A Guide to Historic Winter Park chronicles the founding and growth of this extraordinary community, one that thrives today as a mecca for both boutique shoppers and outdoor enthusiasts. Established during the 1880s, historic Winter Park will delight the senses. Explore the city along five self-guided neighborhood walks that wind amidst the quaint shops, stately churches and "cottages" of the turn-of-the-century elite. Stroll through historic Rollins College, oak-shaded and reminiscent of the New England alma maters of its founders. Enjoy the lush parklands and canals that connect the city's picturesque lakes and botanical treasures. Wander the halls of the city's museums, libraries and numerous mansions once filled with Baroque music and opulent décor.
This guide to the historical architecture of Florida, a diverse assembly of buildings reflecting the rich heritage of the state, is divided into zones and each zone into counties. Each county is represented with an architectural history, a list of historic sites, and a map locating the sites. The structures were chosen for historic and architectural significance to the area. Each guide entry is identified by a photograph, name, address, and brief description. Only major and easily identifiable features are mentioned.
The books in the Florida and the Caribbean Open Books Series demonstrate the University Press of Florida’s long history of publishing Latin American and Caribbean studies titles that connect in and through Florida, highlighting the connections between the Sunshine State and its neighboring islands. Books in this series show how early explorers found and settled Florida and the Caribbean. They tell the tales of early pioneers, both foreign and domestic. They examine topics critical to the area such as travel, migration, economic opportunity, and tourism. They look at the growth of Florida and the Caribbean and the attendant pressures on the environment, culture, urban development, and the movement of peoples, both forced and voluntary. The Florida and the Caribbean Open Books Series gathers the rich data available in these architectural, archaeological, cultural, and historical works, as well as the travelogues and naturalists’ sketches of the area prior to the twentieth century, making it accessible for scholars and the general public alike. The Florida and the Caribbean Open Books Series is made possible through a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, under the Humanities Open Books program.
"Here is the book lover's literary tour of Florida, an exhaustive survey of writers, books, and literary sites in every part of the state. The state is divided into ten areas and each one is described from a literary point of view. You will learn what authors lived in or wrote about a place, which books describe the place, what important movies were made there, even the literary trivia which the true Florida book lover will want to know. You can use the book as a travel guide to a new way to see the state, as an armchair guide to a better understanding of our literary heritage, or as a guide to what to read next time you head to a bookstore or library."--Publisher.
"The perfume of the orange blossoms . . . the beauty of every scene, combine to make me wonder whether I am not in Paradise," wrote one visitor to Winter Park, Florida, in 1918. Just five miles north of Orlando, Winter Park's oak-lined brick streets and its quiet lakes have been attracting visitors since the late 19th century, when U.S. president Chester A. Arthur declared, "This is the prettiest spot I have seen in Florida." The New Englandlike city in the heart of the subtropics was once home to the Seminole Hotel, the largest resort south of Jacksonville. In 1885, prestigious Rollins College was founded here, the first institution of higher learning in Florida.
From early Spanish myths and Seminole and African-American folktales to the latest descriptions of modern Miami, this anthology includes writings by such authors as Ralph Waldo Emerson, John James Audubon, Zora Neale Hurston, Zane Grey, Wallace Stevens, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Jose Yglesias, and Harry Crews.
This well-illustrated book illuminates the life and career of one of Florida's premier architects, whose elegant homes and design aesthetic shaped the architectural character of Winter Park and influenced urban development throughout central Florida. James Gamble Rogers II (1901-1990) created homes known for their human scale and proportion and for their suitability to the environment. This work highlights twelve of these residences designed for Winter Park, the beautiful small city adjacent to Orlando and the headquarters of the Rogers family architecture firm, Rogers, Lovelock, and Fritz, which exists today under the leadership of Rogers' son. Ingeniously meeting the special needs of Florida's climate--heat, humidity, termite control, and air circulation--the residences incorporate details from a variety of historical styles, including eccletic and authentic features that emulate vernacular Spanish farmhouses and villas. The book includes critiques of each design and its evolution, particulars about the site, and stories about the lives and tastes of the clients--men and women of wealth and status who influenced the heady era of the Florida land boom in the 1920s and 1930s. Numerous floor plans, modern and historical photographs, and Rogers' own drawings augment the discussion. The book also presents an entertaining biography of Rogers, with information on his schooling, a history of the firm he founded, and his familial connections with the architectural profession (his uncle and namesake designed more than 20 buildings for Yale University). It describes his success in the areas of governmental, military, and university architecture, including his designs for buildings at Rollins College in Winter Park, and evaluates his impact on 20th-century architecture in Florida and throughout the nation. Coauthors Patrick and Debra McClane have studied Rogers' original drawings, toured his homes, and interviewed clients and family members; Patrick McClane worked at the Rogers firm during the architect's last years there and brings a personal connection to this work. Their book documents an exceptional contribution to Florida's architectural heritage, the life and work of a man who created stylish and desirable homes and distinctive public buildings. With a detailed appendix that lists dates and addresses for nearly 275 houses, most of them still extant, the work will serve as the definitive guide to Rogers' work in Winter Park.
The village of Matteson was founded in 1855 and named after the 10th governor of Illinois, Joel Matteson. German immigrants were the areas first settlers, seeking agriculture and business opportunities. The Illinois Central and Michigan Central Railroads provided the stimulus for the growth of one of the first communities to the south of Chicago. The area became popular in the 1890s, when Chicago residents rode special trains to visit the amusement park run by Moses and Freeman Elliott. By the mid-20th century, the town had established itself as a growing bedroom community due to the electrification of the Illinois Central suburban service in 1926 and an increase in residential housing designed for American GIs returning home after World War II. Transportation has always played a key role in the development of the village, which sits at the crossroads of Americas first land grant railroad, the Illinois Central, and the countrys first transcontinental road, the Lincoln Highway. Since the 1970s, Matteson has grown into a vibrant retail and commercial area for Chicagos south suburbs.
