HISTORY: West Orange County of yesteryear for week of Oct. 3, 2024

OLD TIMES / THE WAYS WE WERE

From the newspaper archives

80 years ago

Fred D. Gregory, chairman of the National War Fund campaign for the Winter Garden district, was perfecting plans for his organization to launch the drive.

Approximately 2,500 fans attended the football opening game of the season at Walker Field Friday night when the Lakeview Red Devils trimmed the Ocoee High School Cardinals to the tune of 26-0.

A hurricane from Havana continued to move northward and was felt here in the morning hours. Part of the R.D. Keene packing house roof was blown off with much damage to other properties. Southern Fruit Distributors and Heller Bros. had roofs blown off. At the Ford Motor Company garage, the east wall of its concrete building was blown out. Near the First Baptist Church, a parked automobile was smashed by a fallen tree. Winter Garden’s electrical service went out of commission, stopping the pumping of water. The city was without lights and water, but fortunately for the Edgewater Hotel, the Army Corps brought in a portable lighting lamp for the lobby and cafeteria. The guests were provided candles for lighting rooms.

50 years ago

Sleepy Harbor Condominiums, a $1.8 million total waterfront development on Lake Prima Vista in Ocoee, was completed and grand opening sales began.

TG&Y advertised a terrarium for $12.88. The 20-inch round diameter crystal clear plastic plant stand stood 36 inches tall.

45 years ago

The Valdes family — Joe, Ruth and Jody — rolled out the carpet for friends and customers to see the new enlarged Modern Stationery store in downtown Winter Garden.

The West Orange Memorial Hospital board of trustees voted to appoint Marjorie Masson as chairman for the next year. Other board members were Larry Grimes, Dorothy Wurst, Miriam Reid, Don Taylor, Vera Carter, Milton Deariso and Dr. Albert Gleason.

35 years ago

The old gymnasium at Ocoee Middle School — built as a WPA project in 1937 for Ocoee School, which then included grades one through 12 — came tumbling down, a victim of age and the wrecking crew. The gym, one of the oldest in Orange County, was replaced by a new auditorium named for long-time principal Robert W. Williams.

A work crew organized by Oakland Presbyterian Church was headed to Charleston, S.C., to help victims still reeling from Hurricane Hugo. Volunteers were geared to do home repairs for poor and elderly residents.

20 years ago

Trace Adkins, Josh Turner, Cowboy Crush, Quick Silver and the Diamonds headlined the Ocoee Founders’ Day event.

THROWBACK THURSDAY

SEPTEMBER 27, 1973

The Winter Garden Times printed an advertisement for Badcock Home Furnishings Center featuring its vast variety of furniture. A China credenza in a walnut finish with adjustable shelves cost $44.88. For $78, customers could take home a modern three-piece bar set with a high-pressure laminated surface and two padded bar stools.

A full bedroom set, which consisted of a panel bed with frame, triple dresser, framed mirror and five-drawer chest, in a Spanish Oak finish could be had for $299.95. For $49.95, you could grab a matching nightstand.

FROM THE WINTER GARDEN HERITAGE FOUNDATION ARCHIVES

The Hurley barn, once the frontispiece for orange groves that blanketed this part of Tildenville, survives on quiet Tildenville School Road. The peaceful surroundings, from here to the former South Lake Apopka Citrus Growers Association packinghouse a few steps north, give no indication that the neighborhood was a hive of citrus industry activity for more than a century.

The three-story Hurley family home stood just south, replaced by two homes in later years, although the original Hurley fence and pillars still stand.