their citrus products, growers such as Chase & Company were hesitant to hand over all of their power to a larger organization with poor marketing strategies. Chase & Company was established in 1884. The company sold insurance and later invested in storage facilities and fertilizer sales. Chase & Company was known mainly for its agricultural interests and maintained a series of citrus groves throughout Central Florida. The company was based out of Sanford and became one of the city's largest employers into the early twentieth century.
Original letter from Sydney Octavius Chase to Mayo Dade, March 12, 1925: Chase Collection (MS 14), box 7, folder 14.10A, Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
Letter from Sydney Octavius Chase to Mayo Dade (May 7, 1925)
An original letter of correspondence written by Sydney Octavius Chase to Mayo Dade. Dade worked with Chase & Company and was a respected professional in the Florida citrus industry. The letter shares some of the doubts and distrust Chase & Company felt toward the Florida Citrus Exchange, a state organization comprised of a large number of Florida citrus growers. While members who trusted the Exchange praised the organization as a united group of growers that promoted better distribution and marketing of their citrus products, growers such as Chase & Company were hesitant to hand over all of their power to a larger organization with poor marketing strategies. Chase & Company was established in 1884. The company sold insurance and later invested in storage facilities and fertilizer sales. Chase & Company was known mainly for its agricultural interests and maintained a series of citrus groves throughout Central Florida. The company was based out of Sanford and became one of the city's largest employers into the early twentieth century.
Original letter from Sydney Octavius Chase to Mayo Dade, May 7, 1925: Chase Collection (MS 14), box 7, folder 14.10A, Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
Letter from Sydney Octavius Chase, Jr., to Sydney Octavius Chase, Sr. and Joshua Coffin Chase (June 13, 1933)
An original letter of correspondence written by Sydney Octavius Chase, Jr. to Sydney Octavius Chase, Sr. and Joshua Coffin Chase. The letter summarizes a meeting that Sydney, Jr. attended relating to the marketing and selling of citrus products throughout the United States. The marketing strategies described throughout the meeting pertained not only to the state of Florida, but to other farmers and growers throughout the nation. Techniques included the overseeing of shipments to different markets by a government inspector and the use of an innovative teletype machine. Between the years of 1932 and 1933, growers in the Florida citrus industry faced controversy in attempting to regulate the shipment and selling of its products. Chase & Company was established in 1884. The company sold insurance and later invested in storage facilities and fertilizer sales. Chase & Company was known mainly for its agricultural interests and maintained a series of citrus groves throughout Central Florida. The company was based out of Sanford and became one of the city's largest employers into the early twentieth century.
Original letter from Sydney Octavius Chase, Jr., to Sydney Octavius Chase, Sr. and Joshua Coffin Chase, June 13, 1933: Chase Collection (MS 14), box 3, folder 13.49, Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
Chase & Company Office, Sanford, Florida
Letter from Thomas F. House to William Henry Coe (September 2, 1878)
A letter of correspondence from Thomas F. House to William Henry Coe (1824-1879), the founder of Glencoe, Florida, dated September 2, 1878. In the letter, House, who is the Collector of Customs for the District of St. Augustine, informs Coe that in the event that the current Deputy Collector of Customs accepts an appointment to another position, the will consider Coe's application as a replacement. On April 10, 1879, Coe was officially appointed the position. the was responsible for collecting import duties on foreign goods that entered the United States through the port at New Smyrna until his death on October 23. Shortly thereafter, his son, Captain Charles Henry Coe, was appointed to the position. Due to poor health, Coe moved with his wife and children from Connecticut to Jacksonville in 1874 and established an orange grove the following year four miles west of New Smyrna, an area that would later become Glencoe. In 1877, Coe became an editor for The Florida Star, a newspaper founded by his son, Captain Charles Henry Coe (1856-1954). In April of 1879, Coe was appointed Deputy Collector of Customs for the port at New Smyrna. Just a few months later, on October 23, Coe died of silicosis, likely a result of his work as a copper miner in Illinois during the 1840s. Coe is buried in at Hawks Park Cemetery in Edgewater.
Original letter from Thomas F. House to William Henry Coe, September 2, 1878: Private Collection of Andrew M. Foster.
Collector's Office, Custom House, St. Augustine, Florida
Letter from Thomas Willington Lawton to Susan B. Wight (July 15, 1924)
A letter from Thomas Willington Lawton (1882-1963), Secretary and Superintendent of the Seminole County Department of Public Instruction, to Susan B. Wight, President of the Sanford Woman's Club, dated July 15, 1924. On behalf to the Seminole County Board of Public Instruction, Lawton thanks Wight and the Woman's Club for their assistance in funding school lunches at Sanford Grammar School. Originally established as Sanford High School, the main building was constructed at 301 West Seventh Street in Sanford, Florida, in 1902. The building was designed by W. G. Talley in the Romanesque revival style. Due to an increasing student population, a new school building was constructed on the corner of East Ninth Street and South Palmetto Avenue in 1911. The original building on Seventh Street served as Westside Grammar Elementary School, which was later renamed Sanford Grammar School. After a desperate need for an addition to the school developed, the city granted the school $75,000. The school's lunchroom was opened on October 10, 1921, after months of fundraising efforts hosted by the Woman's Club. In November 23, 1984, the main school building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and converted into the Student Museum. However, despite objections from the community, the lunchroom was demolished on September 25, 2008. The main school building reopened as the University of Central Florida's Public History Center in 2012.
Photocopy of original letter from Thomas Willington Lawton to Susan B. Wight, July 15, 1924: Sanford Grammar Collection, Archives Box 4B, UCF Public History Center, Sanford, Florida.
Sanford Grammar School, Sanford, Florida
Letter from Val Darling to Newton "Newt" Perry (March 26, 1981)
A letter dated March 26, 1981, from the Acting Chairman of the Florida Sports Hall of Fame, Val Darling, to Newton "Newt" Perry, informing Perry of his selection to the Florida Sports Hall of Fame for his "immense contributions to the world of sports" and inviting him to an induction ceremony on April 17, 1981. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1922. He was a member of the swimming and diving teams at the University of Florida. Perry earned the nickname "The Human Fish" for his performances of underwater stunts in advertising clips and film shorts, and acted as a swim double for actors in movies and TV shows, including Johnny Weissmuller as "Tarzan." Perry also advised filmmakers filming underwater scenes at Silver Springs, Wakulla Springs, and Weeki Wachee Springs, and developed a system for breathing underwater using an air compressor and hose, which was used in the 1948 film "Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid" and during Weeki Wachee Springs' mermaid shows. Perry worked as a lifeguard, public school principal, coach, swimming and scuba diving instructor, and Ocala city pool manager. He opened Perry's Swim School in 1955, and taught more than 120,000 individuals to swim during his career. Perry was inducted into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame in 1981. Perry's daughter Delee Perry took over Perry's Swim School following her father's death in 1987, and it was still in operation as of 2020. Along with a group of investors, Newton Perry opened Weeki Wachee Springs to the public in October of 1947, and used his experiences working at Silver Springs and Wakulla Springs to develop the original concepts for its underwater theater and mermaid shows. Perry sold his stake in Weeki Wachee Springs in 1950. After peaking in the 1950s and 1960s, attendance began to decline as theme parks and highways changed the dynamics of Florida's tourism. The State of Florida took over the attraction as a state park in 2008. Since then, the park has focused on appealing to a modern audience while preserving its history.
Original 1-page letter from Val Darling to Newton "Newt" Perry, March 26, 1981: Personal Collection of Delee Perry.
RICHES
Florida Sports Hall of Fame, Cypress Garden, Florida
Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, Weeki Wachee, Florida
Letter from Virgil C. Gilbertson to Z. T. Stuart (April 22, 1970)
A letter from Virgil C. Gilbertson, Manager of Product Publicity for the Onan Corporation, to Z. T. Stuart, General Manager of Travelodge Orlando-Sky Lake, dated April 22, 1970). In the letter, Gilbertson thanks Stuart for allowing Onan to photograph the hotel. The Travelodge Orlando-Sky Lake was located at 7101 South Orange Blossom Trail (OBT), just north of the Bee Line Toll Road, in Orlando, Florida, around 1970. The hotel was constructed in 1970 by Hymen Lake and is currently in operation as the Royal Inn. Photographs from this era show the hotel offered a free continental breakfast, heated pool, and colored television. The Onan Corporation, based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, commissioned the photographs. Onan was photographing a standby electric plant that had been recently installed at the hotel.
Original 1-page typed letter from Virgil C. Gilbertson to Z. T. Stuart, April 22, 1970: Pine Castle Historical Society, Pine Castle, Florida.
Onan Corporation, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Travelodge Orlando-Sky Lake, Sky Lake, Florida
Letter from Walter Sims to Gary I. Sharp (March 18, 1975)
A letter from Senator Walter Sims to Gary I. Sharp, dated March 18, 1975. In this letter, Sen. Sims writes to express personal support for Sharp's proposal that the Gourd Neck Springs area of Lake Apopka be used as a public park. Sen. Sims states that the plan would aid in restoration efforts for the lake. He also states that he feels the park would be acquired through private means, rather than public funds, and then potentially donated to the state. Gourd Neck Springs is a small spring located in the southwest portion of Lake Apopka, in a small cove called “Gourd Neck” due to its distinctive shape. This area of the lake was considered in the 1960s as a potential nursery for fish. The Lake Apopka Technical Committee explored damming the Gourd Neck, separating it from the lake and preventing polluted lake water from entering, but these plans did not materialize. Efforts were also made in the 1960s to have the Gourd Neck area purchased by the State of Florida for use as a public park. The Gourd Neck Springs Park Association was formed in 1961 to study the site’s potential for a park and lobby for support from legislators. The land bordering the area was privately-owned by various individuals. One of these, Gary I. Sharp, continued seeking support for a park into the 1970s. While the project received support from Florida legislators and environmentalists, the land was never purchased by the state.
Photocopy of original 1-page typewritten letter from Walter Sims to Gary I. Sharp, March 18, 1975: binder 1975, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, Oakland Nature Preserve, Oakland, Florida.
Letter from William "Don" D. McAllister to V. D. Patten (June 15, 1966)
A letter from William "Don" D. McAllister to V. D. Patten at the Florida State Board of Health, with attached statement. McAllister hosted the Central Florida TV-show Hunting and Fishing with Don, which ran 1954 to 1972 on WDBO-Channel 6. The letter and attached statement detail observations made by McAllister while fishing on Lake Apopka in Florida. McAllister observed a large cloud of pesticide spray drifting over Lake Apopka, dispersed by spray planes operating Zellwood. McAllister also observed a moderate fish kill in the area.
Photocopy of original typewritten letter from William "Don" D. McAllister to V. D. Patten and typewritten statement, June 15, 1966: binder 1966, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, Oakland Nature Preserve, Oakland, Florida.
Letter from William A. Breeze to Gary I. Sharp (February 11, 1975)
A letter from William A. Breeze, president of the West Orange Chamber of Commerce, to Gary I. Sharp, dated February 11, 1975. In this letter, Breeze discusses the potential use of the Gourd Neck Springs area for a recreational park. Breeze states that the chamber, along with the Orlando Area Chamber of Commerce, co-sponsored a meeting of interested persons and state officials to discuss environmental restoration in the Ocklawaha Basin, including Lake Apopka. In this meeting, Breeze states it was agreed that the Gourd Neck Springs area should be restored for use as a park. The letter also states that due the area's current state of segmented private ownership, the land needs to be purchased by either the State of Florida or the federal government before use as a park. Gourd Neck Springs is a small spring located in the southwest portion of Lake Apopka, in a small cove called “Gourd Neck” due to its distinctive shape. This area of the lake was considered in the 1960s as a potential nursery for fish. The Lake Apopka Technical Committee explored damming the Gourd Neck, separating it from the lake and preventing polluted lake water from entering, but these plans did not materialize. Efforts were also made in the 1960s to have the Gourd Neck area purchased by the State of Florida for use as a public park. The Gourd Neck Springs Park Association was formed in 1961 to study the site’s potential for a park and lobby for support from legislators. The land bordering the area was privately-owned by various individuals. One of these, Gary I. Sharp, continued seeking support for a park into the 1970s. While the project received support from Florida legislators and environmentalists, the land was never purchased by the state.
Photocopy of original 1-page typewritten letter from William A. Breeze to Gary I. Sharp, February 11, 1975: binder 1975, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, Oakland Nature Preserve, Oakland, Florida.
Gourd Neck Springs, Lake Apopka, Florida
West Orange Chamber of Commerce, Winter Garden, Florida
Orlando Area Chamber of Commerce, Orlando, Florida
Letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford (August 4, 1883)
Sanford, Henry S. (Henry Shelton), 1823-1891
A letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891), dated August 4, 1883. In the letter, Beardall responded to inquiries from Sanford as well as provided updates on relevant matters. Beardall indicated to Sanford the cost of expanding the lodge located at Belair Grove in the City of Sanford, Florida (present-day Lake Mary). He also discussed matters concerning the construction of a railroad depot in Sanford, the cost of which would be potentially shared with the South Florida Railroad Company or "persons living in the neighbourhood." Beardall also provided updates on the status of the Swedish immigrants employed by Sanford, noting that "all the Swedes who are left here are employed at the Saw mill." Finally, Beardall also offered an update on the quality of Belair Grove, writing that "it is looking better than ever I saw it by far, both in quality of new growth, crop, and color." Beardall was an Englishman who worked for the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC) at its local office in Sanford, Florida. He served as an assistant to the company agent, E. R. Trafford. Beardall had worked previously for the Scottish industrialist Sir William MacKinnon before joining the FLCC. The FLCC was a joint-stock venture that invested in Florida land development and sales in the 1880s and early 1890s. The company was formed by Henry Shelton Sanford with help from a group of British investors. Located at 13 Austin Friars in London, the company was officially registered in London on June 10, 1880. With the formation of the FLCC, all of Henry Sanford's Florida properties were transferred to the company in exchange for a ₤10,000 cash payment and another ₤50,000 in company stock. Sanford was named President and Chairman of the Board. In 1880, the company owned 26,000 acres scattered across Florida, including in the cities of Jacksonville, St. Augustine, and Sanford, as well as in Alachua and Marion counties. Almost from the outset, there was serious friction between the British board members and Henry Sanford. Disagreements erupted over business strategy, as Sanford frequently proposed initiatives deemed too bold for the cautious British investors. As a result of consistently meager profits from its inception, following Henry Sanford's death in 1891 many of the investors lost the motivation to continue. On September 15, 1892, the various directors acted to dissolve the company. Its assets, including roughly 65,000 acres of Florida land, were divided among shareholders.
Original letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford, August 4, 1883: box 54, folder 18, subfolder 54.18.7, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford (December 28, 1883)
Safford, A. P. K. (Anson Peasley Keeler), -1891
A letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891), dated December 28, 1883. The letter provides updates on company lands in Anclote, Florida, and its environs. Beardall describes efforts to drain water from company land in Anclote, which was a small settlement near Tarpon Springs, with the ultimate goal of making the land cultivatable. In the letter, he also discusses the state of "communications from Cedar Keys[sic] and Tampa," which he found to be "very bad," mainly because the "Lake Buller Villa Co. arrangement of tri-weekly steamer having fallen thro[sic]." He also informed Sanford that guests continued to visit Tarpon Springs, "but not many," adding that a hotel in the area had recently opened and that "Governor Safford" was there overseeing development. He was presumably referring to Anson P. K. Safford (ca. 1830-1891), former Republican governor of the Arizona Territory from 1869 to 1877, who played a major role in the founding of Tarpon Springs. He also briefly informs Sanford about the founding of a town in Central Florida called Minneola, noting that it was beset by transportation issues because of the lack of a railroad connection. Beardall was an Englishman who worked for the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC) at its local office in Sanford, Florida. He served as an assistant to the company agent, E. R. Trafford. Beardall had worked previously for the Scottish industrialist Sir William MacKinnon before joining the FLCC. The FLCC was a joint-stock venture that invested in Florida land development and sales in the 1880s and early 1890s. The company was formed by Henry Shelton Sanford with help from a group of British investors. Located at 13 Austin Friars in London, the company was officially registered in London on June 10, 1880. With the formation of the FLCC, all of Henry Sanford's Florida properties were transferred to the company in exchange for a ₤10,000 cash payment and another ₤50,000 in company stock. Sanford was named President and Chairman of the Board. In 1880, the company owned 26,000 acres scattered across Florida, including in the cities of Jacksonville, St. Augustine, and Sanford, as well as in Alachua and Marion counties. Almost from the outset, there was serious friction between the British board members and Henry Sanford. Disagreements erupted over business strategy, as Sanford frequently proposed initiatives deemed too bold for the cautious British investors. As a result of consistently meager profits from its inception, following Henry Sanford's death in 1891 many of the investors lost the motivation to continue. On September 15, 1892, the various directors acted to dissolve the company. Its assets, including roughly 65,000 acres of Florida land, were divided among shareholders.
Original letter from E. R. Trafford to Henry Shelton Sanford, December 28, 1883: box 54, folder 18, subfolder 54.18.11, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford (February 15, 1884)
A letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891), dated February 15, 1884. In the letter, Beardall provided updates of several buyers' payments. He noted that J. C. Thorpe and D. B. Graves "are paid up all" and that George E. Rogers is "awaiting delivery of deed." Gustaf Lundquist, he added, "owes $100 which he is willing to pay on delivery of deed." Beardall was an Englishman who worked for the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC) at its local office in Sanford, Florida. He served as an assistant to the company agent, E. R. Trafford. Beardall had worked previously for the Scottish industrialist Sir William MacKinnon before joining the FLCC. The FLCC was a joint-stock venture that invested in Florida land development and sales in the 1880s and early 1890s. The company was formed by Henry Shelton Sanford with help from a group of British investors. Located at 13 Austin Friars in London, the company was officially registered in London on June 10, 1880. With the formation of the FLCC, all of Henry Sanford's Florida properties were transferred to the company in exchange for a ₤10,000 cash payment and another ₤50,000 in company stock. Sanford was named President and Chairman of the Board. In 1880, the company owned 26,000 acres scattered across Florida, including in the cities of Jacksonville, St. Augustine, and Sanford, as well as in Alachua and Marion counties. Almost from the outset, there was serious friction between the British board members and Henry Sanford. Disagreements erupted over business strategy, as Sanford frequently proposed initiatives deemed too bold for the cautious British investors. As a result of consistently meager profits from its inception, following Henry Sanford's death in 1891 many of the investors lost the motivation to continue. On September 15, 1892, the various directors acted to dissolve the company. Its assets, including roughly 65,000 acres of Florida land, were divided among shareholders.
Original letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford, February 15, 1884: box 54, folder 18, subfolder 54.18.16, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford (November 26, 1886)
A letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford, dated November 26, 1886. Contents of the letter included the purchasing of 320 acres near Winter Haven for the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC). He noted that the land was valued at $30 an acre and estimated that the presence of an unspecified Presbyterian College in the area would enhance the land value. Beardall also provided an update on affairs in Sanford, Florida. In particular, he wrote that he was "working now to secure the erection" of a "Palmetto Fibre Manufactory" in Sanford, an enterprise that he figured would produce five tons of fiber per day and employ upwards of 200 workers. The factory in question was proposed by the Diamond Match Company. However, he explained that there was competition with Alexander St. Clair Abrams who was trying to persuade the company to locate the Fiber Plant in Tavares. St. Clair Abrams was a lawyer who had previously worked with the FLCC to negotiate a bid for a million-acre plot of land from the Internal Improvement Fund Board. When the FLCC failed to finalize the bid, however, St. Clair Abrams sued the company and later Henry Sanford for compensation for his services rendered during the period. At the time of Beardall's 1886 letter, St. Clair Abrams' affiliation with the company had long since ended and he was in the process of a protracted lawsuit against Sanford, a suit that remained unsettled at the time of Sanford's death in 1891. Beardall warned that the FLCC would probably need "to give them land for the factory and a wharf lot near the Saw Mill in order to secure them at Sanford." This deal, he added, might also lead to an eventual paper mill as well, built by the same company. He ended his letter with some discussion of building a potential railroad depot in Sanford. William Beardall was an Englishman who worked for the FLCC at its local office in Sanford, Florida. He served as an assistant to the company agent, E. R. Trafford. He had worked previously for the Scottish industrialist Sir William MacKinnon before joining the FLCC, a joint-stock venture that invested in Florida land development and sales in the 1880s and early 1890s. The company was formed by Henry Shelton Sanford with help from a group of British investors. Located at 13 Austin Friars in London, the company was officially registered in London on June 10, 1880. With the formation of the FLCC, all of Henry Sanford's Florida properties were transferred to the company in exchange for a ₤10,000 cash payment and another ₤50,000 in company stock. Sanford was named President and Chairman of the Board. In 1880, the company owned 26,000 acres scattered across Florida, including in the cities of Jacksonville, St. Augustine, and Sanford, as well as in Alachua and Marion counties. Almost from the outset, there was serious friction between the British board members and Henry Sanford. Disagreements erupted over business strategy, as Sanford frequently proposed initiatives deemed too bold for the cautious British investors. As a result of consistently meager profits from its inception, following Henry Sanford's death in 1891 many of the investors lost the motivation to continue. On September 15, 1892, the various directors acted to dissolve the company. Its assets, including roughly 65,000 acres of Florida land, were divided among shareholders.
Original letter from William Beardall to Henry Shelton Sanford, November 26, 1884: box 54, folder 18, subfolder 54.18.39, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Florida Land and Colonization Company Office, Sanford, Florida
Letter from William E. Johnson to Dennis Holcomb (July7, 1981)
A letter from William E. Johnson to Dennis Holcomb, dated July7, 1981. Enclosed with the letter is a report by Johnson, a biologist with the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission (GFC) regarding a fish kill in Lake Apopka that occurred in June of 1981. The report states that the fish kill was first reported on June 20, and described as "massive" by Holcomb, who was also a fisheries biologist with the GFC. Sample counts of areas of the fish kill estimate that the fish kill totaled 18 million fish, primarily gizzard and threadfin shad. The report also states that no largemouth bass were present in the kill, and it is assumed that none are present in the lake at the time of writing. 15-20 Sunshine bass were observed. Sunshine bass are a hybrid bass used to artificially stock lakes, and Lake Apopka was stocked with Sunshine bass fingerlings in May of 1981. The report concludes, based on water samples, that the fish kill was a result of oxygen depletion after a period of above-average temperatures and stormy weather conditions. Water quality data from the samples are also attached. Lake Apopka is one of Florida’s largest lakes and was once considered to be one of the world’s best lakes for bass fishing. The lake’s sport fish population began to decline in the 1960s, with major die-offs occurring almost yearly. The lake’s problems are generally considered to be the result of over-nutrification from various sources. Twenty thousand acres of wetlands bordering the lake’s north shore were drained in the 1940s and used for highly fertile “muck farms.” These farms were routinely flooded to protect the fragile soil, and the fertilizer and pesticide-laden water was then discharged back into the lake prior to each growing season. Other sources of pollution include discharge from citrus processing operations, as well as treated wastewater from sewage plants. The nutrient-rich discharge promoted algae growth in the lake, turning the water to a green color, and blocked sunlight from reaching aquatic vegetation, which provided food and habit to the lake’s fish population. The lake’s bottom soil became increasingly “mucky,” also disrupting aquatic vegetation from taking root. Restoration work on the lake began in the 1960s with attempts by various agencies to remove “trash fish,” such as gizzard shad, from the lake via seining, which would hopefully allow the lake’s sportfish to thrive. The Lake Apopka Restoration Council, an initiative formed under Governor Claude Kirk (1926-2011) in 1967, launched several studies to find methods to improve the lake, though no serious action was taken. Various methods were debated to restore the lake through the 1970s and 1980s, including “drawdown,” which entailed completely draining the lake to allow the mucky bottom to consolidate. Restoration attempts were stalled for lack of funding and research. The Lake Apopka Restoration Council was reformed in 1985 under Governor Bob Graham (b. 1936), and, in 1987, the Surface Water and Improvement Management Act was passed. Together, these actions allowed comprehensive restoration plans to take shape, such as the Marsh Flow-way, a project by the St John’s Water Management District that uses natural methods to remove nutrients from the lake. The Friends of Lake Apopka, a citizen environmental advocacy group, began to push for further restoration efforts in the 1990s. The lake’s north shore muck farms were eventually purchased by the State of Florida, helping to reduce the amount of nutrient entering the lake.
Original 8-page typewritten letter from William E. Johnson to Dennis Holcomb, July7, 1981: binder 1981, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, Oakland Nature Preserve, Oakland, Florida.
Letter from William H. Falconer to Michael Gladden, Jr. (April 29, 1931)
Fraternal organizations, African American
Letter from William H. Falconer, Supreme Vice President of the Woodmen of Union, to Michael Gladden, Jr., a deputy of the Union. In the letter, Falconer urges all local deputies and officers to attend the Deputy and Officers' School, a instructional course for employees of the Woodmen of Union held in the Woodmen of Union Building, located at 501 Malvern Avenue in Hot Springs, Arkansas, between May 11-16, 1931. The Woodmen of Union, founded in 1883, was a fraternal benefit association that offered insurance benefits for its members and also participated in various social activities. Michael Gladden, Jr. (1899-1982) was the executor of the estate of George W. Oden (1862-1939), a successful businessman and citrus grower in Apopka, Florida. Gladden was born in South Carolina in 1899. He married Elizabeth Gladden and together they had a son, William, who was born around 1904. According to census records, the Gladden family had moved to Jacksonville as early as 1910 and then moved to Apopka. After Oden's death in 1939, Gladden continued to manage the legal documents of Oden's estate.
Original letter from William H. Falconer to Michael Gladden, Jr., April 29, 1931: series I, box 1, folder 171, African American Legacy: The Carol Mundy Collection, Special Collections & University Archives, University of Central Florida Libraries, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida.
Woodmen of Union, Woodmen of Union Building, Hot Springs, Arkansas
Letter from William H. Lee to Michael Gladden, Jr. (March 14, 1931)
Policy statement from the Afro-American Life Insurance Company for Michael Gladden, Jr. The letter was sent by the company's secretary, William H. Lee, on March 14, 1931, in regards to Gladden's unpaid life insurance policy account for the annual premium rate of $49.40. Michael Gladden, Jr. (1899-1982) was the executor of the estate of George W. Oden (1862-1939), a successful businessman and citrus grower in Apopka, Florida. Gladden was born in South Carolina in 1899. He married Elizabeth Gladden and together they had a son, William, who was born around 1904. According to census records, the Gladden family had moved to Jacksonville as early as 1910 and then moved to Apopka. After Oden's death in 1939, Gladden continued to manage the legal documents of Oden's estate.
Original letter from William H. Lee to Michael Gladen, Jr.: series I, box 1, folder 96, African American Legacy: The Carol Mundy Collection, Special Collections & University Archives, University of Central Florida Libraries, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida.
Afro-American Life Insurance Company, Jacksonville, Florida
Letter from William J. Cappleman to Gary I. Sharp (May 16, 1975)
A letter from William J. Cappleman of the Cappleman Agency, Inc. to Gary I. Sharp, dated May 16, 1975. In this letter, Cappleman states that they have received calls from landowners in the Gourd Neck Springs area seeking to sell their plots, as well as calls from interested buyers. The letter states that there is little interest in the sale of large individual tracts of land in the Gourd Neck area, and that they are working to divide a large holding by Herbert S. Starr into smaller sized plots for purchase. The letter also states the Cappleman Agency had made appointments with interested buyers to examine Sharp's property in the Gourd Neck area. Gourd Neck Springs is a small spring located in the southwest portion of Lake Apopka, in a small cove called “Gourd Neck” due to its distinctive shape. This area of the lake was considered in the 1960s as a potential nursery for fish. The Lake Apopka Technical Committee explored damming the Gourd Neck, separating it from the lake and preventing polluted lake water from entering, but these plans did not materialize. Efforts were also made in the 1960s to have the Gourd Neck area purchased by the State of Florida for use as a public park. The Gourd Neck Springs Park Association was formed in 1961 to study the site’s potential for a park and lobby for support from legislators. The land bordering the area was privately-owned by various individuals. One of these, Gary I. Sharp, continued seeking support for a park into the 1970s. While the project received support from Florida legislators and environmentalists, the land was never purchased by the state.
Photocopy of original 1-page typewritten letter from William J. Cappleman to Gary I. Sharp, May 16, 1975: binder 1975, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, Oakland Nature Preserve, Oakland, Florida.
Letter from William Lyons Homes, Inc. to Hymen Lake (May 24, 1968)
William Lyons Home, Inc. is a California-based, residential home builder. William Lyons, a former U.S. Air Force pilot, founded the company in 1954, then called Luxury Homes. In 1968, William Lyons Home's architect design coordinator, Phil Hove, addressed a letter to Hymen Lake, a Central Florida real estate developer, in response to Lake's interest in some model homes designed by Lyon's firm. Lake is best known as the developer of Sky Lake, a residential community and unincorporated area in located approximately seven miles south of Downtown Orlando between Lancaster Road and Sand Lake Road. The community was developed in late 1950s and 1960s, and it became one of the first housing developments to be racially integrated.
Original letter from William Lyons Homes, Inc. to Hymen Lake, May 24, 1968: Pine Castle Historical Society, Pine Castle, Florida.
William Lyons Home, Inc.
Williams Lyon Homes, Inc., Anaheim, California
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (April 10, 1879)
Letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated April 10, 1879. The letter referenced the early stages of a scheme to acquire four Indian elephants. The elephants in question were part of a strategy meant to aid the transportation of a Belgian team tasked with exploring East Africa on behalf of King Leopold II of Belgium (1835-1909). The elephants were bought by the Belgian king and shipped from British India. MacKinnon included the text of a telegram sent from Colonel Maximilien Strauch, a close advisor of King Leopold. The letter to Sanford discussed the possibility of a meeting with Col. Strauch regarding the "elephant question." Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to Leopold II and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, April 10, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.2, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (April 12, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated April 12, 1879. The letter referenced the early stages of a scheme to acquire four Indian elephants. The elephants in question were part of a strategy meant to aid the transportation of a Belgian team tasked with exploring East Africa on behalf of King Leopold II of Belgium (1835-1909). The elephants were bought by the Belgian king and shipped from British India. MacKinnon discussed in detail the various factors concerning the elephants, ranging from transportation from India to required nourishment once in Africa. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to Leopold II and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, April 12, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.3, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (April 14, 1879)
Letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated April 14, 1879. The letter primary discussed various legal and economic matters concerning the Committee for the Study of the Upper Congo, an organization later replaced by the International Association of the Congo on November 17, 1879. In particular, MacKinnon considered the possibility of the new association being a "limited liability" entity. MacKinnon also discussed a scheme to acquire four Indian elephants. The elephants in question were part of a strategy meant to aid the transportation of a Belgian team tasked with exploring East Africa on behalf of King Leopold II of Belgium. The elephants were bought by the Belgian king and shipped from British India. Noting with some urgency, MacKinnon declared that if the elephants "are not got now I fear they would not come in for use by the present expedition." The letter closes with light references to the health of King Leopold and to the weather. One final remark served to intentionally stress MacKinnon's sentiments for the Belgian king. Noting King Leopold's "African schemes," MacKinnon emphasized to say, "I only wish I could do a very great deal more to show him how thoroughly I symphathise in the sentiments which prompt him to express so warmly the cause of poor down trodden Africa." Ultimately, the sentiments and actions described by MacKinnon and undertaken by King Leopold amounted to harsh colonization and exploitation of Central Africa cloaked under the guise of humanitarian aid. MacKinnon's self-conscious statements of flattery about the Belgian king relayed to Sanford reflects Sanford's central place amid the King's inner circle in Brussels. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to Leopold II and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, April 14, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.4, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (April 22, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated April 22, 1879. The brief letter served to inform Sanford that MacKinnon had received a telegram from Calcutta in British India noting that the elephants had been arranged for travel on a specified carrier. The elephants in question were part of a scheme meant to aid the transportation of a Belgian team tasked with exploring East Africa on behalf of King Leopold II of Belgium (1835-1909). The elephants were bought by the Belgian king and shipped from British India. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to Leopold II and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, April 22, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.5, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (December 1, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated December 1, 1879. In the letter, MacKinnon noted that he looked forward to meeting with Sanford for dinner in London, England, upon Sanford's arrival. MacKinnon noted that the main reason for writing was to encourage Sanford to have "little syndicate scheme ready," presumably referencing Sanford's plan to for a Florida land investment company. MacKinnon, lending his business acumen to Sanford, encouraged him to have prepared the price necessary to launch the scheme. He believed that £20,000 would be an adequate starting amount to distribute in shares. He also encouraged Sanford to indicate to prospective investors the prospect of modest returns and also how the company would intend to invest in new land purchases. MacKinnon was presumably encouraging Sanford to consider these aspects of the business in order to persuasively court investors during Sanford's visit to London. The scheme MacKinnon discussed in the letter would ultimately become the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC). Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company, going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, December 1, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.21, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (December 19, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated December 19, 1879. In this letter, MacKinnon discussed about his health and his recovery from an unspecified illness. He also informed Sanford that, in his absence, he had "left Florida matters" to Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), a co-founder of Gray Dawes and Company and an eventual board member of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC). MacKinnon added that Dawes would handle the financial arrangements and the search for subscribers while he was away. MacKinnon also indicated that he had met with Somerset Beaumont (1835-1921), a former British Member of Parliament (MP), noting regretfully that he did not have a chance to broach the subject of Beaumont "taking a share with [the] Florida venture." The letter concluded with a discussion of updates regarding a Belgian expedition of the Congo, one that included four Indian elephants shipped from British India. MacKinnon remarked that he was shocked to hear that at least one of the elephants had died in the midst of the expedition. With its frank discussion of personal health and activities, this letter demonstrated the relatively close relationship between Sanford and MacKinnon. It also highlighted the efforts of MacKinnon and others to help Sanford in recruiting investors for his "Florida scheme," what would become the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC). The diversity of topics covered in the letter exemplified the multitude of interconnected business and political interests shared by the two men. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company, going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Dawes, were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, December 19, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.23, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Balinakill House, Clachan, Scotland, United Kingdom
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (December 24, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated December 24, 1879. In the letter, MacKinnon discussed the health of Sanford's wife, Gertrude Dupuy Sanford (1841-1902). He also updated Sanford on the latest news regarding the "Florida affairs" sent by Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), a co-founder of Gray Dawes and Company and an eventual board member of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC). The letter concludes with an expression of interest in meeting with Sanford in the United Kingdom. With its frank discussion of personal health and activities, this letter demonstrated the relatively close relationship between Sanford and MacKinnon. It also highlighted the efforts of MacKinnon and others to help Sanford in recruiting investors for his "Florida scheme," what would become the FLCC. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company, going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Dawes, were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, December 24, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.24, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (December 29, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated December 24, 1879. In this letter, MacKinnon discussed, among other topics, an update regarding a Belgian expedition in the Congo and one of its chief explorers, Carter. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company, going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, December 24, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.25, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (July 1, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated July 1, 1879. The letter discussed updates regarding a Belgian expedition in East Africa as well as MacKinnon's vacation in Germany and his upcoming return through Brussels, Belgium. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, July 1, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.10, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (July 29, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated July 29, 1879. The letter began with a long apology from MacKinnon regarding the length of time it took for him to respond to an earlier letter from Sanford. He proceeded to discuss several personal matters, including his intent to attend a friend's funeral. More importantly, the letter marked MacKinnon's initial response to Sanford's proposal regarding a land investment company in Florida, what would become the Florida Land and Colonization Company. MacKinnon noted that he agreed with all of Sanford's thoughts on the matter, but added cautiously, "I don't know that I can assist you very much in getting the thing into a practical shape or in carrying it out in the way you indicate, but I need hardly say that it will give me much pleasure if I can even help you a little." MacKinnon proceeded to give advice to Sanford on how to proceed, adding that once Sanford had a solid proposal, he would be willing to show it to some friends with the hopes of "getting a small private association to take it up of to take up a portion of it." Perhaps most importantly was MacKinnon's commitment to invest money of his own to the scheme. "I shall be willing to invest some money into it myself," he wrote, "not because I have any desire to go into any new thing or get a better return for my money, but because I should like to assist if I can in promoting a scheme which I believe has in it the elements of commercial success and one in which my help may be useful to you." The willingness of MacKinnon to help, despite no interest in profiting from the venture, demonstrates his interest in using Sanford's Florida scheme to ensure reciprocal advantages in other domains. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, July 29, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.12, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Balinakill Country House, Clachan, Scotland, United Kingdom
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (June 14, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated June 14, 1879. The letter, written from Dover, England, served to inform Sanford of MacKinnon's plans to travel to Brussels, Belgium via ferry. MacKinnon expressed the hope that the two would be able to speak in person about various topics. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, June 14, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.7, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (June 26, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated June 26, 1879. The letter discussed the early developments of the Belgian expedition of East Africa and the usage of four Indian elephants. The elephants in question were meant to aid a Belgian team tasked with exploring East Africa on behalf of King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium. The elephants were bought by the Belgian king and shipped from British India. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to Leopold II and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, June 26, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.9, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (June 9, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated June 9, 1879. The letter indicated MacKinnon's upcoming travel plans and his interest in speaking with Sanford in greater detail about an unspecified matter. He also provided an update on the acquisition and transportation of four elephants to East Africa. The elephants were meant to aid a Belgian team tasked with exploring East Africa on behalf of King Leopold II of Belgium. The elephants were bought by the Belgian king and shipped from British India. In the letter, MacKinnon noted that he had received a telegram "from Aden" informing him of the safe arrival and landing of the elephants. Aden is a seaport in present-day Yemen. At the time, it was controlled by Britain and administered as part of British India. It was of roughly equal distance between Mumbai, Zanzibar, and the Suez Canal, all of which were important destinations of British shipping routes. MacKinnon added in the letter that he had not heard whether the elephants had subsequently landed safely in Zanzibar, although the carrier had since returned to Aden from its voyage. MacKinnon noted that his "part of the work connected with this experiment is now completed successfully," adding his support for the future success of the expedition. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, June 9, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.6, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (March 29, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated March 29, 1879. The letter referenced the early stages of a scheme to acquire four Indian elephants. The elephants in question were part of a strategy meant to aid the transportation of a Belgian team tasked with exploring East Africa on behalf of King Leopold II of Belgium (1835-1909). The elephants were bought by the Belgian king and shipped from British India. In this letter, MacKinnon introduced Sanford to a man named Carter. In MacKinnon's words, Carter was considered a "suitable person to accompany the exploration party" to Africa. MacKinnon noted that Carter met with the King Leopold in Brussels prior to meeting Sanford, adding that the King "approved of this arrangement." In the letter, MacKinnon asked Sanford to introduce Carter to "Baron Strauch." He was presumably referring to Colonel Maximilien Strauch, the president of the Committee for the Study of the Upper Congo, an organization later replaced by the International Association of the Congo on November 17, 1879. MacKinnon was pleased to add that the exploration would depart on April 17, 1880 from London on a steamer owned by MacKinnon's company, the British-India Steam Navigation Company. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to Leopold II and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, March 29, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.1, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (November 1, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated November 1, 1879. In the letter, MacKinnon acknowledged receipt of Sanford's letter dated October 29. He also commented on the inclusion of newspaper clippings related to tea cultivation in the United States sent by Sanford, noting that he intended to watch the industry closely, adding that "America seems to grow everything all the world wants." MacKinnon also noted that he had sent William Beardall, a future agent for the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC) in Sanford, Florida, to Africa to join a Belgian exploratory mission initiated by King Leopold II of Belgium (1835-1909). MacKinnon also wanted to know when Sanford would be in London, presumably with the hope that the two could discuss, among other matters, Sanford's "Florida scheme," what would become the Florida Land and Colonization Company. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to Leopold II and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company, going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, November 1, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.17, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (November 21, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated November 21, 1879. The letter was a brief note informing Sanford of his travel plans, which included going to Brussels, Belgium, via ferry from Dover, England. MacKinnon hoped to meet with Sanford in Brussels. He also informed Sanford that he was scheduled to meet with King Leopold II of Belgium (1835-1909). Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to Leopold II and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, November 21, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.19, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (November 6, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated November 6, 1879. The letter was a brief note informing Sanford that he would reach London, England, later than anticipated in earlier correspondence. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, November 6, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.18, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (October 10, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated October 10, 1879. The letter was written from MacKinnon's private manor, Balinakill, located in Scotland. It included discussion of MacKinnon's travel plans to Brussels, Belgium. It also mentioned developments related to an exploratory expedition in East Africa, particularly in regard to the expedition's usage of elephants to facilitate travel. The elephants in question were meant to aid a Belgian team tasked with exploring East Africa on behalf of King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium. The elephants were bought by the Belgian king and shipped from British India. MacKinnon also made the esoteric remark to Sanford: "I am with you in all your views." This reference may have been in regards to Sanford's business plans in Florida. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to Leopold II and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, October 10, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.14, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (October 19, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated October 19, 1879. The letter was written from MacKinnon's private manner, Balinakill, located in Scotland. This brief letter served to acknowledge receipt of a letter written by Sanford several days earlier. MacKinnon expressed interest in meeting with Sanford in London, England, asking when Sanford intended to travel to both Florida and London. He noted that he wanted to meet with Sanford in order to discuss at length a number of different topics, adding, "I shall be happy to do all I can to help you with your Florida scheme." The "Florida scheme" referred to what would become the Florida Land and Colonization Company. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, October 19, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.15, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (October 28, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated October 28, 1879. The letter was written from MacKinnon's private manner, Balinakill in Clachan, Scotland. In it, MacKinnon acknowledged receipt of a letter previously sent by Sanford. He also informed Sanford of a plan under negotiation at the time to unite the Portuguese colony of Delagoa Bay, which was located off the coast of present-day Mozambique, and the Transvaal Colony of the British Empire, in present-day South Africa, by railway. Later in the letter, MacKinnon referenced Sanford's "Florida scheme," what would later become the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC). MacKinnon also estimated what type of financial capital would be necessary to form the company. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company, going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, October 28, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.16, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford (September 9, 1879)
A letter from Sir William MacKinnon (1823-1893) to Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) dated September 9, 1879. In the letter, MacKinnon discussed some updates about an expedition in East Africa, noting that he had received some additional mail from Zanzibar regarding the matter. MacKinnon acknowledged that he had received several notes from Sanford, but that he intended to postpone his reply until receiving "the printed document about the Florida land scheme." The land scheme that he referred to was what would become the Florida Land and Colonization Company. MacKinnon also asked Sanford if he would be able to read some forwarded letters to the King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium. This letter reveals the mutual reliance between MacKinnon and Sanford; MacKinnon was Sanford's most obvious choice for help with his real estate ambitions in Florida while Sanford afforded MacKinnon access to the Belgian king. Sir William MacKinnon was a Scottish ship-owner and businessman who established significant trade networks and commercial interests in British India and later in East Africa. Among other business ventures, he founded the British India Steam Navigation Company and the short-lived Imperial British East Africa Company. During his lifetime, he was one of the leading ship-owners in the British Empire. By the 1880s, he controlled more shipping tonnage than any other individual in Britain. MacKinnon met Henry Shelton Sanford sometime in the late 1870s and the two began corresponding regularly in 1879. MacKinnon's interest in Sanford stemmed from the former American ambassador's close proximity to Leopold II and the Brussels inner-circle of businessmen, politicians, and diplomats. Sanford, living in a château in Brussels, provided a valuable lifeline for MacKinnon, who sought Belgian business connections to support his expanding commercial ventures, particularly in East Africa. He was a vital factor in the formation of the Florida Land and Colonization Company (FLCC), going so far as to lend Sanford £8,000 in early January 1880. He also played an essential role in helping Sanford court early participants in the investment plan. Many of the board members of the FLCC, like Edwyn Sandys Dawes (1838-1903), were close associates of MacKinnon. With his business ventures strongly tied to British and Belgian development schemes in Africa, MacKinnon had no ostensible interest in Florida land investment. His participation in Sanford's Florida ambitions was thus directly linked to his interest in maintaining strong relations with Sanford and his valuable connections in Belgium.
Original letter from William MacKinnon to Henry Shelton Sanford, September 9, 1879: box 127, folder 2, subfolder 127.2.13, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Letter from Y. P. Louis to Sydney Octavius Chase (December 14, 1900)
An original letter of correspondence between former employee Y. P. Louis and Sydney Octavius Chase. Topics discussed in the letter include Louis' gratitude to Chase and his current employment for Lord Li in Wuhu, China. Chase & Company was established in 1884 by brothers Sydney Octavius Chase and Joshua Coffin Chase. The company sold insurance and later invested in storage facilities and fertilizer sales. Chase & Company was known mainly for its agricultural interests and maintained a series of citrus groves throughout Central Florida. The company was based out of Sanford and became one of the city's largest employers into the early twentieth century. Randall Chase joined in the family business soon after his brother, Sydney Chase, Jr., did in 1922. Randall became the president of Chase & Company from 1948-1965.
Original letter from Y. P. Louis to Sydney Octavius Chase, December 14, 1900: box 173, folder 2.40, Chase Collection (MS 14), Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
Letter Template from Representative Louis Frey, Jr., 1972
A draft of a stock response letter from U.S. Representative Louis Frey, Jr. (1934-2019) to constituents who expressed their opinion that Brevard County, Florida, needed a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital. Re. Lou Frey served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1969 to 1979. He was on several committees during his time in office, including the Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control and the Science and Technology Committee. He was also the chairman of the Young Republicans of Florida. During his tenure, Central Florida had a very large veteran population but insufficient VA medical facilities. For example, the closest VA hospital to Brevard County was in St. Petersburg. To more sufficiently care for the needs of veterans in his district, Rep. Frey introduced multiple bills to Congress that would establish a VA hospital in Brevard County, although none of his bills were passed.
Original letter template from Lou Frey, Jr., 1972: Lou Frey Papers, box 6, Lou Frey Institute of Politics & Government, Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida.
Letter to Larry Morrell of the Seminole Soil and Water Conservation District from William E. Austin,1977
Letter to Larry Morrell from William E. Austin for 1977. In the letter, William E. Austin, State Conservationist, writes to Larry Morrell of the Seminole Soil and Water Conservation District about an updated Supplemental Memorandum of Understanding between the Soil Conservation Service and the Seminole Soil and Water Conservation District.
Original 1-page typewritten report by the Board of Supervisors of the Seminole Soil and Water Conservation District,1977: Folder SSWCD Statistical and Historical Information, 1948-1977, Seminole Soil and Water Conservation District, Sanford, Florida.
Seminole Soil and Water Conservation District
Letters From the People: VICA Sponsor Thanks Citizens
A newspaper article published by The Oviedo Outlook on May 26, 1977. The article features a letter to the editor by Wayne E. Lanham, an instructor at Oviedo High School and the sponsor of the school's chapter of Vocational Industrial Clubs of America (VICA). VICA is career and technical student organization founded in 1965. In the letter, Lanham thanks members and sponsors of the high school's VICA. In 1999, the national organization changed its name to SkillsUSA-VICA and then shortened it to SkillsUSA in 2004.
Original newspaper article: "Letters From the People: VICA Sponsor Thanks Citizens." The Oviedo Outlook, Vol. 4, No. 40, May 26, 1977, page 2: Oviedo Historical Society, Oviedo, Florida.
New York Giants (Baseball team)--History--20th century
Newspaper article announcing the resignation of Lewis O. Doty as manager of the New York Giants Mayfair Inn in order to pursue management of his own hotel in Angola, Indiana. Doty first became manager in 1948 after Horace Stoneham, owner of the New York Giants, purchased the hotel. Stoneham renamed the hotel the Mayfair Inn. During the 1940s, the New York Giants traveled to Sanford for spring training. Originally named after the Sanford Mayor and president of Seminole County Bank, construction of the Forrest Lake Hotel began in 1916. Local architect Elton J. Moughton designed the hotel. In 1925, Hotel Forrest Lake opened and became a popular destination for tourists visiting Sanford. By 1929, the hotel closed after the stock market crash and the downfall of Florida's tourism and real estate boom. William E. Kirchhoff leased the building in 1934 and the hotel reopened in 1935 with the new name Mayfair Hotel. Under Kirchhoff's ownership, the Mayfair Hotel became known as one of the finest hotels in the South. Kirchhoff sold the hotel in 1948 to Horace Stoneham, owner of the New York Giants. Stoneham then sold the building to the Bernard McFadden Foundation. After the Naval Air Station Sanford acquired $1.3 million to fund the construction of a naval academy in 1963, the Foundation made significant alterations to the building to house students from the Sanford Naval Academy. The Foundation later sold the building to the New Tribes Mission in 1977. The New Tribes Mission's goal is to reach tribes who have no access to the Gospel through translated publications and missionary work.
Original newspaper article: "Lewis Doty Resigns as Mayfair Manager."
A typewritten card containing the schedule of the Liberal Religious Youth, which was an autonomous youth group affiliated with the Unitarian Universalist Association. The group had a presence in Orlando and was responsible for organizing and conducting civil rights demonstrations during the 1960s, including sit-ins at segregated lunch counters and going to other segregated establishments such as theaters and pools. A notable demonstration by the Orlando group was their sit-in at Stroud's Rex Hall Drug Store on March 9, 1961. The Liberal Religious Youth group in Orlando was composed of white and black students generally between the ages of fourteen and nineteen. They met in the library and Gore Hall building of the First Unitarian Church of Orlando at 1901 East Robinson Street. The group disbanded in 1982.
Digital reproduction of original typewritten card: First Unitarian Church of Orlando.
First Unitarian Church of Orlando
First Unitarian Church of Orlando, Florida
Library War Service Makes Report of Work
A page from The Davenport Democrat and Leader from November 8, 1918. One of the articles reports casualties of World War I. Fred Kalinchuk is listed as missing in action. His status would later be corrected in some newspapers as wounded in action, degree undetermined. The newspaper was founded as The Democratic Banner in 1848, and was sold in 1855 to a group of businessmen and rechristened The Iowa State Democrat. The name changed again in 1903 to The Davenport Democrat, and after purchasing its rival newspaper, The Davenport Leader in 1905, the name became The Davenport Democrat and Leader, under the city editorship of Ralph W. Cram. The newspaper eventually settled on its current name, The Quad-City Times. Fred Kalinchuk was born in Russia in 1896, and immigrated to the United States in 1913. He lived in Cleveland, Ohio with his family before enlisting in the United States Army in 1918. Soon after joining the Army, he became a naturalized citizen while stationed in Georgia. Kalinchuk fought in France during World War I, including in the Oise-Aisne offensive. He was wounded during that time and was awarded the Purple Heart. After his military service, Kalinchuk worked as a patternmaker and started a family in Cleveland. He later moved to Florida and passed away in Citrus, Florida, in 2007. He is buried at Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida, with his son, Walter Kallin, who served in World War II. In 2017, the University of Central Florida was one of three universities selected to launch the National Cemetery Administration’s Veterans Legacy Program Project. The program engaged a team of scholars to make the life stories of veterans buried in the Florida National Cemetery available to the public. The project engages UCF students in research and writing and fosters collaboration between students, faculty and local Central Florida schools to produce interactive curriculum for k-12 students. The corresponding website exhibit uses RICHES Mosaic Interface to create a digital archive of related data. The public can use the project-developed augmented-reality app at more than 100 gravesites at the Florida National Cemetery, where they can access the UCF student-authored biographies of veterans.
The Davenport Democrat and Leader
Digital reproduction of original newspaper article: “The Davenport Democrat and Leader”, Quad-City Times, November 8, 1918.
License to Practice Midwifery for Carrie Jones
A License to Practice Midwifery, issued by the Florida State Board of Health, certifying the completion of midwifery requirements by Carrie Jones. The certificate was issued in Sanford, Florida, on July 23, 1943, and signed by Dr. Lucille J. Marsh, the Director of the Bureau of Maternal and Child Health. Jones originally served as a midwife at Fernald-Laughton Memorial Hospital, located at 500 South Oak Avenue in Sanford. Along with her daughter, Marie Jones Francis, Jones co-founded the Jones-Francis Maternity Hall, located at 621 East Sixth Street in Georgetown, an historic African-American neighborhood in Sanford.
Florida State Board of Health
Original license, July 23, 1943: Florida State Board of Health, Jacksonville, Florida: Private Collection of Daphne F. Humphrey.
License to Practice Midwifery for Marie Jones Francis
A License to Practice Midwifery, issued by the Florida State Board of Health Department, certifying the completion of midwifery requirements by Marie Jones Francis. The certificate was issued in Sanford, Florida, on May 27, 1943, and signed by Dr. Lucille J. Marsh, the Director of the Bureau of Maternal and Child Health. Marie Jones Francis, the "midwife of Sanford," left behind a successful hotel and restaurant she owned in Sarasota in 1942 to return to Sanford and become a midwife. World War II caused a shortage in doctors and nurses, so Florida's Children's Bureau sent Francis to Florida A & M to acquire her practical nursing license in 1945. She specialized in premature babies and returned to Sanford to aid her mother, Carrie Jones, at Fernald-Laughton Memorial Hospital before they opened the ward in their home. "When her health starting failing," she recollects in a newspaper article, "I took over." Francis converted her house at 621 East Sixth Street to also serve as a maternity ward, where she delivered over 40,000 babies over her 32 year career. She became a midwife in the same vein as her mother, Carrie Jones, and together they ran the Jones-Francis Maternity Hall in Georgetown. Francis served her community in several ways. She delivered babies for both white and black families from Seminole County, primarily patrons who either preferred natural births or could not afford deliveries at a hospital. In the 1950s, it cost $70 to stay nine days where soon-to-be mothers were taken care of. Francis was assisted by her sister, Annie Walker, who did the cooking. The house and ward also served as a school, where Marie Francis taught nurses the art of midwifery. Nurses would come from across the state to learn how to delivery infants naturally. A heavy burden on a single working mother, Marie Francis had three daughters, Cassandra Clayton, Daphne Humphrey, and Barbara Torre. Clayton and Humphrey became school teachers and Torre became a purchaser at Seminole Memorial Hospital.
Original license, May 27, 1943: Florida State Board of Health, Jacksonville, Florida: Private Collection of Daphne F. Humphrey.
Lieutenant Dean N. Post, Jr.'s Airplane After Crash
Lieutenant Dean N. Post, Jr.'s (1921-1944) plane after his crash in Martimpré, France, on May 27, 1944. Lt. Post was a pilot from Tampa, Florida, who served in the U.S. Army during World World II. He fought with the 357th Fighter Group of the 264th Fighter Squadron and was executed by German authorities after being hidden by French citizens in Gérardmer. Lt. Post is buried at Epinal American Cemetery and Memorial in Dinozé, France.
Digital reproduction of original black and white photograph by André Voirin, May 27, 1944. http://francecrashes39-45.net/page_fiche_av.php?id=2675.
The cover of LIFE for its issue published on November 19, 1965. The cover photograph shows Times Square and the Union Carbide Building in Midtown Manhattan of New York City, New York, during the Great Northeast Blackout. The blackout occurred on November 9, 1965, and affected Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, and Vermont, as well as part of Ontario, Canada. Some of the repercussions of the blackout included a large wave of utility purchases of power generating gas turbines to increase the peak load capacity and reserve margin of the many power systems, which were vulnerable to overload and failure. The event is considered to be the catalyst that jump started the modern gas turbine industry.
Original color magazine cover: LIFE, November 19, 1965.
LIFE
Times Square, Midtown Manhattan, New York City, New York
Union Carbide Building, Midtown Manhattan, New York City, New York
Life's Lessons Become Wayne Woman's Message: Being Inclusive Benefits Everyone
A newspaper article about Patricia Ann Black's (1956- ) experience as the child of migrant workers Pilgrim Black (1905-2002) and Lula Mae Haynes Black (1917-2007), who got married in 1937. Patricia was born August 31, 1956, and grew up at the end of East Tenth Street in Sanford, Florida. She attended Hopper Elementary through sixth grade, Lakeview Middle School for seventh grade, Sanford Junior High School for eighth grade, Crooms High School for ninth grade, and Seminole High School through twelfth grade. She also attended school in the North Rose-Wolcott district each year while in Upsstate New York. During fourth grade, integration began and parents were given the choice to have their children to attend other schools, but Patricia chose to continue attending an all-black school until she entered seventh grade in 1968 and began attending integrated schools. In June 1973, Patricia married her first husband, Clint Holt (1955-); however, the couple quickly separated due to domestic violence and divorced around 1977. Patricia gave birth to her first child, Charmion Le'Antwinetta Holt (1974- ). She also had three other children with William Bigham Jr. (1952- ), who she was married to for 33 years: William Arthur Bigham III (1982- ), Brandon Oliver Black (1990- ), and Tempestt Teonte' Black (1992- ). Patricia currently lives in the family home built by her grandmother, Maggie Benjamin Black (ca.1870-ca.1934) on East Tenth Street in Sanford. Patricia endured weekly molestation for 11 years from age six to age seventeen and was raped at age seventeen while pregnant with Charmion. At age 29, Patricia became severely addicted to smoking cocaine. After seven years, Patricia was able to overcome her addiction and has maintained her sobriety for 21 years. She has suffered severe mental and physical damage and is still recovering today. Despite her traumatic experiences and sibling rejections, Patricia has developed a devout relationship with God. While in recovery, Patricia refocused her attention on spreading her ministry of love by becoming a foster parent, serving as the Parent Representative of the Committee for Special Education (CSE), and serving on her local school board in the North Rose-Wolcott school district. Patricia also has owned her own business making incense and importing shea butter from Africa. She also became a licensed nail technician specializing in stress-relieving pedicures. As of 2009, Patricia is retired but still maintains some involvement in her business/ministry named GIFTED.
Original newspaper article: Miller, Jim. "Life's Lessons Become Wayne Woman's Message: Being Inclusive Benefits Everyone." The Finger Lake Times, February 15, 2006: Private Collection of Patricia Ann Black.
The Finger Lake Times
A newspaper article published by The Oviedo Outlook on May 26, 1977. The article announces the death of Lillian Della Lee Lawton (ca. 1883-1977). Lawton was the daughter of former Orange County Commissioner James Hiram Lee, Sr. (1844-1920) and Laura Agusta Barnett Lee (1851-1940). She married Winborn Joseph Lawton, Sr. (1881-1971), who served as a trustee of the First Baptist Church of Oviedo, a secretary and treasurer for the church's Sunday school, an insurance agent, and a citrus grower. Together, the couple had four children: Elizabeth Lawton Laney, Kathryn Lawton, John. K. Lawton, and Winborn Joseph Lawton, Jr. Lawton was a charter member and the former present of the Oviedo Woman's Club (OWC), the former president of the Woman's Missionary Society, and a lifelong member of the First United Methodist Church of Oviedo.
Original newspaper article: "Lifelong Resident, Mrs. Lawton Dies." The Oviedo Outlook, Vol. 4, No. 40, May 26, 1977, page 3: Oviedo Historical Society, Oviedo, Florida.
Home of Lillian Della Lee Lawton, Oviedo, Florida
First United Methodist Church of Oviedo, Oviedo, Florida
A poster for the Orlando Gay Chorus (OGC) concert, “Lights, Camera, Action!” The event was held at the Margeson Theatre, part of the John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center in Loch Haven Park, located at 812 East Rollins Street in Orlando, Florida, on Saturday, April 2 and Sunday, April 3, 2005. Tickets were $20 in advance through Urban Think, The Center, and orlandogaychorus.org and $25 at the door. The poster has a black background with the red title illuminated by a yellow spotlight. Featured artwork includes the logos of the OGC and various sponsors across the bottom of the poster. The Orlando Gay Chorus is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts and humanitarian organization part of GALA Choruses. Founded on Valentines Day 1990, OGC is not only one of the largest mixed gay choirs in the United States at over 100 members, but they also boast four smaller ensembles that perform annual concerts, cabarets, and a whole host of community events like Come Out With Pride, Orlando Museum of Art’s Festival of Trees, and World Aids Day memorial services. In 2017, the group performed at over 105 events, including 15 performances for the first anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub tragedy. Members come from all walks of life and all sexual and gender orientations, including straight allies. OGC lives by the motto “Singing the World to a Better Place” and strives to use music to change attitudes and build a stronger community.
Orlando Gay Chorus
Original color poster: University of Central Florida Special Collections, Orlando, Florida.
John & Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center, Loch Haven Park, Orlando, Florida
Lights, Camera, Action!, April 2 & 3, 2005
A program for the Orlando Gay Chorus' concert, "Lights, Camera, Action!", on April 2 &amp
3, 2005, at the Margeson Theater at the John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Theater in Loch Haven Park in Orlando, Florida. The program includes short biographies on the Artistic Director Terry Thomas, the Accompanist Genoa Minga, and the ASL interpreters Kelly Seddon and Brian Singleton, program notes, an outline of the show's itinerary, a list of chorus members and contributors, and a history of GALA Choruses. The Orlando Gay Chorus (OGC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts and humanitarian organization, and part of the Gay and Lesbian Association (GALA) of Choruses. Founded on Valentines Day 1990, OGC is not only one of the largest mixed gay choirs in the United States at over 100 members, but they also boast four smaller ensembles that perform annual concerts, cabarets, and a host of community events, such as Come Out With Pride, Orlando Museum of Art’s Festival of Trees, and World AIDS Day memorial services. In 2017, the group performed at over 105 events, including 15 performances for the first anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub tragedy. Members come from all walks of life and all sexual and gender orientations, including straight allies. OGC lives by the motto “Singing the World to a Better Place” and strives to use music to change attitudes and build a stronger community.
Original 32-page program, Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida
Margeson Theater at the John & Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Theater, Loch Haven Park, Orlando, Florida
A postcard depicting a view of a pierced rock and a shepherd herding sheep from the La Mure railway line, which was built in 1882 to haul coal and was electrified in 1903. Until 2010, the line itself operated as a tourist attraction, but a landslide blocked one of the tunnels and it is unclear if or whether the line will re-open. This postcard is part of a collection of postcards kept by Lucile Campbell, a schoolteacher in Sanford, Florida, for 30 years. In 1931, she took advantage of a special rate for teachers and sailed to Europe, where she traveled for several months and is thought to have acquired many of these postcards. During the 1940-1941 school year, Campbell taught at Sanford Grammar School. Before her retirement in 1970, she taught at many other area schools, including the Oviedo School, Westside Grammar School, and Pinecrest Elementary School. Campbell used these postcards as aids in her classrooms to teach advanced subjects, such as Shakespearean drama. The collection, along with her other teaching aids, papers, and photographs, was later found at Sanford Grammar School after it became the University of Central Florida's Public History Center. Campbell's postcard collection and photographs provide insight into the life of a respected Florida educator.
Original 3 x 5 inch black and white photographic postcard: ACC# SM-00-243, file folder 1A (non-U.S. blanks), box 10A, Lucile (Mary Lucile) Campbell Collection, UCF Public History Center, Sanford, Florida.
Lillian Horner's Fifth Grade Class at Sanford Grammar School, 1945-1946
Lillian Horner's fifth grade class at Sanford Grammar School during the 1945-1946 school year. Photographed in the first row, from left to right, is Mary Lou Bowen, Terry Cordell, Janette Ratliff, Dorthy Johnson, Betty Gatlin, Frank Stafford, Edwin Tison, Edwin Lockett, Nancy Reel, Carolyn Rowland, Evelyn Dorton, Clara Creech. In the second row is Felice Smith, Billy Clark, Harvey Wilkinson, Bobby McNab, Beverly Rogers, Frank Murphy, Mary Ann Bukur, and Joe Hutchison. In the third row is Henry Womack, Ann Raborn, Janice Reel, Joann Moore, Mary Ann Wilke, Ethel Geisler. In the fourth row is Beatrice Brown, Eloise Benton, Myrtly Hardy, Joan Wright, Margarete Morrison, Warren McCall, and Lillian Horner. Originally established as Sanford High School, the main building was constructed at 301 West Seventh Street in Sanford, Florida, in 1902. The building was designed by W. G. Talley in the Romanesque revival style. Due to an increasing student population, a new school building was constructed on the corner of East Ninth Street and South Palmetto Avenue in 1911. The original building on Seventh Street served as Westside Grammar Elementary School, which was later renamed Sanford Grammar School. After a desperate need for an addition to the school developed, the city granted the school $75,000. The school's lunchroom was opened on October 10, 1921, after months of fundraising efforts hosted by the Woman's Club. In November 23, 1984, the main school building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places and converted into the Student Museum. However, despite objections from the community, the lunchroom was demolished on September 25, 2008. The main school building reopened as the University of Central Florida's Public History Center in 2012.
Original 9.5 x 7 inch black and white photograph: Sanford Grammar Collection, Archives Box 4B, UCF Public History Center, Sanford, Florida.
Linda Andrews, Gloria Hill, Dedra Jenkins, Kenneth Hill
From left to right, Linda Andrews and Gloria Hill in the back row, and Dedra Jenkins and Kenneth Hill in the front row. The four children in this photograph are cousins playing outside in the summertime on the corner of Parramore Avenue and Anderson Street, diagonally from Tip Top and behind the Baptist church, in the Parramore neighborhood of Orlando, Florida. Blue ink writing from the back of the photograph has bled to the front, reading "She fight him, hit fast, and run, but she love him."
Original 3 x 3 inch color photograph by Christine McClendon: Private Collection of Dedra Jenkins.
Holden-Parramore, Downtown Orlando, Florida
Liquid Oxygen TankING Equipment at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 14 Blockhouse
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (U.S.)
Liquid oxygen tanking equipment at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 14 (LC-14) Blockhouse, mounted in racks similar to the way modern computer servers are, was used to monitor the rocket during Project Mercury launches. Instead of digital readouts and big screen displays, this equipment used various gauges to display readings and dials and buttons to adjust the equipment and the rocket. This controlled the liquid oxygen tanking operations on the Atlas rocket.
Original black and white photographic print: Private Collection of Dr. Calvin D. Fowler.
Chronopoints
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 14 Blockhouse, Cape Canaveral, Florida
List of Outstanding Tax Certificates in Black Hammock Drainage District from Creation of District to February 17, 1939
A list of outstanding tax certificates in Black Hammock Drainage District from the creation of the district to February 17, 1939. The 67-page report was compiled for the Black Hammock bond trustees. The information includes the tax sale date, certificate number, the drainage tax, total taxes,
Original 67-page report and envelope: Private Collection of Nelson and Company.
Black Hammock Drainage District, Oviedo, Florida
The outward-bound passenger list of the USNS Henry Gibbins, which was a transport ship active in the Korean War. The document lists the passenger's family name, United States passport number, place of birth, date and place of naturalization, the length of time the passenger intended to remain aboard and the country of destination. A notable individual listed in this record is Albert Lee Minyard Jr. (1917-1986). Born in Brooks, Georgia, Minyard served in the United States Army from 1935-1941 and from 1948 to 1958. In December of 1948, he married his wife, Roslyn Minyard, and eventually had two boys with her. The family moved to Hillsborough County, Florida, where Alberty passed away on January 13, 1986. He is memorialized in Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida. Roslyn survived him, living in the Tampa and St. Petersburg area until her own death on May 2, 2000. She is memorialized with Albert in Bushnell. In 2017, the University of Central Florida was one of three universities selected to launch the National Cemetery Administration’s Veterans Legacy Program Project. The program engaged a team of scholars to make the life stories of veterans buried in the Florida National Cemetery available to the public. The project engages UCF students in research and writing and fosters collaboration between students, faculty and local Central Florida schools to produce interactive curriculum for k-12 students. The corresponding website exhibit uses RICHES Mosaic Interface to create a digital archive of related data. The public can use the project-developed augmented-reality app at more than 100 gravesites at the Florida National Cemetery, where they can access the UCF student-authored biographies of veterans.
United States Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Service
Digital reproduction of original passenger list.
List of Persons who Failed to Submit Questionnaires
A list of persons in Clearwater, Florida, who failed to submit questionnaires regarding conscription to the Adjutant General of Florida. The document is dated January 30, 1918. Local draft boards sent out a sixteen-page questionnaire, which asked questions about virtually every aspect of registrants’ lives, their economic dependents and their claims for an exemption or deferred classification. Registrants had seven days to return the form. The Form 1013 lists the names of men within the jurisdiction of local draft boards who failed to return their questionnaires or report for examination. Classified as delinquents, the draft boards would report their names to the police who would seek to check their status. The penalty for failing to submit a questionnaire resulted in a registrant waiving their claims for deferred classification and automatically being classified in Class I. A notable person listed is Ben Davis (1895-1947). Born in Charleston, South Carolina, Davis moved to Clearwater, Florida, where he worked as a laborer for H.K. Cheney. On August 1, 1918, the United States Army inducted Davis into military service. Davis trained and served at Camp Devens, Massachusetts, for the entirety of his time in the military. Initially with the 151st Depot Brigade, he joined the 443rd Reserve Labor Battalion on November 1, 1918. On May 30, 1919, Davis received an honorable discharge from the Army, holding the rank of Private First Class. After the war, Davis returned to Clearwater, where he continued to work as a laborer. On October 20, 1944, Davis married Annie R. Leach, a native of Gainesville, Florida. Davis died on December 28, 1947, and is buried in the Bay Pines National Cemetery in Saint Petersburg, Florida in Section 6, Row 3, Site 16. In 2017, the University of Central Florida was one of three universities selected to launch the National Cemetery Administration’s Veterans Legacy Program Project. The program engaged a team of scholars to make the life stories of veterans buried in the Florida National Cemetery available to the public. The project engages UCF students in research and writing and fosters collaboration between students, faculty and local Central Florida schools to produce interactive curriculum for K-12 students. The corresponding website exhibit uses RICHES Mosaic Interface to create a digital archive of related data. The public can use the project-developed augmented-reality app at more than 100 gravesites at the Florida National Cemetery, where they can access the UCF student-authored biographies of veterans.
Digital reproduction of original typewritten list. January 30, 1918.
List of Recipients of Oranges from Belair Grove
An undated memorandum listing recipients of oranges sent from Belair Grove in Sanford, Florida. Recipients included the President Chester A. Arthur (1829-1886), ; William B. Allison (1829-1908), Republican Senator from Iowa; Senator Henry B. Anthony, Republican Senator from Rhode Island; Eugene Hale (1836-1918), Republican Senator from Maine; abolitionist Amos Adams Lawrence (1814-1886); U.S. Court of Claims Judge Bancroft Davis (1822-1907), who also was the president of the Newburgh and New York Railway Company; former Republican Governor of Connecticut Marshall Jewell (1825-1883); and Union General William Tecumseh Sherman (1820-1891). During that period, Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891), the owner of Belair Grove, actively courted President Arthur and high-ranking Republicans in the U.S Congress as part of his bid to win recognition in the country, and with it, international legitimacy, for King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium's colonial enterprise in the Congo, what would become known as the Congo Free State. In 1883, acting on behalf of the King Leopold, Sanford mounted a lobbying campaign in Washington, D.C. Preceding these efforts, Sanford regularly corresponded with the President and influential legislators about the Belgian Congo. As part of his lobbying efforts, Sanford regularly sent boxes of Florida oranges to high-ranking officials. This list of recipients reflects the efforts of Sanford to sway public figures in positions of power.
Original memorandum by James Edmundson Ingraham: box 52, folder 5, subfolder 52.5.3, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
List of Recipients of Oranges from Belair Grove (December 24, 1882)
A memorandum listing recipients of oranges sent from Belair Grove in Sanford, Florida, dated December 24, 1882. The list denoted recipients of full boxes and half boxes of oranges. Notable recipients included Republican President Chester A. Arthur (1829-1886); William B. Allison (1829-1908), Republican Senator from Iowa; Senator Henry B. Anthony, Republican Senator from Rhode Island; Eugene Hale (1836-1918), Republican Senator from Maine; abolitionist Amos Adams Lawrence (1814-1886); U.S. Court of Claims Judge Bancroft Davis (1822-1907), who also was the president of the Newburgh and New York Railway Company; and Union General William Tecumseh Sherman (1820-1891). During that period, Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891), the owner of Belair Grove, actively courted President Arthur and high-ranking Republicans in the U.S Congress as part of his bid to win recognition in the country, and with it, international legitimacy, for King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium's colonial enterprise in the Congo, what would become known as the Congo Free State. In 1883, acting on behalf of the King Leopold, Sanford mounted a lobbying campaign in Washington, D.C. Preceding these efforts, Sanford regularly corresponded with the President and influential legislators about the Belgian Congo. As part of his lobbying efforts, Sanford regularly sent boxes of Florida oranges to high-ranking officials. This list of recipients reflects the efforts of Sanford to sway public figures in positions of power.
Original memorandum by James Edmundson Ingraham, December 24, 1882: box 52, folder 5, subfolder 52.5.1, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
List of Recipients of Oranges from Belair Grove (January 18, 1883)
A memorandum listing recipients of oranges sent from Belair Grove in Sanford, Florida, dated January 18, 1883. The list denoted recipients of full boxes and half boxes of oranges. Recipients included J. S. Mack, Major W. D. Buckham, the wife of Lieutenant Aulick Palmer, J. H. Hammersley, H. O. Conner, and W. A. H. Wright. The boxes of oranges were presumably sent at the request of Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891), the owner of Belair Grove, though it is not clear how he knew the recipients. During that period, Henry Sanford, the owner of Belair Grove, actively courted President Arthur and high-ranking Republicans in the U.S Congress as part of his bid to win recognition in the country, and with it, international legitimacy, for King Leopold II (1835-1909) of Belgium's colonial enterprise in the Congo, what would become known as the Congo Free State. In 1883, acting on behalf of the King Leopold, Sanford mounted a lobbying campaign in Washington, D.C. Preceding these efforts, Sanford regularly corresponded with the President and influential legislators about the Belgian Congo. As part of his lobbying efforts, Sanford regularly sent boxes of Florida oranges to high-ranking officials. This list of recipients reflects the efforts of Sanford to sway public figures in positions of power.
Original memorandum, January 18, 1883: box 52, folder 5, subfolder 52.5.2, Henry Shelton Sanford Papers, General Henry S. Sanford Memorial Library, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Live oak trees along Mellonville Avenue in the early 1900s. In 1836, the United States Army built a road (present-day Mellonville Avenue) to a location called Camp Monroe during the Second Seminole War. One year later, a group of Seminoles attacked the camp and killed a Captain Charles Mellon. A fort was built on the former campsite and named after the fallen captain, Fort Mellon. After the Seminole Wars and Florida becoming a state in 1845, the new town of Mellonville was established where it became the gateway for people wanting to settle in the Florida wilderness.
Original 5 x 7 inch black and white photograph by Chase & Company: Chase Collection (MS 14), box 211, folder 3.30A, item CC 106, Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
LizArt Live! Auction at Orlando City Hall
The LizArt Live! auction at Orlando City Hall, located at 400 South Orange Avenue, in Downtown Orlando, Florida 2002. The statues range between 5 feet and six inches in height to seven feet and six inches in length. The lizard statues were originally located at various places in Orlando, such as the Orlando Centroplex, Lake Eola, the Expo Centre, and the Cultural Corridor, CityWalk at Universal Studios Orlando, the Orange County Convention Center, Orlando International Airport, Leu Gardens, and Loch Haven Park. The LizArt project was inspired by Chicago's cows on Parade, which was modeled after a public art project in Zurich, Switzerland, in 1998. Other cities have held similar projects, such as Cincinnati's pigs, Lexington's horses, Buffalo's buffalo, Virginia Beach's mermaids, New Orleans' fish, and Rhode Island's potato heads. The LizArt was auctioned on January 31, 2002.
Original color digital images by Thomas Cook, January 31, 2002: Private Collection of Thomas Cook.
RICHES of Central Florida
Orlando City Hall, Downtown Orlando, Florida
A black and white newspaper photograph of farm workers loading celery onto a truck in Slavia, Florida. Slavia was established in 1911 when the Slavia Colony Company purchased about 1,200 acres of land west of Oviedo. The earliest settlers of the community came from rural areas in Central Europe who were attracted to Florida's warm climate and rich soil. By the mid-1920s, celery became Slavia's leading cash crop.
Original black and white newspaper photograph: Private Collection of Bettye Reagan.
A painting by Bettye Reagan, a local artist in Central Florida, inspired by a photograph of Joe Lee, an African-American laborer, with Blue Goose celery at Charles Simeon Lee, Sr.'s farm in Oviedo, Florida, in 1928. The two Lees were of no relation. C. S. Lee (1892-1991) was born on October 27, 1892, and married Goldie Eva Beckley Lee (1892-1976) on April 21, 1915. During the Great Depression, Lee grew celery and bought 20,000 acres to start a cattle ranch. He passed away on November 9, 1991.
Original painting: Reagan, Bettye. Loading Celery. 2003: Private Collection of Bettye Reagan.
Local Men in Armed Forces on Land, At Sea, in the Air
An article published in The Wilkes-Barre Record announcing the status of several service members from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, who were serving in the U.S. Armed Forces during World War II. One notable servicemen cited in the article is Major Jack Cameron Heist (1919-1944). Maj. Heist was born to Henry S. Heist and Christina Heist on November 6, 1919, in Eustis, Florida. He received his commission on May 29, 1941, to serve in World War II. Maj. Heist was an Ammunition Officer for the XIX Corps. He died during his service in an ambush on September 2, 1944, near Thiant, France. He is currently buried at the Epinal American Cemetery and Memorial in Dinozé, France. Maj. Heist is one of 85 Florida residents interned at Epinal. At the time that this article was published in December of 1942, then-Lieutenant Heist was being transferred to Camp Polk, Louisiana.
Digital reproduction of original newspaper article: "Local Men in Armed Forces on Land, At Sea, in the Air." The Wilkes-Barre Record, December 24, 1942, page 6. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/4441055/the_wilkesbarre_record/.
The Wilkes-Barre Record
A page from the Logansport High School Yearbook in Logansport, Indiana, in 1935. The page contains images of the graduating seniors with their names listed along the right hand side in addition to a small statement about each student. A notable student listed is Edward Patrick Conners (1916 – 1995). Conners was born on March 17, 1916, in East Chicago, Indiana. He played football for Logansport High School and graduated in 1935. After graduation, he worked as a lineman for a telephone company in Indiana. At the outbreak of World War II, Conners entered the United States Army Signal Corp on February 26, 1941. He served in this capacity until November 15, 1947. He reenlisted six days later and stayed in the military until June 30, 1964. After his service, Conners moved to Atlantic Beach, Florida. He died on September 1, 1995, in Alachua County, Florida. He is buried in Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell. In 2017, the University of Central Florida was one of three universities selected to launch the National Cemetery Administration’s Veterans Legacy Program Project. The program engaged a team of scholars to make the life stories of veterans buried in the Florida National Cemetery available to the public. The project engages UCF students in research and writing and fosters collaboration between students, faculty and local Central Florida schools to produce interactive curriculum for k-12 students. The corresponding website exhibit uses RICHES Mosaic Interface to create a digital archive of related data. The public can use the project-developed augmented-reality app at more than 100 gravesites at the Florida National Cemetery, where they can access the UCF student-authored biographies of veterans.
Logansport High School
Digital reproduction of original yearbook page.
Looking Southwest from First Street and Palmetto Avenue
Looking southwest from the intersection of East First Street and North Palmetto Avenue in Sanford, Florida in 1882. When Henry Shelton Sanford purchased land in central Florida, he developed citrus groves known as the Belair Groves and Experimental Gardens. The citrus industry of the 1870s was gaining interest nationally because of the success, and potential international success as well. Sydney Chase, Sr. of Pennsylvania found magazines and newspapers articles that there were great fortunes to be made in Florida in the citrus industry. Chase moved to Sanford, Florida in 1878, where he began working for Henry S. Sanford at the Belair Groves and Experimental Gardens. After learning the trade with his experience with Sanford, Chase and his brother Joshua created the Chase & Company in 1884. They began selling fertilizer and fire insurance to other citrus and produce growers. After making enough money, the Chase brothers bought their own citrus groves two years later. The Chase family and their business helped boost the citrus industry in Florida, especially in Sanford. They were so successful, other citrus growers from the state were asking for their help to sell their products. In high demand for help, the brothers began to build packinghouses. Not only was the citrus industry growing in Florida and throughout the United States, Sydney Chase took the industry global by traveling abroad to market their company and what Sanford had to offer.
Original 8.5 x 11 inch black and white photograph by Chase & Company, 1882: Chase Collection (MS 14), box 211, folder 3.30B, item CC 122, Special and Area Studies Collections, George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.
Lorenzo Phillips, principal of Jones High School in Orlando, Florida, from 2003-2006. With the support of Blue Cross Blue Shield and Florida State University, Phillips helped the Medical Arts Magnet make enormous strides. Located in the Parramore/Lorna Doone neighborhood of downtown Orlando, Jones High School was the first area public school for African-Americans. The original building was located on the corner of Garland Avenue and Church Street, but the school was renamed the Johnson Academy and moved to a new building on the corner of Chatham Avenue and West Jefferson Street. In 1921, the school was renamed in honor Principal L. C. Jones and a brick colonial revival building was constructed on the corner of Parramore Avenue and Washington Street. The school was finally moved to its current location at 801 South Rio Grande Avenue in 1952.
Jones High School
Original color photograph: Jones High School Historical Museum, Orlando, Florida.
The lot of a former cigar manufacturer that was located on South Oak Avenue, in Sanford, Florida, in 1924. The cigar industry was first brought to Florida by Cuban immigrants in the 1830s and became one of the most important industries in the Southeast by the last quarter of the 19th century, with Tampa serving as the cigar manufacturing center in the state. In the late 1800s, cigar factories began to appear in various other Florida cities, such as Jacksonville and Tallahassee. Cigar manufacturing first appeared in Sanford sometime between 1909 and 1912. The Florida cigar industry came to its peak in the first quarter of the 20th century, but then declined during the Great Depression and World War II, due to the accumulation of labor union conflicts over the years, the mechanization of production, and changing consumer demands. The industry was revitalized during the 1950s as production soared, despite the decline of the number of workers. Following the Cuban Revolution of the late 1950s and the U.S. embargo on Cuban products in 1962, the Florida cigar industry again declined. The Cuban embargo included tobacco, thus forcing American cigar rollers to begin using Dominican tobacco.
Original digital color image by Laura Cepero, July 3, 2011.
Lou Frey Institute of Politics & Government
According to its website, "The Lou Frey Institute promotes the development of enlightened, responsible, and actively engaged citizens. The Institute works to accomplish its mission: through civic education programs that encourage thoughtful debate and discussion about current policy issues; through experiential learning programs that encourage the development of civic and political skills; by working to help strengthen the civic education capacity of Florida’s k-12 education system; and through research, policy analysis, and advocacy."
Lou Frey Institute of Politics & Government 12443 Research Parkway OTC3 Suite 406 Orlando, Florida 32826
Lou Frey Institute of Politics & Government, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida
Louise Peterson (1920-2009) opened Galleries International in Winter Park, Florida, in 1969 with an impetus on exhibiting emerging artists and introducing the original print medium to the Central Florida market. These "educational practices" were well received by the community, both in the private sector and especially those with corporate interests. A relationship with the Orlando Museum of Art and the Council of Arts and Sciences soon developed. In 1984, Galleries International became the Albertson-Peterson Gallery when she partnered with long-time friend Judy Albertson. Louise Peterson was a member of the Council of 101 of the Orlando Museum of Art, advisory to the Committee of Acquisition of the 20th Century American prints for that museum and also a lecturer and juror for community and collegiate competitions.
Original color photograph: Private Collection of Judy Albertson.
Galleries International, Winter Park, Florida
Albertson-Peterson Gallery, Winter Park, Florida
A program for the Orlando Gay Chorus' concert, "Love Is... Classic", on February 15, 2014, at the First United Church of Christ in Orlando, Florida. The program includes an outline of the show's itinerary, a list of the production staff and chorus members, and a season announcement. The Orlando Gay Chorus (OGC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts and humanitarian organization, and part of the Gay and Lesbian Association (GALA) of Choruses. Founded on Valentines Day 1990, OGC is not only one of the largest mixed gay choirs in the United States at over 100 members, but they also boast four smaller ensembles that perform annual concerts, cabarets, and a host of community events, such as Come Out With Pride, Orlando Museum of Art’s Festival of Trees, and World AIDS Day memorial services. In 2017, the group performed at over 105 events, including 15 performances for the first anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub tragedy. Members come from all walks of life and all sexual and gender orientations, including straight allies. OGC lives by the motto “Singing the World to a Better Place” and strives to use music to change attitudes and build a stronger community.
Original 4-page colored program, Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida
Crimson Hall, First United Church of Chris, Orlando, Florida
Lovell Family Observing the Apollo 8 Launch
The family of Command Module Pilot Jim Lovell (1928-) observing the first manned launch of the Saturn V rocket during the Apollo 8 (AS-503) mission. Photographed from left to right are James Lovell (1955-), Jeffrey Lovell (1966-), Susan Lovell (1958-), Marilyn Lillie Gerlach Lovell (1930-), and Barbara Lovell (1953-). Apollo 8 was the first manned launch of a Saturn V booster and mission to leave Earth orbit. It launched from John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Merritt Island, Florida, on December 21, 1968, with Lovell, Commander Frank Borman (1928-), and Lunar Module Pilot William Anders (1933-). Apollo 8 was the first manned spacecraft to leave Earth's orbit, reach the Moon, and orbit and return safely to Earth. The crew became the first humans to travel beyond low Earth orbit, to see Earth as a whole planet, to directly see the far side of the Moon, and to witness Earthrise.
Original black and white photographic print, December 21, 1968: Larry Summers Collection.
Lucien R. Philips & Company Advertisement
An advertisement for Lucien R. Philips' Rexall drugstore in 1910. The ad was published in the Industrial Edition of Sanford Chronicle, a newspaper published by The Sanford Herald. This drugstore was originally established by Lucien R. Philips' brother, A. E. Philips, at the corner of East First Street and North Park Avenue in Downtown Sanford, Florida. By 1892, A. E. Philips was the only druggist in Sanford, but in 1894, he handed over ownership of the drugstore to Lucien. The pharmacy did not strictly sell drugs, but instead sold many types of items, including stationery, Kodak supplies, ice cream, soda water, candy, cigars, and tobacco.
Digital reproduction of original newspaper article, 1910: "L. R. Philips & Company." Sanford Chronicle, Industrial Edition, Winter 1910, page 53: DP0008192. Central Florida Memory. http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/CFM/id/120265.
The Sanford Herald
Lucien R. Philips & Company, Downtown Sanford, Florida
An advertisement for Lucien R. Philips' Rexalldrug store in 1917. The ad was published in Sanford High School's yearbook, Salmagundi. This drugstore was originally established by Lucien R. Philips' brother, A. E. Philips, at the corner of East First Street and North Park Avenue in Downtown Sanford, Florida. By 1892, A. E. Philips was the only druggist in Sanford, but in 1894, he handed over ownership of the drugstore to Lucien. The pharmacy did not strictly sell drugs, but instead sold many types of items, including stationery, Kodak supplies, ice cream, soda water, candy, cigars, and tobacco.
Digital reproduction of original yearbook advertisement, 1917: Salmagundi, 1917. Sanford High School, Sanford, Florida, page 69: tag number DP0010405, Central Florida Memory, http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/CFM/id/120698.
L. R. Philips & Company, Downtown Sanford, Florida
Lucius A. Bryant, Jr. at the Dixie Village Post Office Dedication Ceremony
The dedication ceremony of the Dixie Village Post Office, located at 2860 Delaney Avenue in Orlando, Florida, on August 2, 1958. Many local dignitaries were present and spoke at the ceremony. This photograph shows Orlando Postmaster Lucius A. Bryant, Jr. (ca. 1919-2012) speaking at the ceremony. After serving in the U.S. Army during World War II, Bryant settled in Orlando's College Park neighborhood. At the time of his death in 2012, Bryant was the longest-serving postmaster for Orlando, a position that he held from 1951 to 1983. In 1952, William Beardall (1890-1984) appointed Bryant to the local aviation advisory board, which he served on for 22 years.
Original black and white photograph, August 2, 1958: Private Collection of Texann Ivy Buck.
Dixie Village Post Office, Downtown Orlando, Florida
A Lucky Sanford cigar box housed in the Sanford Museum, located at 520 East First Street in Downtown Sanford, florida.. The cigar box was manufactured by John J. Mauser, who opened a factory, located at 120 North Park Avenue. His cigar shop occupied the space from approximately 1910 to 1922. Mauser also manufactured Banker's Choice and Clear Havana cigars. The cigar industry was first brought to Florida by Cuban immigrants in the 1830s and became one of the most important industries in the Southeast by the last quarter of the 19th century, with Tampa serving as the cigar manufacturing center in the state. In the late 1800s, cigar factories began to appear in various other Florida cities, such as Jacksonville and Tallahassee. Cigar manufacturing first appeared in Sanford sometime between 1909 and 1912. The Florida cigar industry came to its peak in the first quarter of the 20th century, but then declined during the Great Depression and World War II, due to the accumulation of labor union conflicts over the years, the mechanization of production, and changing consumer demands. The industry was revitalized during the 1950s as production soared, despite the decline of the number of workers. Following the Cuban Revolution of the late 1950s and the U.S. embargo on Cuban products in 1962, the Florida cigar industry again declined. The Cuban embargo included tobacco, thus forcing American cigar rollers to begin using Dominican tobacco.
Original cigar box: John J. Mauser, Sanford, Florida. Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
John J. Mauser Cigar Shop, Downtown Sanford, Florida
Eight year-old Lula Mae Haynes (1917-2007) in her hometown of Madison, Florida. Haynes married Pilgrim Black (1905-2002) in 1937, when she was 15 years old, and had several children, including Vivian Louise Black (1940-); Lula Yvonne Black (1942-); Charles Samuel Black (1945-); Pilgrim Black, Jr. (ca. 1947); and Patricia Ann Black (1956-). Haynes and her husband were migrant crew leaders, and thus migrated to Upstate New York in the summers and back to their home in Sanford for the rest of the year.
Original black and white photograph: Private Collection of Patricia Ann Black.
Lula Mae Haynes Black (1917-2007) and Pilgrim Black (1905-2002), the parents of Patricia Ann Black (1956- ). This photograph was taken when Patricia drove down from New York to Sanford, Florida, to visit her parents around 1997, when her father was 89. Pilgrim and Lula were married for 67 years at the time the photograph was taken. Pilgrim Black was born in 1905, although some records list 1907 as his birth year. Pilgrim and Lula Mae Haynes Black were migrant crew leaders, and thus migrated to Wayne County in Upstate New York in the summers and back to their home in Sanford for the rest of the year. Pilgrim was the son of Harry Black (d. 1911) and Maggie Benjamin Black (ca.1870-ca.1934), who migrated to Sanford from South Carolina in the 1800s. Harry and Maggie had several children: Leckward Black, Mustar Black, Malachi Black, Leatha Black Walker (1889-1976), Pilgrim Black, Margaret Black Jones (1889-1976), and Harriett Black Lawson. In 1911, Harry owned a grocery store at 206 South Sanford Avenue. One day, he came home from work with pneumonia and passed away shortly thereafter. Pilgrim was nine years old when his father passed away. Maggie was the daughter of former slaves, Isaac and Roseanna Benjamin, and the sister of Nathan Benjamin, Pledge Benjamin, Sam Benjamin, Loui Benjamin, Chainey Benjamin, Lara Benjamin, Melvina Benjamin, and Katie Benjamin. Pilgrim had to quit school at age eleven in order to provide for his mother, originally working in a mill house until he was 18n years old. After declining a management position, he traveled to Wayne County to pick cherries, apples, pears, and other crops. He broke a bone after falling from an apple tree his first year and decided to try farm labor on a potato farm in Red Creek, New York, instead. Don Holdridge, the farmer who owned the land, noted Pilgrim's high rate of productivity and offered him a management position supervising up to thirty workers at once, which he accepted. While in Sanford, Pilgrim also worked as a foreman in Sanford for Chase & Company for over 30 years. He married Lula in 1937 and they had several children together, including Vivian Louise Black (1940- ); Lula Yvonne Black (1942- ); Charles Samuel Black (1945- ); Pilgrim Black, Jr. (ca.1947- ), and Patricia Ann Black (1956- ).
Original 8 x 10 inch color photograph: Private Collection of Patricia Black.
Lula Mae Haynes Black and Pilgrim Black in New York
Lula Mae Haynes Black (1917-2007) and Pilgrim Black (1905-2002) in the kitchen of the "big house" of the migrant worker camp in Wayne County, New York. This is the kitchen where Lula operated her restaurant, despite the lack of running water. In this photograph, Pilgrim is drinking morning coffee before going to work as a migrant crew leader. Pilgrim Black was born in 1905, although some records list 1907 as his birth year. Pilgrim and Lula Mae Haynes (1917-2007) Black were migrant crew leaders, and thus migrated to Wayne County in Upstate New York in the summers and back to their home in Sanford for the rest of the year. Pilgrim was the son of Harry Black (d. 1911) and Maggie Benjamin Black (ca.1870-ca.1934), who migrated to Sanford from South Carolina in the 1800s. Harry and Maggie had several children: Leckward Black, Mustar Black, Malachi Black, Leatha Black Walker (1889-1976), Pilgrim Black, Margaret Black Jones (1889-1976), and Harriett Black Lawson. In 1911, Harry owned a grocery store at 206 South Sanford Avenue. One day, he came home from work with pneumonia and passed away shortly thereafter. Pilgrim was nine years old when his father passed away. Maggie was the daughter of former slaves, Isaac and Roseanna Benjamin, and the sister of Nathan Benjamin, Pledge Benjamin, Sam Benjamin, Loui Benjamin, Chainey Benjamin, Lara Benjamin, Melvina Benjamin, and Katie Benjamin. Pilgrim had to quit school at age 11 in order to provide for his mother, originally working in a mill house until he was 18 years old. After declining a management position, he traveled to Wayne County to pick cherries, apples, pears, and other crops. He broke a bone after falling from an apple tree his first year and decided to try farm labor on a potato farm in Red Creek, New York, instead. Don Holdridge, the farmer who owned the land, noted Pilgrim's high rate of productivity and offered him a management position supervising up to thirty workers at once, which he accepted. While in Sanford, Pilgrim also worked as a foreman in Sanford for Chase & Company for over 30 years. He married Lula in 1937 and they had several children together, including Vivian Louise Black (1940- ); Lula Yvonne Black (1942- ); Charles Samuel Black (1945- ); Pilgrim Black, Jr. (ca.1947- ), and Patricia Ann Black (1956- ).
Original color photograph: Private Collection of Patricia Ann Black.
Fourteen year-old Lula Yvonne Black (1942-), the daughter of Pilgrim Black (1905-2002) and Lula Mae Haynes Black (1917-2007), who got married in 1937. Yvonne is also the sister of Vivian Louise Black (1940-); Charles Samuel Black (1945-), Pilgrim Black, Jr. (ca.1947-); and Patricia Ann Black (1956-); as well as the half-sister of David Harry Black (1929-2012). Yvonne graduated from Crooms High School around 1960. After high school, she attended college briefly, married Willie Lee Hooks, and moved to Rochester, New York. Lula and her husband had four children together: twins Willie Lee Hooks, Jr. and Wilbur Lee Hooks; Ronald Lee Hooks; and Lavonia Kaye Hooks. Like her sister, Vivian, Yvonne also worked in a factory for many years.
The surface of the Moon in 1975. Manned by astronauts David Scott (1932-), Alfred Worden (1932-), and James Irwin (1930-1991), Apollo 15 was launched from Launch Complex 39A at John F. Kennedy Space Center in Merritt Island, Florida, on July 26, 1971. This was the first lunar mission equipped with a LRV, or Lunar Rover. This allowed astronauts with unprecedented capabilities to move around the Moon's surface, as they traveled 17.5 miles during their time on the surface. Apollo 15 returned to Earth on August 7.
Original black and white photographic print, 1975: Private Collection of Dr. Calvin D. Fowler.
Launch Complex 39A, John F. Kennedy Space Center, Merritt Island, Florida
Lunch Wagon at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 14
Launch complexes (Astronautics)--Florida
During Project Mercury, the program to launch the first American into space, astronauts would visit the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (AFS) in Cape Canaveral, Florida, and would often eat lunch at a lunch truck because of time limitations and lack of places to eat. This photograph shows Mercury 7 astronauts Wally Schirra (1923-2007), the fifth man launched in Sigma 7, and Gordon Cooper (1927-2004), the sixth man launched in Faith 7. This photograph also shows Launch Complex 14 (LC-14) manager Dr. Calvin D. Fowler and others getting lunch at a "roach coach" at the Cape Canaveral AFS during a visit for Project Mercury.
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 14, Cape Canaveral, Florida
Dressed in his United States Marine uniform, Luther Wade Pilcher (1898-1918) poses on a chair in front of a backdrop of the United States Capitol. On his left breast is a rifle expert marksmanship badge. His rank at the time of the photo, corporal, is denoted by the three faint lines on his right arm. He would later be promoted to sergeant. Pilcher was born in Dothan, Alabama, on January 1, 1898, to Richard and Della Pilcher. The second of five children, the family moved to Noma, Florida, in 1910. Luther's last known residence was in Chipley, Florida. Pilcher enlisted in the United States Marine Corps on May 4, 1915, and served in Haiti and Cuba from 1915-1917. After the United States entered World War I, the 5th Marine Regiment was activated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Pilcher and his regiment left for France in August of 1917, arriving on the 22nd. The 5th was among the first of the American Expeditionary Forces to arrive in Europe. Pilcher and his regiment took part in the Battle of Belleau Wood in June of 1918. On June 6th, the bloodiest day of the battle, Pilcher was killed in action. He posthumously received the Distinguished Service Cross, the Navy Cross, and the French Fourragere for his service and sacrifice. He is buried in the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery at Plot B Row 10 Grave 68 in Belleau, France. In 2017, the University of Central Florida was one of three universities selected to launch the National Cemetery Administration’s Veterans Legacy Program Project. The program continues, engaging a team of scholars to make the life stories of veterans buried in national cemeteries available to the public. The project engages UCF students in research and writing and fosters collaboration between students, faculty and local Central Florida schools to produce interactive curriculum for k-12 students. The corresponding website exhibit uses RICHES Mosaic Interface to create a digital archive of related data. The public can use the project-developed augmented-reality app at more than 100 headstones at four national cemeteries, two in Florida (Florida National Cemetery and St. Augustine National Cemetery) and two in France (American Battle Monuments Commission cemeteries at Aisne-Marne and the Meuse-Argonne), where they can access the UCF student-authored biographies of veterans.
Digital reproduction of original sepia photograph.
Marine Corps Base Quantico, Quantico, Virginia
Luxurious Hotels Along Ocean Front at Miami Beach Postcard
A postcard depicting hotels along Miami Beach, Florida. The present-day area of Miami Beach was originally inhabited by the Tequesta. In 1870, Henry Lum and Charles Lum purchased a land grant for the area and set up a coconut venture. After the new business failed, the Lums eventually sold the land to John S. Collins and Thomas Pancoast. In 1913, with money loaned from Carl Fisher, Collins began constructed a bridge that would connect the island of Miami Beach to the Miami mainland. At the time of its completion, the bridge was the longest wooden wagon bridge in the world. Two years later, Miami Beach was incorporated as a city and J. N. Lumus was elected its first mayor. The city enjoyed a real estate boom over the next couple of years, when Millionaire's Row, a three-mile stretch of mansions, was developed. During World War II, the Miami area was used as a training center for the U.S. Army Air Corps, resulting in post-war population growth. South Florida experience another spurt in population growth when hundreds of thousands of people fled Cuba, following the takeover by Fidel Castro (1926-). In 1979, Miami Beach's Art Deco District, also known as South Beach or SoBe, was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
Original 9 x 14 centimeter color postcard by Tichnor Bros., Inc.: Private Collection of Bob Van Horn.
A newspaper advertisement in The South Florida Argus issue for January 3, 1886. This issue includes an advertisement for the Lyman Bank, located at 101 West First Street in Sanford, Florida. The building was originally constructed in 1883 by Lyman Bank and had a brick facade. In 1887, the bank changed owenership and became the First National Bank No. 1. Building renovations took place the same year, which included adding a marble facade, moving the front entrance to the corner of the building, and placing a clock at the front of the building which would become the town clock located in Magnolia Square. First National Bank. 1 is the oldest brick building in Sanford's downtown commercial district. The organizational meetings to create Rollins College were also held in the same building in 1885.
Print reproduction of microfilmed newspaper advertisements: The South Florida Argus, January 3, 1886: Microfilm Cabinet, reel BN06021, Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.
Lyman High School cadet, Kyle Monroe, accepted a trophy for his school's Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) Color Guard at the Army State Drill Meet held at George W. Jenkins High School, located at 6000 Lakeland Highlands Road in Lakeland, Florida, in 1998. Jenkins High School is a Polk County Public School founded in 1993 to relieve overcrowding at Lakeland High School and Bartow High School. The school is named after George Washington Jenkins, Jr., the founder of Public Super Markets, Inc. Lyman High School is a Seminole County Public School located in Longwood, Florida. In 1923, a board of trustees agreed to construct a new school to accommodate the growing population in the Longwood and Altamonte Springs area. Construction began at 1725 County Road 427 in 1924 and opened in September 1924 with Professor Howard Douglas as its first principal. Lyman School, as it was originally called, was named after Howard Charles Lyman, a citizen who was active in planning the school's establishment, but died a few days before construction began. In just two years, Lyman became an accredited junior high school and its campus had been expanded with six rooms. With W. J. Wells as principal, the Lyman School achieved accreditation through 12th grade in 1929. In 1963, the school was renamed Lyman High School when it became an accredited institution with Carlton D. Henley as principal. In 1966, Lyman High became integrated with both white and black students. A new campus was constructed at 865 South Ronald Reagan Boulevard in 1969 and the original campus became R. T. Milwee Junior High School. Milwee was named after Rayburn T. Milwee, Sr., who taught at Lyman from 1939 to 1949, served as principal from 1949 to 1952, and finally as Superintendent of Seminole County Schools from 1952 to 1967. In 1970, Seminole County transitioned from the junior high school system to the middle school system, causing Lyman High School to now accommodate ninth grader in addition to 10th, 11th, and 12th graders. During the transition period from 1970 to 1971, the school mandated "double sessions" in which half of the school would attend from 7:00 am to 1:30 pm and the other half would attend from 11:30 am to 6:00 pm. In June of 1971, Milwee Middle school, where Lyman's original campus was, closed and reopened as a satellite campus for Lyman High School during the 1971-1972 school year. For the 1972-1973 academic year, all Lyman students returned to the primary campus and the satellite campus was used for Lake Brantley High School instead. In 2000, Lyman established the Institute for Engineering, a magnet program emphasizing mathematics and science.
Original black and white photograph by Greyhound Staff of 1999, 1998.
George W. Jenkins High School, Lakeland, Florida
Lyman High School Class of 1991 Graduation
Lyman High School Class of 1991 graduation ceremony. Lyman High School is a Seminole County Public School located in Longwood, Florida. In 1923, a board of trustees agreed to construct a new school to accommodate the growing population in the Longwood and Altamonte Springs area. Construction began at 1725 County Road 427 in 1924 and opened in September 1924 with Professor Howard Douglas as its first principal. Lyman School, as it was originally called, was named after Howard Charles Lyman, a citizen who was active in planning the school's establishment, but died a few days before construction began. In just two years, Lyman became an accredited junior high school and its campus had been expanded with six rooms. With W. J. Wells as principal, the Lyman School achieved accreditation through 12th grade in 1929. In 1963, the school was renamed Lyman High School when it became an accredited institution with Carlton D. Henley as principal. In 1966, Lyman High became integrated with both white and black students. A new campus was constructed at 865 South Ronald Reagan Boulevard in 1969 and the original campus became R. T. Milwee Junior High School. Milwee was named after Rayburn T. Milwee, Sr., who taught at Lyman from 1939 to 1949, served as principal from 1949 to 1952, and finally as Superintendent of Seminole County Schools from 1952 to 1967. In 1970, Seminole County transitioned from the junior high school system to the middle school system, causing Lyman High School to now accommodate ninth grader in addition to 10th, 11th, and 12th graders. During the transition period from 1970 to 1971, the school mandated "double sessions" in which half of the school would attend from 7:00 am to 1:30 pm and the other half would attend from 11:30 am to 6:00 pm. In June of 1971, Milwee Middle school, where Lyman's original campus was, closed and reopened as a satellite campus for Lyman High School during the 1971-1972 school year. For the 1972-1973 academic year, all Lyman students returned to the primary campus and the satellite campus was used for Lake Brantley High School instead. In 2000, Lyman established the Institute for Engineering, a magnet program emphasizing mathematics and science.
Original black and white photograph, June 13, 1991.
Lyman High School Girls Basketball Team, 1975
Lyman High School's Girls Basketball Team in 1975. Lyman High School is a Seminole County Public School located in Longwood, Florida. In 1923, a board of trustees agreed to construct a new school to accommodate the growing population in the Longwood and Altamonte Springs area. Construction began at 1725 County Road 427 in 1924 and opened in September 1924 with Professor Howard Douglas as its first principal. Lyman School, as it was originally called, was named after Howard Charles Lyman, a citizen who was active in planning the school's establishment, but died a few days before construction began. In just two years, Lyman became an accredited junior high school and its campus had been expanded with six rooms. With W. J. Wells as principal, the Lyman School achieved accreditation through 12th grade in 1929. In 1963, the school was renamed Lyman High School when it became an accredited institution with Carlton D. Henley as principal. In 1966, Lyman High became integrated with both white and black students. A new campus was constructed at 865 South Ronald Reagan Boulevard in 1969 and the original campus became R. T. Milwee Junior High School. Milwee was named after Rayburn T. Milwee, Sr., who taught at Lyman from 1939 to 1949, served as principal from 1949 to 1952, and finally as Superintendent of Seminole County Schools from 1952 to 1967. In 1970, Seminole County transitioned from the junior high school system to the middle school system, causing Lyman High School to now accommodate ninth grader in addition to 10th, 11th, and 12th graders. During the transition period from 1970 to 1971, the school mandated "double sessions" in which half of the school would attend from 7:00 am to 1:30 pm and the other half would attend from 11:30 am to 6:00 pm. In June of 1971, Milwee Middle school, where Lyman's original campus was, closed and reopened as a satellite campus for Lyman High School during the 1971-1972 school year. For the 1972-1973 academic year, all Lyman students returned to the primary campus and the satellite campus was used for Lake Brantley High School instead. In 2000, Lyman established the Institute for Engineering, a magnet program emphasizing mathematics and science.
Original black and white photograph by Greyhound Staff of 1999.
Lyman High School Girls Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps
Lyman High School's Girls Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) during inspection led by Katherine Mendelson in 1998. The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC) is a high school-level education program sponsored by the United States Armed Forces. The program was created by Army Lieutenant Edgar Steevers in 1911 and officially established by the National Defense Act of 1916. The act provided high schools with loans of federal military equipment and assigned active or retired military personnel as instructors.
Original black and white photograph, 1998.
Lyman High School Greyhounds Varsity Football Squad, 1966
Lyman High School's Greyhound varsity football squad for the 1965-1966 school year. Lyman is a Seminole County Public School located in Longwood, Florida. In 1923, a board of trustees agreed to construct a new school to accommodate the growing population in the Longwood and Altamonte Springs area. Construction began at 1725 County Road 427 in 1924 and opened in September 1924 with Professor Howard Douglas as its first principal. Lyman School, as it was originally called, was named after Howard Charles Lyman, a citizen who was active in planning the school's establishment but died a few days before construction began. In just two years, Lyman became an accredited junior high school and its campus had been expanded with six rooms. With W. J. Wells as principal, the Lyman School achieved accreditation through 12th grade in 1929. In 1963, the school was renamed Lyman High School when it became an accredited institution with Carlton D. Henley as principal. In 1966, Lyman High became integrated with both white and black students. A new campus was constructed at 865 South Ronald Reagan Boulevard in 1969. The original campus became R. T. Milwee Junior High School, named after Rayburn T. Milwee, Sr., who taught at Lyman from 1939 to 1949, served as principal from 1949 to 1952, and served as Superintendent of Seminole County Schools from 1952 to 1967. In 1970, Seminole County transitioned from the junior high school system to the middle school system, causing Lyman High School to now accommodate 9th grade in addition to 10th, 11th, and 12th grades. During the transition period from 1970 to 1971, the school mandated "double sessions," in which half of the school would attend from 7:00 am to 1:30 pm and the other half would attend from 11:30 am to 6:00 pm. In June of 1971, the Milwee Middle school, where Lyman's original campus was, closed and reopened as a satellite campus for Lyman High School during the 1971-1972 school year. For the 1972-1973 academic year, all Lyman students returned to the primary campus and the satellite campus was used for Lake Brantley High School instead. In 2000, Lyman established the Institute for Engineering, a magnet program emphasizing mathematics and science.
Print reproduction of original 7.75 x 4.75 inch black and white photograph by The Greyhound Staff of 1966: The Greyhound 1966, item 373.105 LYM 1966, (Longwood, FL: Lyman High School, 1966): Seminole County Public Schools Collection, UCF Public History Center, Sanford, Florida.
The Greyhound Staff of 1966
Lyman High School Homecoming Queen Dana Hall with Escort Lonnie Friar
Lyman High School's Class of 1963 Homecoming Queen, Dana Hall, with her escort, Lonnie Friar. Lyman is a Seminole County Public School located in Longwood, Florida. In 1923, a board of trustees agreed to construct a new school to accommodate the growing population in the Longwood and Altamonte Springs area. Construction began at 1725 County Road 427 in 1924 and opened in September 1924 with Professor Howard Douglas as its first principal. Lyman School, as it was originally called, was named after Howard Charles Lyman, a citizen who was active in planning the school's establishment, but died a few days before construction began. In just two years, Lyman became an accredited junior high school and its campus had been expanded with six rooms. With W. J. Wells as principal, the Lyman School achieved accreditation through 12th grade in 1929. In 1963, the school was renamed Lyman High School when it became an accredited institution with Carlton D. Henley as principal. In 1966, Lyman High became integrated with both white and black students. A new campus was constructed at 865 South Ronald Reagan Boulevard in 1969 and the original campus became R. T. Milwee Junior High School. Milwee was named after Rayburn T. Milwee, Sr., who taught at Lyman from 1939 to 1949, served as principal from 1949 to 1952, and finally as Superintendent of Seminole County Schools from 1952 to 1967. In 1970, Seminole County transitioned from the junior high school system to the middle school system, causing Lyman High School to now accommodate ninth grader in addition to 10th, 11th, and 12th graders. During the transition period from 1970 to 1971, the school mandated "double sessions" in which half of the school would attend from 7:00 am to 1:30 pm and the other half would attend from 11:30 am to 6:00 pm. In June of 1971, Milwee Middle school, where Lyman's original campus was, closed and reopened as a satellite campus for Lyman High School during the 1971-1972 school year. For the 1972-1973 academic year, all Lyman students returned to the primary campus and the satellite campus was used for Lake Brantley High School instead. In 2000, Lyman established the Institute for Engineering, a magnet program emphasizing mathematics and science.
Original black and white photograph by Greyhound Staff of 1964, 1963.
Lyman High School Students in the Campus Courtyard
Lyman High School students in the campus courtyard. Lyman High School is a Seminole County Public School located in Longwood, Florida. In 1923, a board of trustees agreed to construct a new school to accommodate the growing population in the Longwood and Altamonte Springs area. Construction began at 1725 County Road 427 in 1924 and opened in September 1924 with Professor Howard Douglas as its first principal. Lyman School, as it was originally called, was named after Howard Charles Lyman, a citizen who was active in planning the school's establishment, but died a few days before construction began. In just two years, Lyman became an accredited junior high school and its campus had been expanded with six rooms. With W. J. Wells as principal, the Lyman School achieved accreditation through 12th grade in 1929. In 1963, the school was renamed Lyman High School when it became an accredited institution with Carlton D. Henley as principal. In 1966, Lyman High became integrated with both white and black students. A new campus was constructed at 865 South Ronald Reagan Boulevard in 1969 and the original campus became R. T. Milwee Junior High School. Milwee was named after Rayburn T. Milwee, Sr., who taught at Lyman from 1939 to 1949, served as principal from 1949 to 1952, and finally as Superintendent of Seminole County Schools from 1952 to 1967. In 1970, Seminole County transitioned from the junior high school system to the middle school system, causing Lyman High School to now accommodate ninth grader in addition to 10th, 11th, and 12th graders. During the transition period from 1970 to 1971, the school mandated "double sessions" in which half of the school would attend from 7:00 am to 1:30 pm and the other half would attend from 11:30 am to 6:00 pm. In June of 1971, Milwee Middle school, where Lyman's original campus was, closed and reopened as a satellite campus for Lyman High School during the 1971-1972 school year. For the 1972-1973 academic year, all Lyman students returned to the primary campus and the satellite campus was used for Lake Brantley High School instead. In 2000, Lyman established the Institute for Engineering, a magnet program emphasizing mathematics and science.
Original black and white photograph by Greyhound Staff of 1969.
Lyman High School student at the chalkboard during a TEC Club meeting during the 1965-1966 school year. Lyman High School is a Seminole County Public School located in Longwood, Florida. In 1923, a board of trustees agreed to construct a new school to accommodate the growing population in the Longwood and Altamonte Springs area. Construction began at 1725 County Road 427 in 1924 and opened in September 1924 with Professor Howard Douglas as its first principal. Lyman School, as it was originally called, was named after Howard Charles Lyman, a citizen who was active in planning the school's establishment, but died a few days before construction began. In just two years, Lyman became an accredited junior high school and its campus had been expanded with six rooms. With W. J. Wells as principal, the Lyman School achieved accreditation through 12th grade in 1929. In 1963, the school was renamed Lyman High School when it became an accredited institution with Carlton D. Henley as principal. In 1966, Lyman High became integrated with both white and black students. A new campus was constructed at 865 South Ronald Reagan Boulevard in 1969 and the original campus became R. T. Milwee Junior High School. Milwee was named after Rayburn T. Milwee, Sr., who taught at Lyman from 1939 to 1949, served as principal from 1949 to 1952, and finally as Superintendent of Seminole County Schools from 1952 to 1967. In 1970, Seminole County transitioned from the junior high school system to the middle school system, causing Lyman High School to now accommodate ninth grader in addition to 10th, 11th, and 12th graders. During the transition period from 1970 to 1971, the school mandated "double sessions" in which half of the school would attend from 7:00 am to 1:30 pm and the other half would attend from 11:30 am to 6:00 pm. In June of 1971, Milwee Middle school, where Lyman's original campus was, closed and reopened as a satellite campus for Lyman High School during the 1971-1972 school year. For the 1972-1973 academic year, all Lyman students returned to the primary campus and the satellite campus was used for Lake Brantley High School instead. In 2000, Lyman established the Institute for Engineering, a magnet program emphasizing mathematics and science.
Postcard with a photo of two homes being built in Lynn Haven, Florida. On the back of the postcard is a handwritten message that is addressed to Mrs. Edgar Bootman at 437 H St. NW in Washington, D.C. The message reads, "Dear Bessie, Please send yoke so I can get it by Friday move. Lovingly, Lucielle" This postcard is part of a private collection kept by Roger Hipel of St. Cloud, Florida.
Original 5 x 3 black and white postcard: Private Collection of Roger Hipel.