We’re very excited to be joining forces with Historical Resources and Archives, commonly called The History Center, to offer our county an easy way to donate ephemera that you may have lying around, and never dreamed anyone would value it.
Ephemera! Stuff published once, meant for the moment… only now YOU
can help us save Sarasota County’s past! Your junk drawer, your father’s old papers, your grandmother’s scrapbook can protect, preserve, and present our history to current & future county residents, just like the Historical Society of Sarasota County does with its two buildings, the Bidwell-Wood House and the Crocker Memorial Church.
The History Center wants to expand its collection of ephemera as a way of providing a larger and more detailed picture of everyday life and activities in Sarasota County at different periods of time.
What is the Historical Resources department looking for? As our President Marsha Fottler suggested, “Old menus from by-gone restaurants, floor plans for a Ruth Richmond house, a receipt for fixing jalousie windows in a vintage house, a Junior League cookbook from years past…“
The archivists have very specific needs that you can help fulfill.
- To be accepted into the collection, ephemera should be from a Sarasota County business, organization, or institution.
- Ephemera should be original. (Photocopies of items with especially valuable historical information can be filed in the History Center’s Vertical File. Contact them to discuss.)
- Examples of ephemera:
- Invitations to events like performances, ceremonies, or fundraisers.
- Original photos, no reproductions.
- Tickets or passes from performances in local venues.
- Agendas from meetings of local civic organizations.
- Post cards of Sarasota places, originals only.
- Leaflets, handbills, flyers, or brochures advertising local tourist attractions, civic organizations, businesses or the policies or services of local government agencies.
- Menus from non-chain local restaurants, dance cards, political mailers.
- Orders of worship for religious services.
At HSoSC, we will be collecting such items from the public for transport to Historical Resources. Please bring your items to us when we are open, generally 10 am to 2 pm Tuesday- Friday. (Note: On Sunday April 24, during our Sunday Afternoon Special, we’ll have our “treasure chest” ready to accept anything you have.) Do not leave items on our doorstep or they will be ruined. Call ahead to be sure we’re here, at 941-364-9076.
Other items besides the above you’d like to donate? Contact Historical Resources to reach an archivist who’d be happy to discuss details.
The Historical Society of Sarasota County 
Pingback: Fill ‘er up! – The Historical Society of Sarasota County
I loaned one of the last existing copies.of the ‘The Sarasota Sun’ newspaper that was mostly about my ggaunt Aunt, Davie Lindsay Worcester and her husband Thomas Worcester..Their purchase of Bird Key and building ‘New Edzell’, starting in 1904..Paper loanded to the Historical Soc.housed at the old Bay front Library. You seem to be a different entity and have a different location. Are some historical item now kept at the Court House ? What would be the their title. I would think that you are the folk to have this early Sarasota material. I insisted at the time, that it was to be a loan, so I should have the right to change its location. Are you interested?? Capt Joseph W. Lindsay Haley FSA Scot.
Captain, What a great loan! Let me clarify some nomenclature for you:
“The old bayfront library” was for a time the home of the governmental entity, officially “Historical Resources” now, commonly called “The History Center” after its long-term occupation of the Chidsey Library. (And now moved to protect it from potential hurricane flooding.)
That’s not us.
Historical Resources is now a part of the Sarasota County Library system. You can contact them and ask about your loan at https://www.scgov.net/government/historical-resources.
We, that is, the Historical Society, are a non-governmental group of volunteers who have a larger “public image” than the ffice of Historical Resources, so we are helping them reach the public with our drive to collect ephemera. We would love you to join us: https://hsosc.com/be-a-part-of-history/membership/ our dues are quite reasonable and help preserve 2 of Sarasota’s historic buildings. Thanks for your comment!