| 727 true stories, a case study in Southern Gothic

Paul Laurence Dunbar at James Weldon Johnson’s Home in Jacksonville

Posted on December 1, 2023 | Leave a comment

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Harlem Renaissance figure — poet, novelist, journalist, ambassador and activist — James Weldon Johnson lived right here when he wrote the words to the Black National Anthem. His late-night debates with house-guest Paul Laurence Dunbar, just after Dunbar marched in President McKinley’s inaugural parade, helped make Johnson the writer he’d become.

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Tagged "We Wear the Mask", "When Malindy Sings", Aaron Douglas, Along This Way, Augustus Koch, “Lift Ev’ry Voice”, “O Black and Unknown Bards, “W’en de Colo’ed Ban’ Comes Ma’chin’ Down de Street", Bethel Baptist Church, Bob Cole, Cleaveland Fibre Factory, Clorindy, Ellis Walton and Otto Cantor, God's Trombones, gun control, Hattie Hopkins, J. Douglas Wetmore, J. Rosamond Johnson, James Weldon Johnson Jacksonville, James Weldon Johnson Stanton, John Rosamond Johnson, LaVilla James Weldon Johnson, LEVS Park, Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing Park, Mount Zion A.M.E. Church, Mount Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church, Oscar Hammerstein, Paul Laurence Dunbar Jacksonville, Paul Laurence Dunbar James Weldon Johnson, President William McKinley “Winter City in Summer Land", Richard Wright, St. James Hotel, Stanton Institute, Stephen Crane, Under the Bamboo Tree, Walter Hood, Will Marion Cook, Zora Neale Hurston

When Jax Liquors Ruled Florida

Posted on November 18, 2023 | Leave a comment

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For half a century, Jax Liquors ruled Jacksonville, much of Florida as well. “I was afraid to stay small,” the kingpin said. Inversely proportional, his long rise spanned the decline of the Black neighborhood where he bought his first bars. The long arc of Jax Liquors’ success paralleled changes in American drinking habits, attitudes toward liquor and drunk driving laws. Even now, if you’ve lived long enough in Jacksonville, you might accidentally call ABC “Jax Liquors.”

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Tagged ABC Liquors Jacksonville, Dallas Thomas, Dan McCormack, Daughtry Towers, Deluxe Bar, Don Tredinick, Don Trednick, Donal Godfrey, Doty Apartment Building, Duval County Property Appraiser Robert Mallard, Eight Pearls Bar and Package Store, Enrique Liquor Shoppe, Farris Bryant, Frances Tredinick, General Trading and Drive In Liquors, George Wachendorf, Hans Tanzler, Humphreys Gold Mine, Isadore Singleton, Jack Dreher, Jax Liquors, Jax Liquors Jacksonville, Jean Penny, Lucina Lounge, Manuel's Tap Room, Mary Singleton, Mill Creek North, Mothers Against Drunk Driving Jacksonville, New Hofbrau, Red Cannon Jacksonville, Silver Dollar Tavern, Solomon Shad, St. Johns Trading Company, Ted Pappas, Thunderbird Motor Hotel, Tropicana Lounge and Drive In

David Engdahl’s Private Language in Lamelliform

Posted on November 17, 2023 | Leave a comment

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In one of the oldest houses in historic San Marco, architect and sculptor David Engdahl makes his home and his art. He calls them “lamelliforms.” He’s made more than 300 in the past 50 years. They’re something like his own private language.

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Tagged American TransTech, American TransTech Building Jacksonville, David Engdahl, David Engdahl Ascent Descent, David Ponsler, Haskell Collection, Haskell Company, Hope Engdahl, Jacksonville International Airport, James Engdahl, lamelliforms, Marco Lake, Nathalie Engdahl, Preston Haskell, Robert Broward, San Marco Jacksonville, San Marco Square, Sorrento Road, Stuart Dalzell, Taylor Hardwick, Wacca Pilatka, Walter Engdahl, William Morgan

The Disappearance of Jim Stone

Posted on November 10, 2023 | Leave a comment

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James Stone’s disappearance from his Downtown Jax furniture store was only the first mystery. The story that unraveled included cross-country chases, gruesome coverups, child witnesses and mutual accusations.

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Tagged 1904 Music Hall, James Deegan, James Stone, Jane Albert, Jim Deegan, John Spenkelink, Ralph Greene, Ronald Straight, San Marco Jacksonville, Scott Furniture Company, Scott's Furniture, Stephanie Albert, Tim Palmes, Timothy Palmes, Vic Stone

The Story of Wacca Pilatka, Robert Broward’s Own Residence

Posted on November 3, 2023 | Leave a comment

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It was here the architect broke his neck while sunbathing nude on top of his house. It was here the manatee came to feed on sea grasses. Despite a 60 year career, designing more than 500 buildings, Bob Broward didn’t build his own residence, Wacca Pilatka, until he was almost 70.

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Tagged Bob Broward, Butterfly House, David Engdahl, Enzo Torcoletti, Frank Lloyd Wright, Hamilton Barnes, Henry John Klutho, Kris Barnes, lamelliforms, Marjorie Ann Grimes Broward, Mary Ann Bryan, Myrtice Craig, Robert Broward, Switzerland Florida, Unitarian Universalist Church of Jacksonville, Wacca Pilatka

The Last Chapter of Weise Pharmacy and Natural Food Shoppe

Posted on October 27, 2023 | Leave a comment

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Almost 50 years ago, I urinated on my pediatrician here. Almost 60 years after the Weise brothers and their mother set up shop here, the “Weise Building” is emptying out. Recent news sullied their good name. Family heirlooms hang on the walls for sale. I still remember the way the place smelled when I was a child.

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Tagged Coastline Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Edmund Weise, Emil Weise, Emma Weise, Gilbert Weise, Heinz Koblitz, LifeWave X39, Linda Hansen, Ortega Medical Arts Building, Prosperity 101, Reinold Weise, Rhonda Weise, U.S. Attorney David Estes, Weise Natural Food Shoppe, Weise Pharmacy, Weise Prescription Shop

The 800 Pound Sculptures that Flew from the Airport to the College

Posted on October 20, 2023 | Leave a comment

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Longtime locals still associate the 800 pound laminated wood sculptures with the airport, where they floated over escalators from 1980 to ’89, but they’ve hung suspended by stainless steel cables here beside the cafeteria at Florida State College of Jacksonville’s South Campus Student Center now for nearly 35 years. This is the story of architect and sculptor David Engdahl’s largest sculptures, Ascent and Descent.

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Tagged Charles Spence, Chuck Spence, David Engdahl, Engdahl Ascent Descent, Florida State College at Jacksonville, FSCJ South Campus, Jacksonville International Airport, Reynolds, Smith and Hills, William Morgan

Visiting Geodesica, the Butterfly House(s) and Robert Broward’s Unitarian Universalist Church

Posted on October 14, 2023 | Leave a comment

This weekend the Arlington Mod & More Tour takes place. If you go, you’ll be able to tour places like Robert Broward’s Butterfly House, his Unitarian Universalist Church of Jacksonville and the legendary house called Geodesica. You can find out more information and get tickets here!