This week in West Orange County history: Oct. 13, 2022

OLD TIMES

80 years ago

Mr. and Mrs. J.J. Vandergrift and Mr. and Mrs. Leon Mask of Ocoee were hosts to soldiers of Unit 11 at an Italian spaghetti supper at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Foots Vandergrift. The spaghetti was prepared by Mrs. Howard Armstrong.

Miss Ina Sayer and Navy Lt. Edgar Henderson of Royston, Ga., were married at a quiet wedding in the Methodist church.

Miss Frances Fosdick of Oakland and Lt. James F. McKey of Plant City were married at the Oakland Presbyterian Church.

Mrs. Comer Nelson was hired as the new telegraph operator in Winter Garden at the Postal Telegraph Company.

Mr. and Mrs. Bud Bean were the proud parents of a son, Jimmy, born earlier this month.

Chief of Police William L. Fisher submitted his resignation. The other policemen, Ernest Crawford and Clyde Ethridge, were expected to remain on the force.

70 years ago

Dedication for the new Dillard Street Elementary School was held with Judson Walker, superintendent of public instruction, giving the dedicatory remarks. Also on the program were the Rev. Albert Stulck, Mrs. W.H. Hinson, Miss Margaret Holbrook, Lew Warden and Mrs. W.H. Roberson.

Hoyle Pounds, Winter Garden fire chief and merchant, was given emergency treatment at West Orange Memorial Hospital after an accident with a turbine dusting outfit in which he lost two fingers on his right hand.

50 years ago

David Colburn, son of Mr. and Mrs. William Colburn of Windermere, grew a 34.5-inch dipper gourd.

40 years ago

Walt Disney World began a new era of entertainment in Central Florida with the opening of Epcot Center.

30 years ago

Winnifred and Ben Griffin’s children and grandchildren hosted a 50th wedding anniversary party for the couple at the Woman’s Club of Ocoee. They were married Oct. 3, 1942, in Corpus Christi, Texas, where Ben was stationed with the Navy.

The Winter Garden City Commission approved its next fiscal year budget, set at $8,313,530. The millage rate remained at 3.804.

Crawford Tire in Ocoee celebrated its 25th year in business. Junior Crawford began selling tires in a service station on McKey Street in downtown Ocoee. It moved and expanded the business three years later.

20 years ago

The Oakland Nature Preserve dedicated its new 3,300-foot boardwalk, which meanders through the pristine wetlands that make up the preserve and ends with a spectacular view from a large pavilion and dock overlooking Lake Apopka.

THROWBACK THURSDAY

Oct. 1, 1992

Cutting out printed coupons once was a popular and beneficial part of shopping and having services done. The Winter Garden Shopping Center, at Park Avenue and West Colonial Drive, announced many sales and deals at its businesses in an advertisement with The West Orange Times. Remember frequenting C&H Hallmark, Jack’s Aquarium & Pets, Sadie Babe’s, Geared to Dance, Publix, Beall’s, Niccoli’s, Eckerd Drugs, Movie Scene and these other businesses?

FROM THE WINTER GARDEN HERITAGE FOUNDATION ARCHIVES

The building at 101-121 W. Plant St. in Winter Garden, seen here in 1998, has changed little since its 1921 construction by J. Davis "Jeter" McMillan, Robert E. Black and Alvah Cohen Bray. It was often referred to as the Clinic Building, as several physicians leased space in the upstairs offices. From 1933 to 1953, the Winter Garden Post Office operated from a space on the first floor. After McMillan and Bray sold their shares to Black, a citrus grower and Clermont businessman, the structure was known as the Black Building. L. Eugene Cappleman Sr. and Ed Fischer purchased the building in 1968, and the Cappleman family acquired Fischer's share at his death.  In 2012, it was renamed again in recognition of the 100th anniversary of the arrival of brothers William and Thurlow Cappleman to Winter Garden; the family owned and operated groceries, insurance and real estate businesses on Plant Street for many years.