Orlando History

[jrs2]

28 minutes ago, spenser1058 said:

Meanwhile, before Ron, “the Hugh Hefner of the Beach”, started selling suntan oil, but before the DeVos clan arrived, we had Koscot Interplanetary!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koscot_Interplanetary

Glenn had what was then the biggest billboard on I-4 and built himself a castle in Seminole County (which sadly later burned).

Of course, let’s not forget Jim and Tammy Faye’s brief dalliance with the I-Drive crowd!

Those were  the days…

https://www.orangeobserver.com/article/glenn-turners-castle

From The West Orange Times Observer 

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-xpm-2003-06-29-0306270538-story.html

From The Sentinel 

Wow. That castle place looks really cool. I don't think I knew about that.

[angela1117]

3 hours ago, jrs2 said:

if I recall, the storefront closer towards Orange Ave (close in time to bulldozing, had that furniture store in it with that ornamental statue if you will of Joliet Jake and Elwood Blues...The Blues Brothers.

 

I remember that! I wonder if they ever sold it?

After Zayres closed there was also a Macy's clearance center there for a short while. It was very chaotic.

[spenser1058]

I just miss those huge neon “Z A Y R E” letters on top of the store. Those were classic.

[codypet]

19 hours ago, angela1117 said:

I remember that! I wonder if they ever sold it?

After Zayres closed there was also a Macy's clearance center there for a short while. It was very chaotic.

Is it the one that's in Whiskey Lous now?

Edited August 3, 2022 by codypet

[spenser1058]

Orlando’s experience with the lunch counter sit-ins at downtown retailers during the Civil Rights era:

https://www.thehistorycenter.org/civil-rights-sit-ins/

From The History Center

Two of the buildings thankfully remain: Kress and the Metcalf Building, which housed Stroud’s Rexall (it’s at Orange and Pine, not Church). Sadly, Woolworth’s (it was the one at Orange and Church) fell to the bulldozers in 2003.
 

Edited August 3, 2022 by spenser1058

[angela1117]

2 hours ago, codypet said:

Is it the one that's in Whiskey Lous now?

Looks like it found a good home!

[spenser1058]

And thankfully it’s now smoke-free!

[angela1117]

On 8/3/2022 at 10:52 AM, spenser1058 said:

Sadly, Woolworth’s (it was the one at Orange and Church) fell to the bulldozers in 2003.
 

Was that the one where the bulldozers were ready to go late at night after a city council meeting?

[spenser1058]

6 minutes ago, angela1117 said:

Was that the one where the bulldozers were ready to go late at night after a city council meeting?

Indeed, along with McCrory’s.

[spenser1058]

It’s best not to mention it here in the sacred Church of St. Buddy of Dyer. It was one of his first acts as mayor, aided and abetted by the infamous Cameron Kuhn. 

Their goal was to save downtown by destroying it. I’ll let you conclude how well that’s working.

It was about the same time his rather shady consigliere decided it might be nice to privatize OUC and a while before he was sent to jail by OC Mayor Rich Crotty.

Things certainly weren’t boring in the early reign of His Majesty Buddy I.
 

[JFW657]

On 8/4/2022 at 8:01 PM, angela1117 said:

Was that the one where the bulldozers were ready to go late at night after a city council meeting?

And all those poor, furry little rats that had colonized the place became homeless and had to find new places to live. ...     

[angela1117]

15 hours ago, JFW657 said:

And all those poor, furry little rats that had colonized the place became homeless and had to find new places to live. ...     

there were plenty of vacancies around downtown! From 1987-90 I inspected restaurants and my area was downtown, SOBT from Church south to the Osceola county line and part of Int'l Drive from Oakridge to Sand Lake.  

[spenser1058]

Entertainment and lodging in Orlando’s segregation days featured famous performers and visitors still familiar to us:

https://www.thehistorycenter.org/cant-stop-the-music/

From The History Center

The Wellsbilt Hotel lives on as the Wells’ Built Museum and the Sun Glo Motel is still on SOB Trail under another name. Sadly, we lost the South Street Casino venue to a fire in the ‘80’s.
 

[spenser1058]

Joy Wallace Dickinson at The Sentinel tells of the influence settlers from the UK had on Orlando this week:

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/os-fe-joy-wallace-dickinson-0807-20220807-crhzr4sl2zatdevubas64hl3yi-story.html

She notes the story of two British settlers in particular, whose buildings are now historic landmarks downtown. First, Joseph Bumby, whose Bumby Hardware building at Church Street Station king anchored the area (most recently the home of Hamburger Mary’s). He also provided what was the first scheduled transport between Sanford and Orlando.

Second, Gordon Rogers, who built a social club for gentlemen and a social hall for everyone upstairs. It’s now the City’s and is at Magnolia and Pine.

It’s worth noting the Rogers Building sat empty for 17 years before being restored by beer distributor and local activist Ford Kiene, much longer than the supposedly “too far gone” historic Woolworth’s and McCrory’s that got in the way of rapacious developers and Bulldozer Buddy.
 

Edited August 7, 2022 by spenser1058

[jrs2]

On 8/5/2022 at 9:30 PM, JFW657 said:

And all those poor, furry little rats that had colonized the place became homeless and had to find new places to live. ...     

I remember when that happened...no joke...it was a major issue for places along Pine St.

[spenser1058]

15 minutes ago, jrs2 said:

I remember when that happened...no joke...it was a major issue for places along Pine St.

The thing that’s never mentioned is the developers that owned those properties should have racked up massive code enforcement fines for not keeping up the property but of course Bulldozer Buddy let them skate in that. Fortunately, in cities that care about their history, preservationists are aggressively fighting back against developers who practice demolition by neglect. Of course, we’ll never see that from the invertebrates under the dome until our citizens show some gumption.

[jrs2]

1 hour ago, spenser1058 said:

The thing that’s never mentioned is the developers that owned those properties should have racked up massive code enforcement fines for not keeping up the property but of course Bulldozer Buddy let them skate in that. Fortunately, in cities that care about their history, preservationists are aggressively fighting back against developers who practice demolition by neglect. Of course, we’ll never see that from the invertebrates under the dome until our citizens show some gumption.

demolition by neglect...that's actually a great point...(see Daytona/ A1A)

I don't think they're spineless; rather, I think their philosophy is to promote new development, which matches what developers want to hear...

they probably figure that the historic preservation route hasn't  been embraced by people, so, as a result, we lose The San Juan and the 1950's OC Cthse, and the original one with turret or clock tower...and, the Jaymont Block...

Who's to blame? Well, insurance for one.  Redevelopment costs is another (updating old buildings); a lot of contractors encourage demolition and building new also.

it is too bad about Orlando regarding caring about it's history...

[spenser1058]

55 minutes ago, jrs2 said:

demolition by neglect...that's actually a great point...(see Daytona/ A1A)

I don't think they're spineless; rather, I think their philosophy is to promote new development, which matches what developers want to hear...

they probably figure that the historic preservation route hasn't  been embraced by people, so, as a result, we lose The San Juan and the 1950's OC Cthse, and the original one with turret or clock tower...and, the Jaymont Block...

Who's to blame? Well, insurance for one.  Redevelopment costs is another (updating old buildings); a lot of contractors encourage demolition and building new also.

it is too bad about Orlando regarding caring about it's history...

Polling done at the time Bulldozer Buddy and Klown Kar Kuhn pulled their maneuver was in favor of saving Woolworth’s/McCrory’s.

If. I show people a pic of the red brick courthouse today, most folks ask immediately, “why in the world did they tear that down?” 

In the ‘50’s, the thinking was different . After the 1926 Florida Land Bust led to the Great Depression, followed by WWII rationing and then postwar shortages (not unlike now), many buildings had gone for 3+ decades with almost no upkeep.  The federal government subsidized the suburbs (complete with redlining to keep out black people and often to deny them VA/FHA mortgages). That went on until folks realized “urban renewal” was anything but and precious gems like Penn Station were replaced with dreck.

Developers didn’t care what a city ended up looking like - all they wanted was MONEY.

If no one cares about history, why are the two most popular small towns (DeLightful!) DeLand and WG? Why, all of a sudden, did every other suburb want to reinvent itself with an (often horrendous) “town center?

Why did downtown Orlando become hugely popular when a mayor who made restoring its history a priority vs a wannabe who allows the developers who funnel cash to his “mayor for life” campaigns do nothing but make glorious speeches about Camden Central and thus watching the historic core die in the midst of decadence and destruction?

Meanwhile, cities like St Pete went the other way, eclipsed a process we began in 1980 and became “it” cities?

I’m ashamed of what downtown has been allowed to become - it could be the backdrop for The Boss’ “My Hometown “. It didn’t have to be this way.
 

Edited August 9, 2022 by spenser1058

[jrs2]

27 minutes ago, spenser1058 said:

Polling done at the time Bulldozer Buddy and Klown Kar Kuhn pulled their maneuver was in favor of saving Woolworth’s/McCrory’s.

If. I show people a pic of the red brick courthouse today, most folks ask immediately, “why in the world did they tear that down?” 

In the ‘50’s, the thinking was different . After the 1956 Florida Land Bust led to the Great Depression, followed by WWII rationing and then postwar shortages (not unlike now), many buildings had gone for 3+ decades with almost no upkeep.  The federal government subsidized the suburbs (complete with redlining to keep out black people and often to deny them VA/FHA mortgages). That went on until folks realized “urban renewal” was anything but and precious gems like Penn Station were replaced with dreck.

Developers didn’t care what a city ended up looking like - all they wanted was MONEY.

If no one cares about history, why are the two most popular small towns (DeLightful!) DeLand and WG? Why, all of a sudden, did every other suburb want to reinvent itself with an (often horrendous) “town center?

Why did downtown Orlando become hugely popular when a mayor who made restoring its history a priority vs a wannabe who allows the developers who funnel cash to his “mayor for life” campaigns do nothing but make glorious speeches about Camden Central and thus watching the historic core die in the midst of decadence and destruction?

Meanwhile, cities like St Pete went the other way, eclipsed a process we began in 1980 and became “it” cities?

I’m ashamed of what downtown has been allowed to become - it could be the backdrop for The Boss’ “My Hometown “. It didn’t have to be this way.
 

I would've killed to have that original courthouse building still...

hey, Chicago demoed the Fed Cthse in favor of the Pei black glass and steel towers in the early '60's...so...not one of it's brighter moments either...

[AmIReal]

6 minutes ago, spenser1058 said:

Polling done at the time Bulldozer Buddy and Klown Kar Kuhn pulled their maneuver was in favor of saving Woolworth’s/McCrory’s.

If. I show people a pic of the red brick courthouse today, most folks ask immediately, “why in the world did they tear that down?” 

In the ‘50’s, the thinking was different . After the 1956 Florida Land Bust led to the Great Depression, followed by WWII rationing and then postwar shortages (not unlike now), many buildings had gone for 3+ decades with almost no upkeep.  The federal government subsidized the suburbs (complete with redlining to keep out black people and often to deny them VA/FHA mortgages). That went on until folks realized “urban renewal” was anything but and precious gems like Penn Station were replaced with dreck.

Developers didn’t care what a city ended up looking like - all they wanted was MONEY.

If no one cares about history, why are the two most popular small towns (DeLightful!) DeLand and WG? Why, all of a sudden, did every other suburb want to reinvent itself with an (often horrendous) “town center?

Why did downtown Orlando become hugely popular when a mayor who made restoring its history a priority vs a wannabe who allows the developers who funnel cash to his “mayor for life” campaigns do nothing but make glorious speeches about Camden Central and thus watching the historic core die in the midst of decadence and destruction?

Meanwhile, cities like St Pete went the other way, eclipsed a process we began in 1980 and became “it” cities?

I’m ashamed of what downtown has been allowed to become - it could be the backdrop for The Boss’ “My Hometown “. It didn’t have to be this way.
 

You're so funny. Do you actually believe all of that? Or is this a Spenser pity party? Show people pictures of Woolworth's/ McCrory's vs The Plaza now and see how they vote.

Very, very few want to live in downtown Deland or WG. Those "cities" (and I use the term loosely) pray to someday attract residents and businesses like Orlando.  Deland is still struggling (and a long way off) to become Sanford and WG is thankful to have wealthy communities (and the trail) around them. Their allure is not the old buildings as much as it is gathering places of commerce. If you knocked down the middle 2 blocks and rebuilt replicas overnight, most people wouldn't know the difference. 

Orlando has done a good job of maintaining its historic properties and developing an actual city. In the past 2 decades I can think of 3 historically valued properties that have been damaged, but I can name 20 that have been/ in process of being improved. I can accept that.

[JFW657]

3 hours ago, AmIReal said:

You're so funny. Do you actually believe all of that? Or is this a Spenser pity party? Show people pictures of Woolworth's/ McCrory's vs The Plaza now and see how they vote.

Very, very few want to live in downtown Deland or WG. Those "cities" (and I use the term loosely) pray to someday attract residents and businesses like Orlando.  Deland is still struggling (and a long way off) to become Sanford and WG is thankful to have wealthy communities (and the trail) around them. Their allure is not the old buildings as much as it is gathering places of commerce. If you knocked down the middle 2 blocks and rebuilt replicas overnight, most people wouldn't know the difference. 

Orlando has done a good job of maintaining its historic properties and developing an actual city. In the past 2 decades I can think of 3 historically valued properties that have been damaged, but I can name 20 that have been/ in process of being improved. I can accept that.

Those two old rat holes just weren't worth saving.

Not financially or historically.

No developer would have wanted to touch that block if those two rags had had to be preserved.

The entire block would still sitting there going to waste. 

I've said it before, had they been on some other block, maybe over on Magnolia, or fronting some side street, I'd have been all for saving them.

Or if they'd been more substantial, something on the scale of the Kress building across the street, they'd still be there anyway.

It's really kind of humorous seeing people get so upset over the loss of such a couple of nothing buildings like those.  

[spenser1058]

The Sentinel’s Joy Wallace Dickinson looks at the history of the Plant System’s 1889 station that the former BAGS dude wants to make a burlesque of:

1889 Church Street railroad station signaled Orlando’s ambition 
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/os-fe-joy-wallace-dickinson-0814-20220814-5si6vnb6ofe3xdvs5b3x63eyau-story.html

There’s also a little history  in the mailbag about the Bumby Hardware branch in downtown WP and how Morse Blvd wasn’t a through street back then.
 

[spenser1058]

More about the “World’s Largest Board”:

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/opinion/os-op-ask-orlando-worlds-largest-board-david-whitley-20190406-story.html

From The Sentinel 

Did you know Mills once ended at  Nebraska, hence the name of the lumber yard there?

 

[spenser1058]

Fun fact: Thomas Lumber on Gore St and the TG Lee dairy on Bumby both started in 1925. The lumber yard is still in the family as they get close to 100 years in business while TG Lee has been sold several times to various out of towners.

[spenser1058]

Orlando City Hall is 30 years old this year. Let’s join Mel Gibson and Danny Glover as they “make way” for its appearance on S. Orange Ave:

https://youtu.be/-wINinKkMdg

I think they should have left the Coke sign up -it gives it some Times Square panache!

Btw, as our “heroes” are peeking up to see what happened afterward, among the cops clapping and saying “Bravo!” is our very own Mayor Bill.

@HankStrongwill also be happy to note that behind them in that scene is the lovely brise soleil!

The doomed previous city hall was built in 1957…

Edited August 20, 2022 by spenser1058