by TRC_Admin | Dec 31, 2019 | Historic, Mural
Photo: Michele Miller, Tampa Bay Times
“Jan Knowles…is the docent for a new mural walking tour offered by the Hernando Fine Art Council.
The Livery Stable Mural, painted on the Lowman’s law firm at 32 S. Main St., is one of eight murals featured on a new walking tour sponsored by the Hernando Fine Arts Council. It features the livery stable, which housed the Bell Fruit Company, one of the most important businesses in early Brooksville.
Knowles is steeped in local history, having entrenching herself in several organizations over the years. She served as chair for the annual Brooksville Raid Reenactment, was an 18-year president of the Hernando Museum and a member of the now-defunct Mural Society that worked with the city to produce and fund the eight murals featured on the tour. She also is project coordinator for the Hernando Fine Arts Council and co-chair of Brooksville’s annual Art in the Park event.
The mural tour is way to bring light to art that might have been forgotten, she said, or that people might be wondering about — especially if they are new to the area…
It’s also a way to put to use the Civil War dress she bought years ago for the Brooksville Raid…
This tour promises to be a more low-key, casual walk through art and local history, with one modern caveat. Those who go can use their cell phones to access QR codes located on special plaques that include information about the murals and the artists.
‘The tour takes about an hour,” Knowles said, adding that the murals are all within three blocks. ‘There’s nice places to have lunch or shop so people can make a day of it.'”
— Michele Miller, Tampa Bay Times
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by TRC_Admin | Aug 31, 2019 | Historic
Photo: Clearwater 2019 and 2009 Google
“The Tampa Bay Area has experienced tremendous growth in the decade since 83 Degrees Media launched in November 2009…
So we thought it would be interesting to take a look at Google images over time because Google launched the popular Google Street View feature in 2007 and the Tampa Bay Area was one of the first metropolitan regions in the country to see its highways and byways mapped with this then-innovative, you-are-there technology.
Thankfully, Google Street View archives are available for all to enjoy, allowing with a few simple clicks to see what the surrounding scenery looked like from nearly any mapped street since the first images were taken by the Google team. This allows us to take a virtual trip back through time to a decade ago, so we can ‘see’ what some of the Tampa Bay Area’s most popular and important landmarks and attractions have changed over time.
So, let’s hop into the Google Street View time machine and take a trip back to see what a dozen of the most important local landmarks and destinations were like when 83 Degrees first hit the scene and compare them to how they look now. We think you’ll agree that the evolution of our beautiful community is stunning… ”
— Joshua Mcmorrow-Hernandez, 83degreesmedia.com
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by TRC_Admin | Jun 30, 2019 | Historic, Scenic Highways
Photo: Narcity.com
“…The Truck Graveyard is a group of old classic automobiles hidden in the middle of Crawfordville highway.
Nestled in the virescent forest you will see a group of defunct and rusty classic cars neatly set aside to decay. The perfectly aligned cars give this site an eerie graveyard feel that is only seen in films. What is surprising is that not many know the history and background of this perfectly arranged art installation.
The graveyard sits on the side of the road on Highway 319 near Crawfordville, on the Big Bend Scenic Byway. According to Only In Your State, the rust-covered vehicles were arranged in order from oldest to newest by the owner, Pat Harvey.
In this secluded area rest about 30 classic vehicles dating from the early 1900s all the way to the mid-1970s…
Harvey’s family used these cars and its parts on the Harvey family farm. Once the automobiles had no use, they were moved to the woods and let to rest. The site has become popular among locals and photographers looking for a unique backdrop. The car display features Ford automobiles and even a classic DeSoto vehicle…”
— Jannely Espinal, Narcity
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by TRC_Admin | Jun 30, 2019 | Historic
Photo: Wikipedia, Ormond Beach near Tomoka River c. 1905
by TRC_Admin | Sep 22, 2017 | City Signs, Historic, Placemaking
Photo: Richard Ramirez Buxeda, Orlando Sentinel
“Church Street Exchange, Grand Avenue Elementary and the former home of the Orlando Ballet are the latest Orlando landmarks to face the prospect of new identities instead of demolition.
The fate of those buildings comes into play as some developers and owners are looking at ‘adaptive reuse,’a movement gaining momentum nationally.
‘I think people are finally realizing that these kind of place-making buildings, you really can’t re-create,’said Richard Forbes, historic preservation officer for Orlando.
Sitting atop some of the most valuable land in Central Florida, the Church Street Exchange in downtown Orlando was recently listed for sale. Grand Avenue Elementary southwest of downtown sits vacant with school officials discussing its fate. And the Orlando Utilities Commission has started weighing options to sell or renovate an Italian Palazzo Revival-style 1920s power plant and one-time arts center overlooking Lake Ivanhoe…
Beyond preserving the charm and character of a building, reused buildings help ignite nearby neighborhoods, said Orlando attorney Kimberly Ashby. She pointed to the former Orange County Courthouse’s renovation as a history museum and the relocation of the Casa Feliz and Capen houses to become cultural venues in Winter Park.
‘It not only repurposes the building, it repurposes the neighborhood and the whole community,’she said.”
Photo: Orange County Regional History Center
“The First National Bank building (left) was designed by Orlando architect Howard M. Reynolds during the Great Depression. In 2017, a Walgreens store moved into the four-story building that once housed the downtown bank….”
–Mary Shanklin, Orlando Sentinel
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by TRC_Admin | Aug 23, 2017 | Billboards, Historic
Photo: The Associated Press
“An 1878 billboard promoting a ‘Buffalo Bill’ Cody stage show has been restored, five years after it was discovered beneath the crumbling brick facade of a former hotel.
The 24-by-10-foot paper billboard had been pasted to an unfinished exterior wall of the hotel during construction 129 years ago and was sandwiched in by brick when the building was completed.
The billboard, a montage of the Wild West folk hero and scenes from his show, was revealed when part of the wall fell away from the building in June 2002.
‘It’s a miracle that it even exists,’ said Dr. Juti Winchester, curator of the Buffalo Bill Museum at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyo.
Printed from engraved wood blocks, the billboard resembles a watercolor painting in hues of orange, brown and blue. A multicolor, life-size depiction of the bearded Cody—clad in fringed buckskin and holding a rifle—is of particular importance, said Winchester, who traveled to western New York for Saturday’s unveiling of the finished work…
Crews would put up the billboards to advertise the shows. Most were pasted over when the next show hit town.
‘The only reason this survived was a completely unique set of circumstances,’ said Michael Flaxman, who was involved in the restoration, which was funded by a $52,000 federal grant and matching private donations.
Experts used tissue paper and steam to remove the fragile billboard in strips and shreds from the wood sheathing. Though protected from the elements, the paper had become brittle and torn and some pieces disintegrated before they could be removed.
Paper conservator Laura Schell was hired to piece back together the work, and images of Cody—in one scene atop a horse and swinging his hat overhead—painstakingly emerged.
‘She cleaned and stabilized all these hundreds of pieces of what was a giant, very fragile jigsaw puzzle,’ said Pat Anzideo, the restoration’s project manager. ‘She put it back together again, without the benefit of a picture.’
The billboard will be displayed under glass in six wood-framed panels, each 7 feet high and at least 4 feet wide, at the Reg Lenna Civic Center, a restored 1920s vaudeville and movie house in downtown Jamestown.
–The Associated Press
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