When Marsh Supermarket cashier Sharon Buchanan rang up a 10-pack of Juicy Fruit on June 26, 1974, and heard a telltale beep, her face must have registered relief.
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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.
If you’re feeling all at sea (especially when you try to navigate downtown Sarasota after a bit of an absence), take heart in this demographic.
Either it’s August 20 or August 29, but either way… what would we do without lemons. Here’s some historical facts about lemons, with a twist. (Get it? Got it. Good.)
*The origin of the lemon is unknown, though lemons are thought to have first grown in India, northern Myanmar, or China. A genomic study of the lemon indicated it was a hybrid between bitter orange (sour orange) and citron.
*The tradition of urinating
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It’s Museums on Us weekend! August 5th and 6th 2023!
Bank of America offers their cardholders free general admission during the first full weekend of every month to
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Have you done any of the auto tours yet? They’ve been updated by hard-working volunteers from the Friends of the History Center who love Sarasota County History. There’s 9 of them and they are well-researched and planned. If you haven’t downloaded the app or climbed into your a/c’d vehicle to see the sights… this weekend would be a great time to do so! https://friendssarasotahistorycenter.org/autotours/
School’s out. Whether you have kids home on vacation or visiting kids in your household, you’re gonna have to counter the “I’m bored” with something to do.
“Between hours sitting in school (with recess abridged or abandoned), time spent inside playing video games, and parents preventing kids from playing in messy nature, kids today hardly ever get to spin, flip, roll, climb, hang, race, or shimmy. It’s something that deeply worries pediatric occupational therapist Angela Hanscom—who traces these restrictions to everything from kids’ growing inability to tolerate wind in their face to the
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Would you use a phone card if Dean Martin asked you to? Buy Bogie’s favorite thank-you gift, a Whitman’s Sampler? Celebrity endorsements must work, and of course, the added income to a writer’s, an actor’s, a singer’s income was always welcome, we’re sure.
One does wonder, however, how Abe profited from this 1888 endorsement.
Enjoy this collection of advertisements we’ve found (You can click on each for a larger image so you can read the copy):
Of course, Abe wasn’t the only president to suggest that tobacco would be a welcome holiday gift:
Notice something? They’re all men? Well, women can endorse products as well. Here’s Lucy suggesting a paint brand:
… and best of all, Doris Day on an asphalt roller. Makes me wanna go buy one today, doesn’t it you?
“Traditionally, the colors of the flower carry different meanings on Mother’s Day: white carnations honor the mother whose mother has died, while pink ones celebrate a mother whose mother is living.
” Moms and grandmothers alike can thank Philadelphia activist Anna Jarvis for the carnation tradition — and even the holiday itself. On May 10, 1908, Jarvis sent hundreds of white carnations, her late mother’s favorite flower, to her hometown church in West Virginia for a celebration honoring all mothers. That same day, she hosted a similar event in Philadelphia.
“Over the next few years, as the number of Mother’s Day celebrations across the county increased, so did the popularity of the white carnation, which came to symbolize a mother’s love. Thanks to Jarvis’ campaigning, Mother’s Day became a national holiday in 1914 under President Woodrow Wilson.” {source}
More women associated with Mother’s Day, “Mothering Sunday”, Mothers’ Day Work Clubs, Mothers’ Friendship Day, and even a fellow dubbed “the father of Mothers’ Day,” here.
Great piece of trivia: And yes, it’s Mother’s Day (singular), not Mothers’ Day (plural) because Anna Jarvis envisioned her holiday as a personal, child to mother celebration, and she abhorred the commercialization of the day, even getting arrested while protesting. {source}
Held on April 1, 2023, the Annual Meeting of the Historical Society of Sarasota welcomed members and directors at the Crocker Memorial Church.
Greg Dickinson was elected President.
Distinguished Service Awards: Presented by Marsha Fottler, outgoing President, the active and enthusiastic recipients were
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April 16 is National Orchid Day. One of my favorite trivia questions is: “What part of an orchid do we commonly, maybe even daily, eat?” Answer?
VANILLA! And what’s more… we can grow vanilla on our lanais, in our front yard tree… and then we can not just eat local, but Flavor Local!
How’s your year going so far? 2023 shaping up as interesting, is it? Here’s what you would have been thinking about 100 years ago in Sarasota.
Is it just me, or was this the start of something that looks a lot like what’s going on in 2023? Mr McAnsh stated
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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!
Can I get a little personal here? The first thing I did when I moved to Sarasota two dozen years ago was to visit the library. The second thing I did was volunteer to help at an historic site.
And both of those things have influenced how
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Trying to sum up Carl Abbott, the Historical Society of Sarasta County’s 2023 Hero of History, is like trying to freeze, in one moment, the earth and sea, sky and clouds. We cannot possibly say anything about the man and his work that has not
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The Historical Society of Sarasota County 