The Bidwell-Wood House and Crocker Memorial Church are two of Sarasota’s most successful examples of preserving historic buildings through adaptive reuse. These historically designated buildings need constant maintenance, sensitive repairs and renovations to continue to serve the community and preserve historic status.
During the past few years
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We may not have sweater-weather when the calendar turns to fall, but we DO welcome the Phillippi Farmhouse Market back… this year, on Wednesday October 1. Located on Tamiami Trail/41 at 5500 S. Trail, it’s Florida at its best (and a bit of Come-From-Afar too… bonzai, bagels!)
In addition to providing wonderful foods and
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The People and Places that made a Paradise, by local historian and member of the HSoSC Board Jeff LaHurd, is the newest addition to his remarkable series of Sarasota County historical references. This 17th book from LaHurd is a compilation of many of his articles that have appeared in newspapers and magazines which you might have missed.
He moved here as a young boy with his family, went
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To this aerial photo of Sarasota in 1925, Rex has added some landmarks for us.
Rex writes: “I’ve posted a second version of the photo with my own annotations to help you appreciate the photo to its fullest extent. I’ve also highlighted a few
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If you weren’t able to attend the Celebration of Life for Linda Garcia, our beloved Site Manager for 15 years, here’s the slide presentation from Sunday afternoon, November 17.
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On Saturday April 13 2024 , scores of Historical Society of Sarasota County gathered to celebrate another successful year, to vote in new board members to honor award recipients, to cheer on the supporters of the Giving Challenge 2024, and to enjoy refreshments and our door prize raffle. We hope you were able to join us!
Here’s just a small sampling of the event in photos:
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This quiz is from an older blog post, but it’s time to learn more about, pay more attention to, care more for our remaining historic buildings; we’re sure you agree.
Designed by the late Frank Lloyd Wright’s firm, Taliesin Associates Architects, the building was called by its critics the “purple cow” or “purple people seater.”
Answers: In each case, the correct answer is #2, except for the last. All the choices are correct about the Van Wezels! You will be awarded extra points if you pronounce Van Wezel as “Van Way-zel”, not “Van Weasel.”
Did you know? Tours of the Van Wezel backstage areas and the Fine Arts Society art collection are offered to the public once a month. More info.
And if you can’t remember all the lyrics of One Eyed One Horned Flying Purple People Eater, here it is on YouTube. Tequila.
Well, yes, red tide did cause a few coughs, but the continental breakfast buffet on our March 2023 Historic Sarasota Bay Cruise provided some soothing refreshments. Volunteers Sue Padden and Norma Kwenski made a lovely buffet table, and the Gentleman With The Legs added a little cheesecake to the menu.
On land, before boarding, board member Deb Walk (right) and City Commissioner Debbie Trice compare notes about being named after Debbie Reynolds (Joke. Maybe they were named after beloved aunts. I wasn’t eavesdropping.) We’ll be hoping Ms. Trice will become an active member!
Meanwhile, waiting for the “all aboard” call, Katie employed her VIP gift, a brilliant umbrella, to protect her not only from the sun, but also from the flock of parrots who were noisily entertaining our guests.
Deborah Walk and Jon Stone, board members of the Historical Society, are all smiles seeing the anticipation of participants in our Historic Sarasota Bay Cruise… our 39th, I believe.
And finally, what would our Cruise posting be without our beloved site manager/ board member wrangler/ yard raker Linda Garcia. She is showing off our logo on this cruise’s VIP gift.
Linda’s who you need to contact to get on the November cruise invite list. Check our sidebar here on HSoSC.com for contact info!
Harriet Burns Stieff
Harriet Burns Stieff, 99, the youngest daughter of
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Word is, Sarasota city employees are thinking of replacing David on the city logo. And spending, according to that article, $25,000 for “design services” to do so.
While it’s true, the original logo (still, apparently, the city seal) is rather, well, dated… is David dated? Them folks over in Italy don’t think so!
If you’re not quite sure how a replica statue (and one not even in the original size) might be a symbol of The City of Sarasota, here’s some historic background.
First off, David’s the only one in the Western Hemisphere. And we’re the only Sarasota. That’s worth mentioning. Second, David was created by a 26-year-old dude. That’s rad, right? Like our art and college students. Third, the marble Michelangelo carved into had been sitting around for decades as a “failed project”, rather like, um, the campaign to replace the logo? Here’s some more info on the original.
“Our” David was bought by John Ringling to adorn his never-completed, torn down Ritz-Carlton hotel, and later was repurposed to inspire the art school which didn’t end up being where Ringling thought it should be, so it’s a great example of how Sarasota flows with the times, in my opinion. Here’s the detes.
And finally, David, like the city of Sarasota, always needs to be polished up and conserved. Here’s what the Ringling had to say about that back in the 2020 Giving Challenge season.
BTW, the Historical Society’s hoping you’ll consider our restoration project when you’re choosing your favorite nonprofits during the 2022 Giving Challenge on April 26 and 27.
So, what do you think? Should the city logo change? Back in 2021, 2013, and even 2011, apparently folks thought so. But you know, he’s still standing tall. Like we hope you’ll help us keep the Crocker Memorial Church standing tall and proud as a symbol of our Sarasota community.
Well, we have lots of trees surrounding our campus in Pioneer Park, but the one that shades our front yard is the one everyone remarks upon.
Why pignut hickory? Well, the nuts are a main source of food for some species of sqirrels, bears, and of course… pigs!
So what’s pignut hickory used for? I’m so glad you asked. It’s prized for skis. It was formerly used for wagon wheels and textile loom picker sticks because it could sustain tremendous vibration. (I also found it was used for chair legs… so when your adolescent relative leans back in your prized heiroom chair, maybe it saves his noggin?)
But the real reason I’m telling you about Our Tree? Because of this quote from a botanical website:
Rather like the Historical Society of Sarasota County is feeling these days. It’s been a tough two years, and we thank you all for hanging in there as we try to keep your historically-inclined mind entertained, your health safe, and our historic buildings sound. Stay tuned as we, with grace, continue on our shared journey to the future.
Do you have someone on your holiday gift list who’s hard to buy for? Give them something they don’t have:
Yes, thanks to HSoSC, you can have your message etched on a genuine old Sarasota brick for all to see and admire, while helping us preserve an actual part of our past!
These bricks were originally laid in the dawn
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Coming up in 2022, there will be this wonderful “Forever stamp” to stock up on. If it weren’t for Dr. Eugenie Clark, what would our oceans and the Gulf of Mexico be like? Known as “The Shark Lady”… she transformed a dream into a multi-faceted research center, Mote Marine. Clark was a pioneer in the field of scuba diving for research purposes.
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The Historical Society of Sarasota County 