Custodians of Orlando, Florida History - Part 3

 Part Three: Orlandoans Remembered 

Towering nineteen stories above the skyline in 1971, the new Continental National American Insurance building on Orange Avenue became a harbinger for the next generation of buildings in downtown Orlando. Known by locals as the CNA Building, the impressive skyscraper set an example of excellence for other downtown high-rises to follow, launching a transformation from a small southern city into a World-Class Metropolis. Today, one must look closely to view the CNA amidst the busy Orlando skyline. One word often used to describe this evolution: “Progress.”

As the impressive new CNA building neared completion, an Orlando landmark several blocks to the north was preparing to refurbish its aging lobby. Commercial Interior Designer Dan Acito was hired to oversee the refurbishing of San Juan Hotel’s lobby. A Cincinnati transplant, (not yours truly), Dan was new to the Central Florida area, having relocated his established Ohio based business to Winter Park in 1968.

The original San Juan Hotel Circa 1885

Nearly a decade after his San Juan Hotel remodeling project, “progress” led to the historic hotel falling victim to the wrecking ball. Acito was at that time quoted as saying, “we decided if we can’t save the building physically, we’ll save it visually.” The "we" for whom Dan Acito was speaking was the Orlando Remembered group, an organization he and a dozen others had organized in the aftermath of the destruction of the San Juan Hotel.

Organized as a Committee of the Orange County Historical Society, the mission of the Orlando Remembered group included the placement of displays in downtown lobbies to memorialize the historic structures that once graced Orlando’s downtown district. One of the early displays was of the San Juan Hotel, but in June 1985, “250 people helped unveil the Orlando Remembered memorabilia display of the Bass Hotel – Spanish Restaurant Block.”

The historic Bass Hotel, operated by Walter C. Bass, an Orlandoan proclaimed in 1973 to be a “City Father,” was the proprietor of the hotel which once stood alongside the historic Wilmott Building, on the east side of South Orange Avenue, where today stands the CNA Building. The Bass Hotel, prior to Walter acquiring the hostelry, had originally been known as the Astor Hotel.

 1915 Orlando Directory for the Astor Hotel

Orlando’s Astor Hotel of 1914 occupied the upper two floors of the newly completed Giles-Hovey Building. Constructed by Orlandoans James L. Giles and C. A. Hovey, their three-story building stood beside the Wilmott Building, completed around 1914 by the legendary Captain Wilmott.

Historic structures are not merely architecturally pleasing, they remind us too of the remarkable individuals, men and women, who transformed a free-range cow pasture into a vibrant Orlando we know and love today. Remembering their buildings are but one reason for preserving the magnificent structures of yesteryear. They are also memorials to the Orlandoans who built them. 

Still, for Orlando anyway, it seems to have been a challenge – albeit labor of love – for those who have struggled over the years to preserve the visions of yesteryear. They did so under various Society names, but they all had one thing in common - saving the past.

We may not have an Orlando Historical Society anymore, but we do have individuals still trying to preserve the past. And Orlando Remembered, for nearly 44 years now, has been one such organization doing just that.

This is your invitation to an extra-special Orlando event. 

If Central Florida history is of interest to you, we at Orlando Remembered invite you to attend our meeting on 18 October 2023. Free and open to the public, this meeting is held on the 2nd floor of the downtown library, where at 10:15 AM on that date, we will present, “Remembering Orlandoans,” an exclusive visual history of some of the remarkable men and women who have participated in the founding and development of Orlando.

Worth repeating is this, our 10:15 AM event is free and open to the public.

Custodians of Orlando, Florida History - Part 2

 Custodians of Central Florida Hisotry

Part Two: This Dog has History

“This dog has a history,” a catchy 9 November 1956 headline for an Orlando Sentinel article in which a piece of tree bark, in the shape of a dog, was described as one of the items on display at the Orange County Museum. The museum was located then “in the old red brick courthouse.”

Described as a piece from the historic Council Oak tree near Pineloch Lake, a photo of the tree bark artifact (shown with this post) had also been an exhibit in ‘Orlando in the Long, Long Ago’ (1938), by author Kena Fries. Miss Fries, daughter of Orange County surveyor John O. Fries, wrote of visiting the old Council Oak in September of 1904, and of her picking up the tree bark, “a chip with the most peculiar markings and shape, resembling a watch dog.” Kena Fries also wrote that she had been visiting the residence of J. M. Alden on the day she collected the tree bark, a casual mention that is itself a statement chock full of intriguing Orange County history.

Known as the ‘Yankee Artist of the Pacific Coast,’ James M. Alden retired in 1891 after 57 years in the Navy. He had been a participant in the Navy’s West Coast Expedition and his paintings of that journey are today valuable collector items. In his later years with the Navy, Alden served in Washington, DC as Secretary to Rear-Admiral David Dixon Porter. Upon retiring he and wife Frances (Hewlett) Porter purchased an existing home on the west shore of Lake Pineloch, a home that had originally been the residence of Francis W. Eppes, the grandson of President Thomas Jefferson. Francis Eppes began building his home in 1871, and although remodeled a time or two over the past 150 years, his historic residence continues to stand guard over Lake Pineloch.

We do not know if Kena Fries was aware of the history of the Alden residence, or of the artistic talent of James M. Alden, who would later paint the dead and decaying Council Oak. In 1915, Clarence E. Howard, in his book ‘Early Settlers of Orange County,’ included a black and white photo of Alden’s ‘Council Oak’ painting. Along with the painting was a brief history of Orange County authored by Annie (Caldwell) Whitner in which she wrote: “At Fort Gatlin, stands the bleached trunk and bare widespread branches of an immense dead Live-Oak. The red men and white men met here to hold a council.”

 

Melrose Room, Second Floor downtown, Orlando Library

10:15 AM October 18, 2023

If Central Florida history is of interest to you, I invite you to attend our Orlando Remembered meeting on 18 October 2023. Free and open to the public, our meeting is held in the Melrose Room on the 2nd floor of the downtown library, where at 10:15 AM on that date, my special presentation, “Remembering Orlandoans,” will feature a visual history of the remarkable men and women who participated in the founding and development of Orlando. Worth repeating is this, our 10:15 AM event is free and open to the public.

Now, as for the historic Council Oak and the Custodians of Orlando History, this series will continue. Stay tuned!

Custodians of Orlando, Florida History

 Custodians of Orlando History

An Orlando Remembered Group Series 

By Author & Historian Richard Lee Cronin

 Part One:

Have you attended an Orlando Historical Society meeting lately? Neither have I, which is why I became curious of late as to why no such organization exists today. A Society by this name did in fact exist once upon a time but has since become part of Orlando’s rich history its members had set out to preserve.

The Orlando Historical Society was not the first such organization organized to be the custodians of Orlando’s fascinating history. As early as 1912, prior to Seminole County being carved out in 1913, Annie Louise (Caldwell) Whitner of Sanford, as Chairperson of an Orange County Historical Society formed to preserve Central Florida history, authored a brief history of the county – and included the legend of Fort Gatlin’s infamous Council Oak, a notable tree dead yet still standing near the homestead of yet another member of the early Society (more on the tree later in this series).

Historians, including yours truly, have authored numerous books about the origins of our Orange County seat of government, and in most every case, we authors relied heavily on the invaluable information passed along to us by volunteers who had taken on the role of custodians of relics and data relating to our past.

One organization the custodians of the past operated under was known as the Orlando Historical Society. Another such organization was the Orange County Historical Commission, who in 1964, opened an exhibit on the 8th floor of what was then the new Courthouse Annex (since demolished), a building which replaced the historic 1892 red brick courthouse shown with this post. One item on exhibit at that time was the bell (Insert of photo above) retrieved from the red brick courthouse just prior to its demolition.

Plan to attend this exclusive presentation

Free and Open to the public

10:15 AM October 18, 2023

Orlando Remembered Meeting

 Orlando Library Downtown

Orlando native Donald Alexander Cheney, son of Orlando pioneer Judge John M. Cheney, served as Chairman of the Orange County Historical Commission from its founding until his death in 1983; was credited as well for establishing a historical museum in Loch Haven Park; and assisted in the 1971 formation of the Orange County Historical Society, serving as its first President. Donald A. Cheney (1889-1983), said his obituary, “Virtually was the history of Orange County.”

So then, who better for us to feature in kicking off this special Orlando Remembered series?

If historic Orlandoans are of interest to you, plan to attend the October 18, 2023 Orlando Remembered meeting, in the Melrose Room on the 2nd floor of the downtown library, for a special presentation of “Remembering Orlandoans”. This free event starts at 10:15 AM and is open to the public.

Meanwhile, this Custodians of Orlando History series will be continued. Stay tuned!