The sock in the dryer

1921 Pine Castle Directory

2011-04-11T13:08:00.002-04:00

In the ongoing effort to transcribe all the Pine Castle records on file in this little corner of heaven, I am pleased to report the completion of the 1921 directory:

CLICK HERE to access the new page.

Note, this was actually excerpted from the much larger directory compiled for Orlando.

It is not perfectly alphabetical. Apparently, the original compiler(s) didn't have access to one of those handy-dandy "SORT" tabs that we have on our modern spreadsheets!

Pine Castle voter registration index, 1919-21

2011-04-10T20:32:00.003-04:00

Picking up on the Pine Castle records transcription project, I have posted an index to the local voter registration book covering the period from 1919 to 1921.

This is an important time frame, because it was the first time that women were allowed to register to vote in federal elections.

To check out the index, click on this link:

1919-21 Pine Castle Voter Registration Index

Pine Castle history hike

2011-04-09T17:15:00.003-04:00

Thanks to intrepid local historian and hiking enthusiast Steve Rajtar for combining those passions as he led this morning's tour of historic Pine Castle!

If not for the frustrating inability of the new iPad2 to accommodate Flash, yours truly would post some of the great shots snapped with said new toy.

In their absence, ye socks shall be left to your own imaginations!

2 more articles posted

2011-04-08T19:24:00.004-04:00

Keeping up with the posting of articles from the 1974 edition of the Pine Castle Pioneer Days magazine. First one is on the Council Oak, which will serve as the iconic image of the 2012 festival. (Plays well into the theme of "roots."). Second one is on the Holden Heights area.

Like most of the articles in the magazine, neither of these gives the author. I can only assume they were penned by the late Ruth Barber Linton . . .

The growing index of the 1974 articles may be found here:

Pioneer Days Magazine Articles

New magazine article posted

2011-04-07T15:06:00.005-04:00

Picking up on the Pine Castle digirecords project in this little corner of heaven, I have posted an article about the Conway neighborhood written by Mrs. Eulene Mizell Smith that was originally published in the 1974 edition of the Pioneer Days magazine:

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~oldpinecastle/pdmags/1974-early-conway.html

More to come, as time permits!

Pioneer Days Annual Board Meeting

2011-04-06T20:31:00.003-04:00

The executive committee of Pine Castle Pioneer Days, Inc., held it's annual meeting in Orlando this afternoon.

Mostly, this involved the typical year-end "housekeeping," like reviewing/amending bylaws.

But, we also voted in a slate of new board members to help direct the 2012 festival. The new members will be formally installed later this month.

In the mean time, we are still looking for folks who are interested in serving (or chairing) one of the several committees who help to make this important community event happen.

Marriage records added

2011-04-05T12:27:00.002-04:00

Slowly going thru all the Pine Castle records as part of the project mentioned in yesterday's post. Slowly. I did get the Marriage Records portion up and running. Still need to do some additions, corrections, etc. But, the bulk of the material is there, if ye socks are interested in checking it out: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~oldpinecastle/marriages/index.html

New digirecords project

2011-04-04T14:51:00.003-04:00

No doubt inspired by the latest techno gadget in this little corner of heaven, yours truly has embarked on a project that has been "in the works" for longer than anyone cares to remember.

That is, I plan to digitize all the old records I have on file related to the ancestral stomping grounds in Pine Castle.

Just getting started, so bear with me.

So far, all I've completed is page one from the 1935 state census enumeration:
click here to travel back in time

More to come later, so stay tuned!

The Land of Painted Caves

2011-04-03T18:53:00.006-04:00

That's the title of the latest offering by Jean M. Auel, one of my favorite writers.

Ye socks who may not recognize her name may be peripherally aware of the series of books she began some three decades ago with The Clan of the Cave Bear.

I had planned to buy the book last week when I first heard it was hitting the major book outlets, but held off til the latest gadget arrived from our friends at Apple.

After downloading it late last night from iBooks, I'm pleased to report that I've made it thru 8 chapters already. Some of these were done lakeside from the comfort of a folding chair I posted beneath a cypress tree full of jays and mockingbirds. The occasional breeze actually made it a little chilly in the shade, but I wasn't complaining . . . especially since the heat and humidity of the Florida summer is just around the corner.

Hoping ye socks are enjoying an equally blissful weekend!

New Toy

2011-04-02T18:41:00.000-04:00

Yours truly is pleased to report the arrival of a new gadget in this little corner of heaven: an iPad 2.

The plan is to get acquainted with Apple's latest attempt to improve the quality of life for the masses.

Said plan got a little off track today when it was determined that a new wireless router would be needed in the humble abode.

Would ye socks believe it if I told you that entering the phrase "wireless router" in a google search, that the top result is a link to WalMart?

Seriously.

I'm sure that revelation may spark conspiracy theories. So be it. The bottom line, though, was that the dastardly box store did in fact have the most competitive prices and convinced me to make the rare trek to the nearest gateway to Dante's inferno.

Long story longer, I got everything up and running with a minimum of foul language and am actually tossing this post in the dryer via aforementioned iPad2.

But, I'm sure ye socks were able to tell the difference without me pointing out the obvious. . .

Missing any socks?

2011-04-01T18:31:00.000-04:00

Apologies to ye socks who were accustomed to daily posts in the dryer over the last few years.

Several pressing things in this neck o' the woods kept yours truly from keeping up with regular blog entries.

Mostly, any spare time that I might otherwise have been able to devote to improvement of the blogosphere was consumed by the massive planning and staging of the 2011 Pine Castle Pioneer Days festival.

For more info on that, check out the event site at http://www.pinecastlepioneerdays.org or join or Facebook group. (LOTS of great new photos are posted on the latter.)

At any rate, I took another month to recover from Pioneer Days before making the commitment to getting back to The Sock in the Dryer.

Updated ahnentafel

2010-11-04T12:07:00.002-04:00

For ye socks who keep up with such things, yours truly has updated ye olde ahnentafel (ancestor table) to reflect some recently-discovered info. Primarily on the Selman family. It includes new links to the Kennon, Worsham, and Munford families of Colonial Virginia.

Here's a link to the latest:

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~oldpinecastle/ahnentafel.html

Cheers.

Have you read any of these books?

2010-11-03T14:29:00.000-04:00

I'm sure a large number of ye socks will be relieved by today's item of a non-political nature! It was forwarded to me as a sort of slam-post:

The BBC believes most people will have read only 6 of the 100 books listed here. Instructions: Bold those books you’ve read in their entirety, italicize the ones you started but didn’t finish or read an excerpt. Post your results on your blog or FB page and tag a few other bibliophiles.

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulk
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveler’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma -Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh - A.A. Milne
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan
51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52 Dune - Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Inferno - Dante
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web - E.B. White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albon
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

It's finally Election Day!

2010-11-02T05:53:00.002-04:00

Now, get out there and fire your Congressman! (Especially if you live in Florida's 8th District!)

Election Eve ballot recap

2010-11-01T05:45:00.000-04:00

U.S. Senator - Marco Rubio

U.S. Representative - Dan Webster

Governor - Rick Scott

Florida Attorney General - Pam Bondi

Florida CFO - Jeff Atwater

Florida Commissioner of Agriculture - Adam Putnam

Florida House District #36 - Greg Reynolds

State Supreme Court:

YES to retain Canady & Polston

NO to Labarga & Perry

5th District Court of Appeal:
YES to retain Cohen, Jacobus, Monaco & Torpy.

NO to Griffin

Orange County Mayor - Teresa Jacobs

Soil & Water Conservation Supervisors:

Group 2 - Montanez OR Rodriguez (leaning toward the latter)
Group 4 - J.P. Quinones

State Constitutional Amendments:
1 - YES
2 - YES
4 - NO NO NO NO . . . a million times NO!
5 - NO
6 - NO
8 - YES

Non-binding Referendum - YES

Orange County School District millage increase - NO

Happy Hallowe'en!

2010-10-31T05:44:00.000-04:00

Rick Scott for Governor

2010-10-30T05:36:00.000-04:00

Now, before all ye Alex Stink . . . er Sink . . . fans get all upset with me, let me assure you this was the toughest pick to make this election cycle. That's why it's the last one I'm featuring in a post in the dryer.

Mostly, because there was so much mud slinging.

By both candidates, admittedly.

At the end of the day, though, more mud sticks to Sink.

The most effective ad of the season were the ones showing old tape of Stink . . . I mean Sink . . . endorsing the ObamaNation's economic policies and stealth scare plans.

In light of her record as a typical Tallahassee politician who is constantly trying to find scapegoats for her own missteps and failures, I have to go with the anti-politician. It's just that type of year . . .

I hope ye socks will join me in voting for Rick Scott for Governor of Florida.

Silent Auction Nov 4th - List of items up for bid

2010-10-29T05:27:00.000-04:00

Go Magic!

2010-10-28T05:20:00.000-04:00

I know, I know. The rest of ye socks are focusing on the World Series and your favorite college football team.

In this little corner of heaven, today marks the beginning of the NBA regular season.

And, for the Orlando Magic that includes kicking things off in style at their new arena downtown.

Yours truly will be there in spirit, but still prefers the comfort and convenience of ye olde couch.

Go Magic!

WRECKED!

2010-10-27T17:16:00.000-04:00

Yours truly got into a doozy of a car accident this afternoon, at the corner of Wallace and Hansel for ye socks familiar with the roadways in this little corner of heaven.

The good news is both drivers walked away from it.

The bad news is ye olde Blazer may be totaled.

Anyway, I discovered the true value of good insurance. State Farm is treating me well (and responding quickly). They've already got the wreckage towed and put me in a nice rental.

Now, we just have to sit back and wait to see what the adjuster says . . .

This year's easiest decision

2010-10-26T06:52:00.000-04:00

Yours truly has been a fan of Marco Rubio for quite some time, since he was Florida's Speaker of the House.

Since that time, he has matured into a political force of national stature and is running to become our state's next United States Senator.

As has been noted (ad nauseum?) in this and other outlets, he was thumping our illustrious governor in the Republican primary.

Charlie Crist wouldn't take the hint, so is now running as an "independent." In truth, anyone who has lived in this little corner of heaven for any length of time knows that he is nothing more than an "opportunist." His record of flitting about from one elective office to another is the stuff of legend. He has no clear vision, except to continue drawing a government salary.

Kendrick Meek, the Democrat in the race, stands by his liberal convictions. I actually respect him for that. They just don't resonate in 2010.

I encourage all of ye socks who are registered to vote in Florida to join me in supporting Marco Rubio for U.S. Senate.

Dan Webster for Congress

2010-10-25T06:37:00.000-04:00

In 2008, a lot of folks rode the coattails of "hope and change" into high public office.

In the years since, they've demonstrated why they shouldn't be there.

No one exemplifies this more than the incumbent in Florida's 8th Congressional District.

Alan Grayson is nothing more than a purveyor of "fear and loathing," who deals in polemics and hyperbole rather than thoughtful solutions to our country's many problems.

In no way does he truly represent the people of Central Florida.

Dan Webster, on the other hand, offers a record of leadership in the state legislature. He is thoughtful and urbane. And he knows how to work with people of all political stripes to craft meaningful legislation and get it enacted.

Grayson cannot run on his record. Instead he has spent the last few months attempting to paint Webster as a member of the Taliban and misdirecting blame for the area's expensive toll roads. Sadly, we've grown used to this sort of outrageous behavior from our Congressman in this little corner of heaven.

Hopefully, most voters will be able to see beyond all of Grayson's red herrings and elect the better man.

The better man is Dan Webster. And I encourage you to vote for him if you live in Florida's 8th Congressional District.

It just dawned on me . . .

2010-10-24T08:54:00.000-04:00

Yours truly sprang out of bed this morning with unusual vigor, none of the funk that has typified Sundays around this little corner of heaven recently.

At first, I couldn't figure out exactly why.

Then, I remembered that this was a bye-week for my beloved Gators.

It's so much easier to get going when you don't have a loss hanging over your head!

Now, I just need to fear the old blue and orange mantra, "There's always next week!"

Happy Birthday, Uncle Bill!

2010-10-23T08:50:00.000-04:00

But, should a man of your advanced years be consuming so much Starbuck's coffee?!?!

Adam Putnam for Florida Commissioner of Agriculture

2010-10-22T20:41:00.000-04:00

Today, yours truly had an opportunity to meet and talk with Adam Putnam, candidate for Florida Agriculture Commissioner.

I found Adam to be well-versed on all the issues facing agriculture in our state--especially as they impact our overall economy--and believe he will do an outstanding job as Florida's next Agriculture Commissioner and as a voting member of Florida's cabinet.

Adam is from an agriculture family with deep roots in Florida (almost as deep as my own!), is a strong supporter of private property rights, and has been endorsed by:

* The Agriculture Community. He has been endorsed by all agricultural organizations that make endorsements in statewide races, including 24 county Farm Bureaus.

* The Small Business Community, including the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Associated Industries of Florida, Florida Retail Federation, and more.

* The Sportsmen Community, including the National Rifle Association, United Sportsmen of Florida, United Waterfowlers of Florida, and more.

* The Law Enforcement & Firefighter Community, including 37 County Sheriffs, Police Benevolent Association, Fraternal Order of Police, Florida Professional Firefighters Association, and more.

I encourage you to join me in casting your vote for Adam Putnam in the coming general election!

Remember Third Thursdays at Chick-fil-A!

2010-10-21T08:38:00.000-04:00

Just a quick reminder to ye socks that both South Orlando locations of Chick-fil-A will be donating all proceeds from sales made between 5pm and 8pm this and every "Third Thursday" to Pine Castle Pioneer Days.

Make sure to tell your order-taker that you are a Pioneer Days supporter so we get credit for your sales!

http://pinecastlepioneerdays.org

Say it ain't so, NPR!

2010-10-20T20:28:00.000-04:00

National Public Radio will be much poorer for firing news analyst Juan Williams today.

Apparently, they didn't like some remarks he made recently during an appearance on FoxNews.

Ye socks may recall NPR as the same network who keeps Nina Totenberg on the air after she wished AIDS on the grandchildren of a conservative senator.

It's a shame when some of the most vocal advocates for freedom of speech are only so vocal when it is convenient and gibes with their own political agenda.

I wish Mr. Williams success wherever he lands following this dismissal. He's sure to get better ratings than anyone he leaves behind at NPR.

Teresa Jacobs for Orange County Mayor

2010-10-19T19:59:00.001-04:00

Ye socks will recall how frustrated yours truly was with the very crowded field of candidates that assembled to succeed Orange County Mayor Rich Crotty earlier this year.

But, after the August primary, the field was narrowed to just two: current commissioner Bill Segal and former commissioner Teresa Jacobs.

It has been quite easy to compare and contrast these two candidates.

Both have well-documented histories in this little corner of heaven.

If the decision had to be made on demeanor alone, however, I don't see how anyone could vote for Mr. Segal.

In a recent public forum, he sat with arms crossed in what could only be interpreted as a defensive posture. Answering voters' questions, he was more than happy to rattle off how many boards and task forces he belongs to or has belonged to in the past. But, his own ideas are half-baked--particularly when it comes to cutting county employees' healthcare costs and property taxes.

When it comes to jobs, Segal made it clear that his approach as county mayor would be to act as the area's chief salesman. He would pimp out our great natural resources and public amenities to draw new businesses to the area.

At the same forum, Jacobs actively engaged each voter's question. She was leaning forward, looking each person in the eye. And, believe it or not, she actually remembered to use their names as she detailed both her experience and her vision.

Beyond body language, I really liked her answer to the question of improving the local jobs market. Rather than following the tired old formula of selling-out to outsiders, she put more emphasis on utilizing the tremendous resources we already have on hand and encouraging the LOCAL entrepreneurial spirit.

After mulling over this race for the last several months, I can now whole-heartedly endorse Teresa Jacobs for Orange County Mayor.

Pam Bondi for Florida Attorney General

2010-10-18T19:48:00.000-04:00

Both major candidates in the race to become Florida's next attorney general have demonstrated their prosecutorial skills.

Each of them have contributed to making our state a safer place by putting criminals behind bars.

But, Dan Gelber has vowed to pull Florida out of the ongoing lawsuit to thwart ObamaCare. He supports the government takeover of our nation's healthcare system.

Pam Bondi, on the other hand, has promised to keep up the fight on behalf of the majority of people in this state--indeed, the majority across the nation--who recoil at the costs to personal liberty.

Our attorney general is not simply the state's "top cop," he (or she!) must also be willing to stand up to federal infringements on state sovereignty.

On that basis, I strongly endorse Pam Bondi for Florida Attorney General.

My new Sunday t-shirt

2010-10-17T07:36:00.000-04:00

This may become a staple of ye olde weekend wardrobe around this little corner of heaven if the guys up in Gainesville don't get their act together!!

GRRRRRR!!!!

One day of blog silence for Dad on his birthday

2010-10-16T07:29:00.000-04:00

Time's up on that tax extension!

2010-10-15T07:21:00.001-04:00

A reminder to ye socks who filed for an extension on your personal federal income tax returns:

Time to pay the piper!

After all, we have stimulus plans to pay for and bail-outs to cover.

And, if that ticks you off, remember in November!

Still learning to zip my lip

2010-10-14T19:08:00.001-04:00

But, I think I'm making progress.

Still, it's sometimes difficult to decide when you can make a difference by speaking-out, and when you should just keep your mouth shut.

This morning, a discussion about Martin Luther really offended my sensibilities.

Ten years or so ago, I'm sure my reaction would have been different. Today, though, I managed to remain silent.

It wasn't easy.

In fact, it was a struggle.

But, now I'm glad discretion won out.

Sometimes speaking truth (even if it's only your own), isn't necessarily productive. Besides, truth has a tendancy of revealing itself in much more profound ways than yours truly could ever articulate.

I can have this cake and eat it, too!

2010-10-13T19:01:00.000-04:00

Ye socks who know me well, know I'm always looking for a convenient justification for birthday cake consumption.

So, I proclaimed today my "half-birthday," since it's been six whole months since my real birthday and I have to wait another six whole months til my next one.

Thought I had that worked out real well til some smart aleck whose birthday is March 31st asked how their half-birthday should be calculated since there is no September 31st on the calendar.

I suppose one could count off 182.5 days from 3/31 and figure it out that way.

Or, better yet, claim BOTH September 30th AND October 1st!

But, quit bothering me about such things. I'm trying to eat some cake over here!!

Retain Justice Polston

2010-10-12T18:46:00.001-04:00

Ok, I promise this will be the last post on merit retention this election cycle!

But, Justice Ricky Polston of the Florida Supreme Court is worthy of retention.

Though technically born across the state line in Alabama (ick!), he grew up on a small family farm here in Florida.

As a young man, he earned a degree in accounting from that institution that shall never be named in this blog. He later went back to the same place (a glutton for punishment?!) to earn a law degree.

As an attorney, he defended the state against suits filed to ban the "Choose Life" license plates ye socks may have seen on vehicles cruising around this little corner of heaven.

He has also publicly defended the state's school voucher program.

Privately, he and his wife raised four children before adopting six more from the state's foster care program.

He brings a lot to the bench.

Vote YES to retain Polston.

Happy Columbus Day . . . well, sort of . . .

2010-10-11T06:30:00.000-04:00

It's kinda hard to get into the spirit of this holiday anyway.

It's even harder when you know that the REAL Columbus Day is October 12th (tomorrow).

But, I guess it's more convenient for all the bankers and federal government workers when holidays fall on a Monday or a Friday.

If the rest of us schlubs--at least those of us lucky enough to have jobs any more--still have to show up to work today, I think it would be nice for all those bankers and bureaucrats to deliver us some Italian food for lunch or something . . .

Nothing but plant food, I assure you

2010-10-10T10:10:00.001-04:00

As further evidence of his lack of knowledge on the subject of numerology, yours truly submits the confused look he gave the clerk at Publix this morning when she told him to "enjoy your 10-10-10."

After all, I don't recall EVER buying fertilizer in my grocery store.

At least not intentionally.

Then it dawned on me she was referring to the date on today's calendar, as if it held some special significance.

In subsequent conversations with several folks during the course of the day, I have been told that it's supposed to be lucky and that a bunch of people have been planning momentous occasions to occur today. (Weddings, birth inducements, etc.)

Seems kinda ridiculous to me . . . especially since 11-11-11 is basically around the corner!

Gators fail to rebound

2010-10-09T23:10:00.000-04:00

Did any of ye socks notice last Saturday how yours truly posted some boring endorsement for a state supreme court merit retention instead of commenting on his beloved Gators?

Well, there was a reason for that.

I mean, I had a sinking feeling for several days leading up to the big match-up against Alabama.

That's right, I'll admit it retroactively. I kinda knew they were going to clean our clocks.

But, I had high hopes of a rebound this week against LSU.

Even in the sports world, the whole hopey changey thing ain't working out very well . . .

Elect Greg Reynolds in State House District 36

2010-10-08T09:56:00.000-04:00

The revolving door of candidates at our regular Friday breakfast roundtable ushered-in Greg Reynolds this morning.

Reynolds is seeking to unseat the incumbent Scott Randolph in Florida's state house district #36, which encompasses downtown Orlando and many points north (including College Park).

Randolph, it would appear, is only half-heartedly holding on to his seat in the legislature. He indicated his willingness to leave Tallahassee to complete Mildred Fernandez's term on the Orange County Commission earlier this year, but that idea went over like a lead balloon.

Reynolds, on the other hand, actually wants the seat. This is probably why he is being endorsed by folks on both sides of the political aisle, including both of our beautiful city's former mayors: Glenda Hood (a Republican) and Bill Frederick (a Democrat).

Given the opportunity to speak with Reynolds over coffee this morning, I found him to be very up-to-date on the issues facing both our district and state. As a member of the majority party in the legislature, his ideas for handling those issues would receive much more attention than anything Mr. Randolph might propose.

It doesn't hurt that Reynolds is also a sixth generation Floridian.

If you live in the 36th district, I encourage you to cast your ballot for Greg Reynolds as your next state representative.

Retain the Chief

2010-10-07T17:42:00.000-04:00

Florida's state supreme court is led by Chief Justice Charles T. Canady, who is up for a merit retention vote this year.

Canady is a native Floridian who earned a law degree from Yale University.

He returned to this little corner of heaven to establish his law practice and quickly entered the political arena . . . as a Democrat, no less.

Unfortunately, as many conservative Democrats would eventually discover, the national party left him a long time before he felt compelled to switch his registration.

He ran for U.S. Congress as a Republican in 1992, and won narrowly. In DC, he distinguished himself as a leading opponent of partial-birth abortions.

After a self-imposed term limit, Canady returned to Florida and served as general counsel to Governor Jeb Bush for a time before accepting a judicial appointment.

He was named Chief Justice by our current illustrious governor in 2008, but don't hold that against him. He deserves retention.

Vot YES to retain Chief Justice Charles T. Canady on the November ballot.

Pioneer Days general planning session

2010-10-06T05:35:00.001-04:00

As a reminder, Pine Castle Pioneer Days holds its general planning session on the first Wednesday of every month.

So, yep, it's that time again!

If you want to get involved in planning the next festival, show up at 3pm today at Belle Isle City Hall (1600 Nela Avenue).

Or, you can visit the festival website at: http://pinecastlepioneerdays.org/

Exercise your discretion in considering Labarga

2010-10-05T17:16:00.001-04:00

Justice Jorge Labarga is another candidate for the state supreme court that our illustrious governor placed on the bench ahead of more qualified jurists.

In fact, he helped him pad his resume during the process by appointing him to a seat on the 4th District Court of Appeal . . . where he served for ONE WHOLE DAY!

Labarga may be better remembered for his role in the disputed 2000 presidential election when, as a Palm Beach County judge he rejected the idea of a re-vote down there.

But attorneys who had to defend their clients against criminal charges in his courtroom remember him better for being overly anxious to crank thru his cases. Speed trumped justice in Labarga's courtroom.

A case in point was the first degree murder charge against one Mark Barrow. Despite requests to the contrary, Labarga would not allow the jury access to transcripts of testimony during their deliberations. Re-reads take too much time, he explained.

It is true the question of re-reads are completely up to the discretion of each judge. But, an appeals court subsequently slammed Labarga for proclaiming a blanket policy in lieu of actually exercising the discretion on a case-by-case basis.

Did I mention said slam was issued by the same 4th DCA on which Labarga had served for that very lengthy term of JUST ONE DAY?!

Since making the move up to Tallahassee, Justice Labarga has further distinguished himself by siding with the previously profiled Justice Perry to throw judicial roadblocks in the way of those trying to exempt Florida from ObamaCare.

Yeah, this guy is a real winner. Not.

Vote NO on retaining Labarga.

Dump Judge Perry

2010-10-04T19:14:00.000-04:00

One of the first things Governor Charlie Crist did last year after literally embracing The ObamaNation's agenda at a pro-stimulus rally was to appoint a Democrat to the state supreme court.

Said Democrat is James Perry, who lives in nearby Longwood but is a native of North Carolina and passed the bar in neighboring Georgia before moving to this little corner of heaven.

Perry was suggested to Crist as a candidate for the high court by the Orlando NAACP.

Since taking his seat on the bench up in Tallahassee, Justice Perry has distinguished himself by throwing judicial roadblocks in the way of ongoing efforts to exempt Florida from ObamaCare.

Way to go, Charlie!

The bad news is, while we know Crist is leaving Tallahassee in January, in this case the results of his maladministration will linger unless the voters of the state VOTE NO on the question of Perry's merit retention.

Vote Yes on 8!

2010-10-03T12:59:00.002-04:00

In all the recent excitement about circuit court judge retention, it seems yours truly overlooked one of the state constitutional amendments that will appear on the November ballot in this little corner of heaven.

Amendment 8 seeks to eliminate the hard caps on class sizes that were imposed on our public schools this year.

The proponents of the caps had a noble intent of improving teacher-to-student ratios. But, as is so often the case, good intentions have led us down a road to . . . well, you know.

No one likes these caps. Students are being denied elective courses. Teachers are being shuffled like so many cards in a deck. Administrators can't balance their budgets for this new house of cards. And, property owners are being asked to pay more taxes to make up the deficits for all of this.

Even the two major candidates running to become our next governor agree on this one.

The hard caps are bad.

Vote YES ON 8 to get rid of them. Give educators the flexibility to structure their classrooms to best serve our children. And, give taxpayers a break in the process.

Retain Judge Torpy . . . while you still can

2010-10-02T12:40:00.001-04:00

Yet another judge ye socks in this little corner of heaven shall be asked to consider for merit retention on the November ballot is Vincent Torpy.

Judge Torpy is a graduate of the University of Central Florida. Though he earned his law degree from another institution which shall forever go nameless in this blog, he worked as a police officer and established a law practice over in Brevard County. Before he was elevated to the bench, he returned to UCF as an adjunct law professor. So, he knows a little something about law and order.

Torpy's name was recently on the short list of candidates our illustrious governor was asked to consider for nomination to the Florida Supreme Court. Unfortunately, as is his way, he decided to go in another direction.

It is likely Governor Q-Tip's successor (whoever that may be!) won't make that mistake. In the mean time, vote yes to retain Judge Vincent Torpy on our 5th District Court of Appeals.

Retain Monaco

2010-10-01T17:04:00.000-04:00

In the ongoing effort to weed thru the records of the judges currently sitting on the 5th District Court of Appeals, yours truly can see no reason not to retain Chief Judge David A. Monaco.

The Delaware native earned his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt and is a Gator law school grad. He is also a Navy veteran.

I admire his tough sentencing in one case I discovered, involving an horrific case of domestic violence. He threw the book at the perp, giving him MORE than the 25 year maximum because he was an habitual offender.

Judges like Monaco keep creeps off the street. He merits retention.

Retain Jacobus

2010-09-30T17:53:00.000-04:00

His status as a Crist appointment notwithstanding, Judge Bruce W. Jacobus has barely served a year on the 5th District Court of Appeal before having to face a merit retention vote.

Still, he is a fairly well-known quantity in this little corner of heaven.

He grew up in Melbourne, is a Gator grad, and had previously served for quite some time as a circuit court judge over in Viera.

In my humble estimation, he deserves to be retained on the bench.

Pioneer Days finance committee meeting

2010-09-29T13:41:00.000-04:00

Thanks to the ladies at Pine Castle Woman's Club for hosting our finance committee meeting today!

They have been a community institution for 70 years.

If any of ye socks are interested in renting their clubhouse for any upcoming event(s), give them a call at 407-855-8894.

Thanks again, ladies!

Retire Griffin

2010-09-28T19:20:00.000-04:00

As mentioned in yesterday's post, Florida voters haven't voted a judge off the bench since given the power back in 1978.

If those lucky enough to find Judge Jacqueline R. Griffin on their ballot want to change history, they have a pretty good candidate.

Judge Griffin is a native of Chelsea, Massachusetts, and grew up a Navy brat. At least part of her childhood was spent in Cuba, where she apparently fell in love with the Spanish language. That was her major at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and it was the subject she taught at Lyman High School locally back in the early 1970s.

She's been on the 5th District Court of Appeals since 1989.

Yours truly has been peeved with her for a couple of years, since she voted against making court records available via the internet. Fortunately, the rest of the panel voted the other way.

Still, I think it may be a time for a change here, perhaps allowing a new judge with greater appreciation for freedom of information and transparency to take a seat on the bench that Griffin has been warming for more than two decades . . .

Retain Cohen

2010-09-27T17:56:00.000-04:00

Judge Jay P. Cohen is a known quantity in this little corner of heaven. A native of Chicago and a Gator grad, he moved to Orlando from Sarasota some thirty years ago.

He is still getting his feet wet on the 5th District Court of appeals, having been appointed by the illustrious Charlie Crist in 2008. But, don't hold that against him.

He has a proven record as a trial judge. He is perhaps best known locally for throwing the book at the dirtbag who beat his kid with a hot oven rack back in 1999. He also presided over the trial that held Learjet blameless in the death of golfer Payne Stewart.

Voters will have to decide this year whether he merits retaining his seat on the bench in what has been nothing more than a formality since the tradition started in 1978.

Florida voters have never denied retention. Not to one single judge.

If they're smart, they won't start with Cohen. He is a fair judge and deserves to remain on the 5th DCA.

Tough call

2010-09-26T15:27:00.000-04:00

Further to yesterday's post in the dryer, folks in this little corner of heaven will also be asked to vote for a Orange County Soil & Water Conservation District Superivsor #4.

I know, not very glamorous.

The candidates are incumbent Susan Clary and J.P. Quinones.

Clary is a native Floridian, albeit from the St. Petersburg area. She graduated from Rollins College and has worked for the Orlando Sentinel.

Quinones is the brother of Osceola County Commissioner John Quinones. He's a Republican, but has been frustrated in previous forays into politics. He considered running for tax assessor a couple of years ago, then later for state legislature. He has been more successful working for the Mouse, and was vice president of his union.

So, the incumbent journalist, or the former union boss?

In this case, unless something emerges between now and election day, I'll have to hold my nose and vote for Quinones. At least he's not an incumbent . . .

This race is an example of why yours truly doesn't believe in early voting.

Orange County Soil & Water Conservation District Supervisor #2

2010-09-25T13:48:00.000-04:00

This has got to be the most overlooked contest on the ballot in this little corner of heaven .

It also happens to be a crowded race.

The candidates are Timothy D. Blevins, Jose Ismael Bosque, David "Monty" Montanez, and Edward N. Rodriguez.

I found it difficult to find any information on these guys.

Only Montanez has an actual campaign website. At least his was the only one I could find.

Rodriguez has the most detailed campaign filings with the local supervisor of elections, and received some ink in the local press when he was shunned by the local Hispanic Chamber of Commerce at their straw poll.

So, it looks like those two are more serious about winning this seat.

Beyond that, they both seem like good guys. Rodriguez is a retired police detective. Montanez is a Navy veteran of both Gulf wars.

Until and unless some additional info crops up, I don't think anyone could go wrong casting their vote for either of them.

We tighten our belts . . .

2010-09-24T12:57:00.002-04:00

. . . and the gutless wonders keep trying to reach into our pockets!

It seems to me they should do some more belt tightening of their own.

I know making budget cuts isn't fun, but the public sector shouldn't consider themselves immune to the economic ills that are hitting the private sector.

In this case, the ranting applies to the Orange County School District and the "Special Referendum" they have placed on our ballots in this little corner of heaven.

They want to raise our millage rate to supplement their income to the tune of about $400 million dollars.

This will cost the average household approximately $125 MORE than what they already pay in county school taxes every year.

The demand comes at a very unfortunate time.

Yours truly would suggest Superintendent Ron Blocker and his board are shirking their duty to live within the people's means.

They need to go back to the drawing board.

Nonbinding? Then what's the point?

2010-09-23T12:44:00.001-04:00

In the ongoing enumeration of all the oddities that appear on the sample ballot in this little corner of heaven, there is no greater waste of space than the "Nonbinding Statewide Advisory Referendum" that calls for a Constitutional amendment requiring a balanced federal budget without raising taxes.

I appreciate the sentiment, I suppose.

But, if you really feel this way . . . why make it non-binding?!

Go for the gusto!

Otherwise, you're just wasting the voters' time . . . not to mention a lot of ink.

That's odd . . .

2010-09-22T12:34:00.000-04:00

In examining ye olde sample ballot, it struck yours truly as somewhat odd that it appears to be missing three proposed amendments.

Pun intended.

After some digging, I found they were stuck down by the courts for various reasons.

For the edification of ye socks, they were:

Amendment 3 - would have capped property tax increases on non-homesteads at 5% per year.

Amendment 7 - was deemed redundant, as provisions were covered by Amendments 6 and 7 (which are, in my humble opinion, fairly redundant themselves and should have been consolidated into one single amendment).

Amendment 9 - was a half-baked response to ObamaCare that sought to ban health insurance mandates. But, it overreached in trying to also prohibit the state legislature from imposing RomneyCare on Floridians . . . as if that was a reasonable expectation. In their rush at overreaching, the crafters of the amendment employed some rather awkward wording. That is what ulitmately undid them.

And, now you know why there are gaps in the sample ballots in this little corner of heaven!

Vote NO on Amendments 5 & 6

2010-09-20T11:17:00.003-04:00

These proposed amendments to the Florida constitution are well-intentioned in that they seek to prevent the state legislature from gerrymandering district lines to favor one party over another.

It really is annoying that we are home to such wildly-drawn boundary lines like those of U.S. House district #3. It snakes along the St. Johns River between Jacksonville and Orlando with the express purpose of encompassing as many African American voters within its boundaries--and thus assure Democratic incumbent Corinne Brown perpetual re-election to Congress.

That is irksome.

Nonetheless, these are half-baked solutions that would inevitably result in throwing far too many redistricting issues into our already-too-busy court system. By their own admission, "The fiscal impact cannot be determined precisely. State govenment and state courts may incur additional costs if litigation increases beyond the number or complexity of cases which would have occurred in the amendment's absence."

So, bottom line, I sympathize. But, I still plan to vote NO on 5 and 6.

Vote NO on Amendment 4

2010-09-19T11:07:00.000-04:00

This one is a doozy, ye socks.

If passed, it would require a public referendum on every proposed amendment for local comprehensive land use plans.

That would be disastrous.

The crazy thing is this has been demonstrated quite clearly over in St. Pete Beach, where a local ordinance was passed along these lines.

Misgivings over the infringements on property rights aside, this proposal would be a JOBS KILLER.

That alone should encourage Floridians to vote NO on 4!

Happy Birthday, Bodo!

2010-09-18T11:05:00.000-04:00

Vote YES on Amendment 2

2010-09-17T22:51:00.001-04:00

In the ongoing effort to make heads-or-tails out of ye olde sample ballot, yours truly came across another no-brainer in supporting Amendment 2:

Proposing an amendment to the State Constitution to require the Legislature to provide an additional homestead property tax exemption by law for members of the United States military or military reserves, the United States Coast Guard or its reserves, or the Florida National Guard who receive a homestead exemption and were deployed in the previous year on active duty outside the contintental United States, Alaska, or Hawaii in support of military operations designated by the Legislature. The exempt amount will be based upon the number of days in the previous calendar year that the person was deployed on active duty outside the continental United States, Alaska, or Hawaii in support of military operations designated by the Legislature. The amendment is scheduled to take effect January 1, 2011.

Our military families bear a tremendous burden on our behalf every day, but especially when their loved-ones are deployed overseas. In the case of reserves and National Guard troops, this can have a huge (negative) impact on their family budgets because it often means a cut in pay from their private sector jobs. We should do anything we can to lighten their burden, and Amendment 2 does that.

Vote YES on Amendment 1

2010-09-16T22:30:00.000-04:00

So, today yours truly received his sample ballot in the mail.

Though Election Day is still several weeks away, I admit to having made up my mind already on several of the contests.

But, all the amendments, judges, soil and water district stuff, etc., is going to require some research before I can cast an educated vote.

Today, I did some digging on Amendment 1, and thought I'd toss the findings into the dryer for the edification of ye socks. Well, at least ye socks who will be asked to answer the same question:

Proposing the repeal of the provision in the State Constitution that requires public financing of campaigns of candidates fore elective statewide office who agree to campaign spending limits.

This is pretty self-explanatory. Why should we be spending state money to fund political activity, especially in this budget-crunching environment when it is needed elsewhere?

If the idea was to shrink the costs of campaigning in Florida, it has been an horrific failure.

Besides, Uncle Sam gives plenty of our federal dollars to candidates.

So, I plan to vote YES ON 1, to keep our state dollars out of the mix so they may be reallocated to budget items that will actually improve the quality of life around this little corner of heaven.

Marco Rubio interview

2010-09-15T23:42:00.000-04:00

Don't know how many of ye socks caught Greta Van Susteren's interview of Marco Rubio tonight.

For those of you who aren't privileged to live in this little corner of heaven, Rubio is the former Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives and is currently running for the U.S. Senate.

After watching this interview, I don't know how anyone could vote for either of the two guys running against him.

This guy is a rising star, and will represent Florida as well in DC as he did in Tallahassee.

In fact, if I had to lay money on it, I'd bet he could be on the GOP ticket in 2012 . . .

Got pilgrims?

2010-09-14T11:28:00.000-04:00

A recent article in the Boston Globe reminds us that it's never too late for some Thanksgiving:

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2010/09/12/pilgrims_in_the_family_tree/?fb_ref=art&fb_source=home_oneline

Yours truly has tossed some posts in the dryer about his own Mayflower connections over the years.

If you think you might have a connection of your own, try cross-checking your family tree with this "official" list of passengers:

http://www.mayflowerfamilies.com/mayflower/mayflower_passenger_list.htm

Got a little ink in the Sentinel yesterday

2010-09-13T10:07:00.001-04:00

In case ye socks missed it, yours truly was quoted in an article about the infamous Jane Green.

Check it out: http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2010-09-12/news/os-osceola-jane-green-cemetery-2-20100910_1_family-history-new-e-mail-new-sign

Pine Castle Historical Markers - part 10

2010-09-12T09:56:00.000-04:00

THE TRAIN STOP

The South Florida Railroad came to Pine Castle in 1881, connecting Orlando and Kissimmee with two trains a day. A trip to Orlando cost 15 cents, and the train made three stops along the way, unless additional stops had to be made for the occasional alligator or cow that had wandered upon the tracks. As the local citrus industry grew, growers found it convenient to ship fruit from the Pine Castle station.

The coming of the railroad speeded up mail delivery. Outgoing mail was put in mailbags and hooked onto a pole and picked up as the train went by, and incoming mail was thrown from the train onto a platform near the station depot.

In 1893, the Plant System purchased the South Florida Railroad and in 1902, the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad acquired the Plant System. In 1967 the latter railroad merged into the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad which eventually passed to CSX. Although trains no longer stop in Pine Castle, freight and Amtrak trains still pass through daily.

Pine Castle Historical Markers - part 9

2010-09-11T09:54:00.000-04:00

UNION CHURCH

The first church in the Pine Castle area was established on the shores of Lake Jessamine in 1876, by local Presbyterians. But, this congregation later merged with First Presbyterian Church of Orlando, and their building was put to other use. Other early denominations met in the homes of members.

In 1900, a need for an interdenominational church building in Pine Castle motivated local women to organize the Christian Workers Society, raise money for the building, and help the needy. The group sponsored ice cream socials, oyster stew dinners, and box suppers. Men in the community contributed to the project by cutting timber and hauling logs to the nearest saw mill at Smithville (now Taft). Once the logs were cured, they built the Union Church on the northeast corner of South Orange Avenue and Wallace Street.

On alternating Sundays, ministers came from Orlando and elsewhere to conduct Methodist, Baptist, and Missionary Alliance services. The small congregations generally attended each others services. It was not unusual for a minister to start shouting during a service in order to be heard over a passing train.

In 1910, a parish house was built behind the church that was used not only for Sunday school, but also for entertainment and other community gatherings. The church property was deeded to Methodist-Episcopal Church South in 1930. At the end of the 1950s, the building was moved to State Road 15A, north of Narcoossee near Lake Whippoorwill, in order to be used as a Baptist mission.

Pine Castle Historical Markers - part 8

2010-09-10T09:53:00.000-04:00

DIXIE HIGHWAY

This section of Orange Avenue was a part of the Dixie Highway, the first road connecting the North to the South. It opened in October 1925, and travelers could begin at the northern border of Michigan and journey to Miami, Florida. So many cities wanted to have the roadway that the Dixie Highway grew into a vine-like network of interconnected paved roads rather than a single thoroughfare, each identified by the simple signage of white DH letters on a red background.

In Florida, the route passed through Tallahassee and Jacksonville and proceeded south along the East Coast. Lobbying produced an additional inland route passing through Gainesville, Ocala, Winter Park, Orlando, Kissimmee, Bartow, and Acadia, rejoining the coastal route at Palm Beach. The paving of the Dixie Highway from Sanford to Kissimmee in 1916 put Pine Castle on the country’s primary north-south road until US 441 was built two miles to the west in the 1930s. It became the main route and also was known locally as State Road 2 and Black Bear Trail.

Pine Castle Historical Markers - part 7

2010-09-09T09:52:00.000-04:00

PINE CASTLE

Will Wallace Harney came to Florida in 1869 seeking a better climate for his wife’s health. He purchased a 160-acre homestead on the western side of Lake Conway and called the grand home he built Pine Castle. The village that developed near his property adopted the name and, on December 8, 1879, the post office was officially established. Harney subdivided his property, and from 1880-1895, Pine Castle appeared on the Orange County planning map as a new development.

More than 300 people lived in Pine Castle in the early 1920s, and some residents wanted it incorporated during this boom period. During the planning stages, it became evident that different groups of residents had different visions for the town. As a result, three separate towns were organized: Belle Isle, Edgewood, and Pine Castle. But when the real estate market crashed later in the decade, they had difficulty sustaining their tax bases. Incorporated in February 1925, Pine Castle’s government ended in 1929. With its charter dissolved, it became an unincorporated part of Orange County.

Pine Castle Historical Markers - part 6

2010-09-08T09:50:00.000-04:00

CORRECT CRAFT

In 1925, Walter C. Meloon moved his family from New Hampshire to Pine Castle and started the Florida Variety Boat Company with two other partners. The building, located on the southeast corner of Randolph and Hoffner Avenues, was constructed with blocks that once housed the old theater and later the water works plant. In 1930, Meloon became the sole owner and changed the name of the company to Pine Castle Boat and Construction Company. Eight years later, the company became known as Correct Craft. When the company needed more space, it moved to Orange Avenue.

During World War II, the army asked the Meloons to build storm boats capable of crossing the treacherous Rhine River, Germany’s last natural line of defense in the West. For a company that normally built forty-eight boats a month, the government’s request for 300 boats in three weeks seemed impossible. Yet, the boat builders not only fulfilled the contract, but also made 100 boats to spare. The family-owned business, operated from the same location until June 2006, when its need for expansion forced the company to move to East Orange County.

Pine Castle Historical Markers - part 5

2010-09-07T09:49:00.000-04:00

PINE CASTLE SCHOOLS

Early education in the new community of Pine Castle was carried out casually, often in someone’s home, but Orange County established a formal school district in 1869. A school had to have a minimum of 10 students to receive county funds. Pine Castle’s first school, a rough-hewn structure, was built in 1877 on the corner of Orange and Hoffner Avenues. Textbooks were donated by Will Wallace Harney.

The first teacher was Mrs. Jennie Preston (1831-1904), the namesake for nearby Lake Jennie Jewell. Teacher salaries were dependent upon daily average attendance and could be increased or decreased by the school board according to the average that had to be certified each month. For the 1888-1889 school year, the county paid Pine Castle salaries totaling $33.00.

In the 1880s, a new school building was built on the northern part of the present school grounds, and it also was of similar design, containing rough desks and seats.

In 1900, a new school on the same grounds was constructed of finished lumber and had louvered shutters at its windows, and by 1912, an increase in the student population resulted in the building of a two-story building.

An additional school, a two-story stucco building, was built in 1924, during Pine Castle’s boom years. Expansion continued with the addition of new buildings, including an auditorium. By 1952, the school could only be used for elementary students while older students were transported to other Orange County schools.

Pine Castle Historical Markers - part 4

2010-09-06T09:48:00.000-04:00

CONWAY CHAIN OF LAKES

Native Americans called the region surrounding the Conway chain of lakes as “Okehitanatchee,” translated as “land of fair waters.” In 1843, Benjamin Whitner of nearby Mellonville was awarded a contract to survey lands in this vicinity, and named Lake Conway for his superior Valentine Yelverton Conway, Surveyor General of Florida. Until development and drainage changes in the 1900s, seasonal rains transformed the Conway chain into one big lake. Now Hoffner Avenue divides North and Middle Lake Conway, and Nela Avenue divides Middle and Little Lake Conway.

Early settlers used the lake for drinking water, bathing, food, and entertainment. Prominent Orlando citizens such as the Dickson family of Dickson and Ives Department Store had summer homes on the lake where they came to fish and swim.

Crittenden Dock was located where Randolph Avenue, a road Will Wallace Harney named for his wife’s family, dead ends at Lake Conway. It has long been a favorite recreation spot, and as early as 1882 guests at the adjacent Macy Hotel used it to launch pleasure cruises and fishing expeditions. The Crittenden family acquired the site and built a dock that was popular with swimmers and boaters. In 2000, Charles and Pearl Crittenden deeded the property to Orange County for use as a public boat ramp.

Pine Castle Historical Markers - part 3

2010-09-05T09:47:00.000-04:00

MACY HOTEL

William H. Macy (1819-1903) came to this area as a government surveyor in the years immediately following the Civil War, and was elected to the Orlando city council in 1878. An engineer by training, he followed the rail lines south to the Pine Castle area and opened a blacksmith shop west of the tracks. This shop served as the town’s first Sunday School meeting place until it burned in 1884.

His wife Martha J. Macy (1835-1906) acquired 10 acres of Will Wallace Harney’s original homestead lands, which later encompassed the site of the modern First Baptist Church of Pine Castle. Here, Mrs. Macy operated the town’s first hotel, with many of her guests brought from Orlando by “Macy Wagons” built by her stepson George Macy. After the railroad arrived in 1881, visitors also arrived by train at the nearby South Florida Railroad depot.

In 1894, Mrs. Macy deeded a half-acre of the hotel land at what is now the northeast corner of Randolph Avenue and Hoffner Road to the local Baptist congregation. Though now paved over, it is believed that she and other family members were buried there.

Pine Castle Historical Markers - part 2

2010-09-04T09:45:00.000-04:00

PLEASURE BEACH

Wallace Road was named by Pine Castle founder Will Wallace Harney for his mother’s family. The point where the road dead-ends at Lake Conway became known as “Pleasure Beach,” and was a popular gathering place for area residents, especially in the 1920s. Church, school, and family picnics were held on the shore, and the Union Church used the lake water for baptisms. There was a long dock containing park-like benches and at the end, low and high diving boards and a water slide. Canoes were available for rides around the lake.

The nearby pavilion contained a bath house on the first floor and a place for dancing and skating upstairs. Slot machines were installed, drawing people from as far away as Windermere and Apopka to gamble. The pavilion burned in the late 1920s, but the dock and beach continued to be used by the public. In the 1940s, a family built a home on the property and closed the beach to the public.

Pine Castle Historical Markers - part 1

2010-09-03T09:32:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, a group of us met to plan a series of historical markers to be placed in the Pine Castle area. I thought I'd share the rough drafts with ye socks and welcome your edits/input. Currently, we have come up with five signs with verbage on front and back of each. So, a total of ten blurbs. Here's the first:

THE PINE CASTLE HOMESTEAD

Will Wallace Harney built a large English-style home he called “Pine Castle” on his homestead along the western shore of Lake Conway in 1873. The house was constructed from the pine trees which grew on his land. Two turrets flanked the front entrance of the house, and the boards that formed the exterior walls were attached vertically instead of the more common horizontal method.

Harney planted a variety of crops on his homestead lands, but made his living primarily as a writer. He became an unofficial ambassador for Florida during the 1870s, through articles about the wonders of the state he submitted to newspapers such as the Cincinnati Commercial. With his words, he transported readers to the exotic land of orange groves, pine forests, and alligators when Florida tourism was in its infancy.

In 1884, Harney left his Pine Castle to move to Kissimmee and establish a weekly newspaper dubbed “The Bittersweet.” His once grand old home was left vacant and fell into disrepair before being destroyed by fire in 1894. Mr. Harney then retired to Jacksonville, where his only son had settled.

Happy Birthday, Valda!

2010-09-02T09:29:00.000-04:00

Looking forward to introducing you to P.f. Chang's tomorrow!

We'll have to try one of those lettuce wraps . . .

No, seriously. We'll have to!

Pioneer Days plans progressing well!

2010-09-01T21:34:00.000-04:00

We had a good general planning session this afternoon.

To find out more, check out the festival website:
http://pinecastlepioneerdays.org

or

email pinecastlepioneerdays@hotmail.com

Not exactly what I expected . . .

2010-08-31T11:20:00.000-04:00

So, last night yours truly whipped-up some bow tie pasta.

Made so much, in fact, that we had abundant leftovers around this little corner of heaven.

Now, that's not a frequent occurence!

Anyway, I packed up some of the leftovers in one of the handy dandy containers I found in ye olde cubbard.

Confession: I cannot seem to bring myself to throw out any old containers.

I guess, I got bit bad by the recycling bug.

Or, more likely, I'm just too cheap to buy Tupperware.

At any rate, the container I pulled out of the cubbard was an old "Country Crock" tub. Kinda tacky, but it did the job.

The problem today, is I only now discovered that during the mad scramble to get out the door this morning I picked up the actual tub of "Country Crock" out of the refirgerator instead of the leftover pasta.

Faux butter just isn't appetizing . . . at least not on its own.

Guess this means I need to run out for lunch.

Maybe, I should buy some Gladware while I'm out?

Red Box

2010-08-30T12:17:00.000-04:00

Is it just this little corner of heaven, or are these Red Box things sprouting up all over the place?

Yours truly stumbled across one today during a run to ye olde neighborhood grocery store.

Thought I'd give it a try.

Amazingly simple.

Almost TOO simple.

Must be why Blockbuster and Netflix are hurting so much lately . . .

For more info, check out www.redbox.com

Cheers.

One place, many definitions

2010-08-29T16:45:00.001-04:00

Many years ago, Ruth Linton told me it was impossible to define Pine Castle in geographic terms. "It's more of a state of mind," she said.

To be sure, folks struggled to define the region surrounding the Conway chain of lakes south of Orlando as far back as recorded history survives around this little corner of heaven.

Government surveyor Benjamin Whitner flattered the man who signed his federal contract in the 1830s by naming the chain "Conway" after him.

But, according to one of the letters in my current anthology project, Will Wallace Harney claims the Seminoles called the area "Okehitanatchee." According to him, this translated as "land of fair waters." (Can anyone confirm or refute this?)

Harney originally dubbed his vast estate on the shores of Lake Conway, "Okatoulypes." As noted in a previous post, I have no idea what that word might mean. Sounds Greek, no?

Anyway, Harney eventually settled on the more rustic term, "Pine Castle." His neighbors liked it so well, they began applying it to the entire area.

At different times since then, Pine Castle has extended as far north as Michigan Street in Orlando and as far south as the Osceola County line.

For a brief time, from the Florida Land Boom of the 1920s until the Great Depression, Pine Castle was an incorporated town.

The name "Pine Castle" still survives today, and is celebrated with an annual festival. (See http://pinecastlepioneerdays.org)

But, you never hear anyone using the name "Okatoulypes" or "Okehitnatchee" anymore . . .

If this doesn't make you go Vegan . . .

2010-08-28T16:37:00.000-04:00

. . . at least it will make you question what went into bringing home the bacon.

The following gem of a quote comes from the Will Wallace Harney anthology project. He included it in an 1871 letter:

"Everything that buzzes or flies, everything that bites or stings is familiar in Florida. The red bug, of the loathsome chinch genus I think, buries itself under the cuticle and makes a purulent sore. Mosquitos [sic] and sand flies, of course. In Northern Florida is a curious variety of the first, called the blind mosquito. It flies in clouds, darkening the air and fouling the dishes. So abundant are they said to be--I give the story for what it is worth--that hogs are fattened on their carcasses. How would you like such indirect cannibalism as eating mosquito-fed pork?"

It's all Greek to me!

2010-08-27T16:25:00.002-04:00

One of the most frustrating things I've encountered in the current anthology project is the affinity Will Wallace Harney had for ancient languages.

Even more frustrating has been the process of trying to translate the Latin and Greek quotes that pepper his writings.

Fortunately, a lot of them come from classic texts. So, I eventually find something after a few Google searches.

But, I'm stumped when it comes to these two words:

OIKAMOULYSSES - He used this as his signature on one 1871 letter.

OKATOULYPES - He included this in the byline of an 1872 letter, indicating that he used it as the name of his estate before he settled on the more familiar "Pine Castle."

Any help deciphering these words would be greatly appreciated.

Warning, there may be some orthographic problems. Harney's original letters were handwritten, in cursive script. Then a typesetter up in Cincinnati put them into print. Then a professor made photocopies back in the 1970s. And, now my weary eyes are involved.

Harney quote of the day

2010-08-26T16:18:00.000-04:00

In the ongoing anthology project, yours truly came across this rather timely quote from Will Wallace Harney.

Well, perhaps "timely" isn't the best adjective, given that it dates from 1872. But, he did write it in AUGUST of that year . . .

Anyway, I hope you enjoy his modest wit as much as I do:

I consider myself a remarkable man. I am that identical “prominent citizen” whose “views on the great political issues of the day” the Commercial doesn’t care for. All others are worried to “tell all they know in five words.” My opinions, like home brewed ale or blackberry wine, are set aside to cool or gather bouquet and are never destined to be sold over the public counter at twenty-five cents a drink.

An indicator of things to come?

2010-08-25T18:10:00.000-04:00

Well, it seems outside of this dryer there wasn't much enthusiasm for yesterday's primary election in Orange County.

Only 129,343 folks actually cast ballots . . . that's about 21% of registered voters.

Still, I'm told that is good for a primary in an off-year. Really?! 21% is good?!

Of those who did get off their rumps to vote, it would appear the enthusiasm is decidedly on the Republican side.

Orange County as a whole is 44% Democrat, 31% Republican, and 25% other.

Yesterday, the percentages were 53% Republican, 38% Democrat, and 9% other.

If this level of enthusiam can be sustained til the general election, it will definitely be a November to Remember.

Exercise your franchise!

2010-08-24T06:48:00.000-04:00

It's Primary Day in Florida!

Primary endorsements - part 9

2010-08-23T21:43:00.000-04:00

Just to recap my picks in tomorrow's primary election:

Florida Attorney General: Pam Bondi

State Representative (District 36): Greg Reynolds

Orange County School Board Chair: Bill Sublette

Orange County Commission (District 5): Ted Edwards

U.S. Senate: Marco Rubio

U.S. Congress (District 8): Kurt Kelly

Orange County Mayor: undecided . . . (leaning toward Jacobs as of this moment)

Florida Governor: also undecided . . . (leaning toward Scott as of this moment)

Primary endorsements - part 8

2010-08-22T15:36:00.001-04:00

Yours truly had to save the GOP primary for Florida Governor til last in this series about the upcoming primary.

This one got down and dirty, and it did so WAY too fast.

In fact, I would venture to say the real winner in all this mudslinging is Alex Sink.

What ever happened to the good ole days of never speaking ill of another Republican?

If you believe the ads being put out by Attorney General Bill McCollum and political outsider Rick Scott, both men are rabid abortionists?

Hardly.

It's time to tamp down the vitriole, guys.

I suppose I give Scott credit for the "Let's get back to work" theme. At the very least, that indicates that he gets it on some level that folks in this state are more worried about their jobs than anything else.

At the end of the day, I think what Florida Republicans have to decide is whether McCollum has spent the last three decades as "a political insider" or "a trusted public servant."

Hold your nose and pick one. That's what I'm doing this Tuesday.

Primary endorsements - part 7

2010-08-21T17:15:00.001-04:00

Yours truly has no idea who he will vote for when it comes to the race for Orange County Mayor: Matt Falconer, Teresa Jacobs, Bill Segal, or Linda Stewart.

Some would call Falconer a radical, others a gadfly. I've had the opportunity to meet him personally on a couple of occasions, and have read the book he published about the virtues of consolidating local government. I don't buy-in to that notion, but I do like how he's making the establishment quake . . . even if only so slightly.

Jacobs is a former commissioner who jumped in later than the rest. I like her personally, but question the whole fire in the belly thing.

A lot of developers I know are supporting Segal (my current commissioner), saying he has a pro-business common sense. On the other hand, he and his wife have given a LOT of money to some extreme left-wingers. I don't like the implications that has for how he'd behave during the 2012 presidential race.

Stewart (another incumbent commissioner) is unabashedly liberal, and you have to respect that. You may not always agree with her on policy (and I almost never do), but you do always know where she will stand. And, she has been very supportive of efforts to preserve our local history.

Bottom line: pick one. This one looks like it's headed for a run-off, anyway. So, the real decision won't have to be made til November . . .

Primary endorsements - part 6

2010-08-20T17:56:00.000-04:00

If ye socks needed any indication just how anxious we are in this little corner of heaven to be rid of the walking embarassment who "represents us" in Congress, ye need only take a look at just how crowded the GOP primary is to topple him. The candidates are:

Ross Bieling
Dan Fanelli
Kurt Kelly
Todd Long
Bruce O'Donoghue
Patricia Sullivan
Dan Webster

Of Bieling and Fanelli, I know very little. I don't think anyone considers them to be serious contenders, though they could play spoilers in a race where every percent of the vote counts.

Sullivan is closely associated with the TEA Party folks around here, but her base seems to be primarily in Lake County.

Long comes with some serious baggage, left over from his race for this same seat two years ago. His frequent air time on local radio and the early and broad distribution of a book this year have kept him in the race. But, he is clearly not the best candidate.

The top tier, then, are Kelly, O'Donoghue, and Webster.

Frankly, yours truly would not be disappointed with any of these guys.

Webster has been a personal favorite since he endorsed Mike Huckabee back in 2008. He is a well-known quantity in these parts as the former leader of the state senate and, more recently, for investigating the shenanigans over at the Expressway Authority. The only knock on him is that he explicitly bowed-out of the race last year, only to jump back in later. This leaves me questioning whether he really has the fire in his belly to take on the dastardly incumbent . . .

I have had the opportunity to meet O'Donoghue over breakfast, and found him to be a charming (albeit understated) gentleman. He is "one of us," and as such would truly be representative of the district. But, I am concerned that he may be too urbane. How will he stack-up against the overwhelming personality of the general election opponent?

I have also had the opportunity to meet Kelly on a couple of occasions, most recently just this morning. He has already earned the endorsements of many of my friends and relations. After looking him in the eye and hearing his responses to today's questions about the campaign, I have been swayed into his camp. (Check out Kurt's site at http://www.kellyforcongress.com .)

But, again, I can live with any of the last three candidates. All are infinitely better than the goofball who currently disgraces Florida's 8th District.

Primary endorsements - part 5

2010-08-19T17:51:00.000-04:00

This one should come as no surprise to ye socks.

Marco Rubio is my pick in the GOP primary for U.S. Senate.

A lot of us around this little corner of heaven were relishing the thought of his trouncing Charlie Crist, but I guess Governor Q-Tip will have to wait til November . . .

The two remaining opponents on the ballot (Billy Kogut and William Esoffery) stand no chance.

To find out more about this rising star, check out his website: http://www.marcorubio.com

Primary endorsements - part 4

2010-08-18T17:44:00.001-04:00

Another non-partisan race to pick today.

This time, it's for the Orange County Commission seat being vacated by Bill Segal.

The candidates are Segal's predecessor Ted Edwards and Maitland Mayor Doug Kinson.

Again, though this is supposed to be non-partisan, the party affiliations are known. This time, though, both are Republicans. So, that can't be the deciding factor . . .

At the end of the day, I guess I'll have to go with Edwards since he's been on the commission before and can hit the ground running during a year when there is going to be so much turnover on the board.

To find out more about Ted, check out his site: http://www.tededwardscampaign.com

Primary endorsements - part 3

2010-08-17T17:32:00.001-04:00

OK, let's throw a non-partisan race into the mix.

In this little corner of heaven, we will soon have our first ELECTED school board chair.

The candidates are former state legislature Bill Sublette, former county commissioner Homer Hartage, and schoolteacher Leona Rachman.

Despite the non-partisan label on this race, Hartage is a well-known Democrat. I couldn't find anything on Rachman.

Sublette, on the other hand, is a Republican. He nearly beat Ric Keller in the party primary to succeed Bill McCollum in Congress back in the 1990s.

No use crying over all the spilled milk in District 8, though. Congress's loss is the school board's gain if you join me in voting for Bill.

To find out more about his campaign, check out this site: http://www.sublette4chair.com

Primary endorsements - part 2

2010-08-16T17:24:00.000-04:00

There are two good Republican candidates in the race to topple incumbent State Rep. Scott Randolph.

They are Craig McCarthy and Greg Reynolds.

McCarthy is a lawyer. Reynolds is a small businessman.

Guess which one I prefer right off the bat?!

The local paper interviewed and liked both of them, but said McCarthy was more excited about federal issues than he was about the nuts-and-bolts kind of stuff he'd have to tackle in the state legislature.

Reynolds is ready for those nuts-and-bolts, and thus has my vote. You can find out more about him at his site: http://www.electgregreynolds.com

Primary endorsements - part 1

2010-08-15T14:09:00.000-04:00

With just a few weeks left before we head to the polls in this little corner of heaven, yours truly has received his official "sample ballot" in the mail and begun researching the candidates.

Thought I'd spend the next few days figuring out who to vote for.

Keep in mind, the posts will be limited in scope by ye olde party affiliation and official residence.

The first race is for the Republican nomination to become the next Florida Attorney General.

The candidates are attorney Pam Bondi, former Hillsborough County legislator Holly Benson, and Jeff Kotkamp (the current lieutenant governor).

I know this may be irrational, but Kotkamp immediately gets scratched off my list due to his association with Charlie Crist. Unfair? Maybe. But, it is what it is.

Couldn't find out much about Benson, but do recognize Pam Bondi from her occasional commentary on FoxNews. I also liked what I saw on her website (www.pambondi.com) about how she will continue Bill McCollum's fight against imposing ObamaCare on Floridians. And, she had some good things to say about preventing mortgage fraud and identity theft. I'm ready to give her a shot at the job.

Dumping Bright House

2010-08-14T14:04:00.001-04:00

OK, finally had it with not-so-bright louse.

Switching to AT&T U-verse.

The Rossini connection

2010-08-13T06:56:00.001-04:00

Yours truly has never fully understood all the superstition surrounding Friday the 13th.

Friday has always been one of my favorite days of the week.

And, the number 13 has always been lucky for me.

But, I guess the trouble comes in the combination of the two . . .

Anyway, I learned today that the superstition doesn't have very deep roots.

In fact, the earliest DOCUMENTED mention of it was in 1869, when biographer Henry Sutherland Edwards wrote about Italian opera composier Gioachino Rossini:

" . . . like so many other Italians, he regarded Friday as an unlucky day, and thirteen as an unlucky number, it is remarkable that on Friday, the 13th of November, he died."

Daily history lesson over. Be safe out there, ye socks!

A little on the dark side, no?

2010-08-12T21:51:00.000-04:00

Just so ye socks will have some idea of the sort of material I'm sorting thru during the preparation of the Harney anthology, at least when it comes to his poetry, I thought I'd share this little bit composed back in 1858. Many of his contemporaries considered it his best work:

THE STAB

On the road, the lonely road,
Under the cold white moon,
Under the ragged trees he strode;
He whistled and shifted his weary load--
Whistled a foolish tune.

There was a step timed with his own,
A figured that stooped and bowed--
A cold, white blade that gleamed and shone,
Like a splinter of daylight downward thrown--
And the moon went behind a cloud.

But the moon came out so broad and good,
The barn-fowl woke and crowed;
The roughed his feathers in drowsy mood,
And the brown owl called to his mate in the wood,
That a dead man lay on the road.

These things just escape me . . .

2010-08-11T21:46:00.001-04:00

Still working on ye olde anthology project, and am experiencing some mild frustration. Maybe, ye socks can help?

In the effort to collect the known writings of local author Will Wallace Harney, I have been unable to locate any copies of the newspaper he wrote in the 1880s: "The Kissimmee Bitter Sweet."

I have also been unable to find four items he published in The Southern Bivouac:

“City Building in the South,” particularly intriguing to local historians as it was published in the wake of Harney’s subdivision of his homestead land and the arrival of the South Florida Railroad in Pine Castle.
“Nirvana,” evidently a poem.
“Orange Culture,” possibly a condensed version of the material on this subject that appeared in his earlier letters.
“Wild Life in the Seventies,” also probably drawn from his earlier letters.

Any help/suggestions greaty appreciated!

Bad roommate?

2010-08-10T21:36:00.000-04:00

Ever had to live with someone you just didn't like?

Well . . .

Yours truly kinda finds himself in that position as he pores over the Harney letters mentioned in the previous post.

See, when you write about another human being, its a lot like he (or she) moves-in with you for the duration of the project. At least, that's been my experience this time around. You go to bed thinking about the subject, and you wake up thinking about him or her. They're always around.

It helps if you like theperson.

But, the more I read of Harney's writings, the more I find he's not exactly pedestal material.

Guess that just makes him human?

The History Center

2010-08-09T13:20:00.001-04:00

Thanks go out to Jim Robison today for pointing yours truly in the driection of The History Center in downtown Orlando.

In the ongoing effort to collect the writings of local author Will Wallace Harney, I made contact with research librarian Tana Porter about a cache of his letters that are in their collection.

Imagine my surprise when I got down there this morning to discover that I recognized Tana as one of the volunteers who helped show ye olde abode during the College Park Historic Homes Tour a couple of years ago! Small world!

Anyway, she kindly provided me access to said letters and I spent some time making an index to aid in the compilation of an anthology I hope will be completed in time for Pioneer Days' November 4th launch party . . . didn't realize how extensive the collection was going to be . . . when it rains it pours!

Even if ye socks aren't a research geek like yours truly, The History Center is a must-see if your weekend itinerary carries you downtown. They are located at 65 East Central Boulevard. For more info, see their website at: http://www.thehistorycenter.org

Pine Castle in WWII - part 6

2010-08-08T11:02:00.001-04:00

Local servicemen enumerated in the 1945 Florida state census (name, address, age, place of birth, branch of service):

Singletary, Ralph
Box 172
33
SC
HS
Air Corps

Slusher, Matt
Pinecastle
23
KY
HS
Air

Snow, Julius
Box 1012
23
IL
HS
Army

Spotswood, Lt. Henry
Box 334
28
VA
College
Air Corps

Stiber, Edmund
Rte 1, Orlando
30
WI
HS
Army

Streechon, George P.
Belle Isle
25
NJ
College
Army

Strout, William
Pinecastle
24
MA
HS
Air Corps

Sunday, Bryan
Box 140
22
FL
HS
Army

Sunday, Joseph
Box 140
24
FL
10th
Navy

Taylor, Ellis G.
PC Hotel
23
VA
HS
Army

Taylor, Orvis
Box 565
28
FL
8th
Navy

Taylor, Vernon
Rte 1, Orlando
19
MO
College
Navy

Taylor, William R.
216 Jackson
26
NJ
8th
Army

Teagarden, Jack
Box 504
45
WV
HS
Army

Todd, Jean
Box 614
23
FL
7th
Army

Todd, Walter
Box 614
19
FL
10th
Army

Tyner, Herbert
Box 562
34
FL
HS
Navy

Vise, Harley J.
Rte 1, Orlando
23
OK
HS
Air

Vise, Lee P.
Rte 1, Orlando
17
OK
HS
Navy

Wallezer, William
Box 572
23
KY
10th
Air Corps

Wilder, John C.
Box 46
28
FL
HS
Navy

Williams, Edward
Box 133
22
FL
8th
Army

Willis, William
Box 142
22
NY
College
Army

Wills, Clinton E.
Pinecastle
21
FL
College
Army

Wilson, Leroy
Rte 1, Orlando
29
FL
11th
Paratrooper

Woodward, P.L.
Rte 1, Orlando
37
GA
HS
Navy

Yaeger, Emory, Jr.
Pinecastle
29
WV
College
Air

Pine Castle in WWII - part 5

2010-08-07T11:00:00.000-04:00

Local servicemen enumerated in the 1945 Florida state census (name, address, age, place of birth, branch of service):

Milcer, Karel
Box 1106
46
NE
College
Army

Millard, Thomas
Rte 1, Orlando
38
WI
HS
Air

Milton, James A.
Box 1018
32
IN
12th
Army

Milward, Thomas J.
Rte 1, Orlando
38
WI
HS
Air Corps

Moore, Edgar
Box 616
18
GA
8th
Navy

Morgret, Melvin
Box 1004
23
MI
HS
Army

Neff, Harold H.
Pinecastle
25
DE
College
Army

Nelson, H.J.
5 Main St
25
AR
6th
Army

Patterson, H.F.
Rte 1, Orlando
31
TX
HS
Air

Perna, Anthony
Rte 2
24
Italy
8th
Army

Pound, Wayne
Box 515
18
NC
11th
Navy

Prescott, Gordon E.
Rte 1, Orlando
29
NH
HS
Army

Price, Lester
Pinecastle
24
OK
College
Army

Profit, Robert
Box 2101
35
AL
HS
Army

Rand, Sumner G., Jr.
Box 142
21
FL
College
Army

Ratigan, Joe A.
Rte 1, Orlando
27
IL
College
Army

Ray, Frank H.
Box 647
30
AL
HS
Air Corps

Reed, James R.
Rte 1, Orlando
39
AL
College
Army

Remington, Gerald
Box 542
32
MI
9th
Air

Robb, William
Box 177
30
PA
10th
Air Corps

Robinson, Durance
Rte 1, Orlando
38
FL
Grammar
Aircraft

Roop, Albert P.
Dixie Hwy
28
PA
12th
Army

Scarboro, Hudson, Jr.
Box 1004
19
FL
8th
Navy

Schmelzer, William
Rte 1, Orlando
37
CT
College
Army

Schmidt, Howard
115 Gatlin Ave
28
OH
College
Air Force

Schwartz, Lt. Jack B.
Pinecastle
23
__
College
Air

Shanibarger, John E.
Pinecastle
29
FL
HS
Navy