This week in West Orange County history

OLD TIMES

75 years ago

The Winter Garden Welfare League held its monthly meetings at the war nursery school, which was the league’s major project. It also sponsored a benefit party at the Edgewater Hotel.

50 years ago

Jacob S. Reddick, prominent West Orange businessman and Tildenville grocery merchant, was shot to death during an attempted armed robbery.

45 years ago

Sterling Butler, who lives on North Lakeview Avenue in Winter Garden, was honored by Knapp King-Size Corporation of Brockton, Mass. He received a lapel pin signifying his membership in the five years of Knapp Service Club.

40 years ago

On Feb. 13, at 10:40 a.m., a heavyset young white male attempted to rob McClungs 5-10-25 store at 15 E. Plant St. Two hours later, the robbery suspect was arrested by Lt. R.G. Little.

The Ladies Guild of Holy Family Catholic Church did a good job of convincing Father Joseph Harte that it was to be only a potluck dinner — but it was a surprise celebration of his 50th birthday.

Starting with our next issue, our new Ocoee columnist will be Mary Anne Swickerath. Please contact her if you have any news of happenings in and around Ocoee. She will come to see you on her bicycle.

30 years ago

Movies-to-Go was advertising free membership and offered a coupon special for renting a movie and getting another free.

20 years ago

Winter Garden officials and representatives of US Home turned the first shovels of dirt over to mark the groundbreaking of a major development in the city. The golf community of Stoneybrook West will be constructed on Black Lake, between Avalon Road and County Road 535.

THROWBACK THURSDAY

Winter Garden Times

Feb. 5, 1954

Instead of waiting years for the house of your dreams to go on the market, Winter Garden Lumber Co. Inc. offered a home-planning department to help customers become homeowners sooner rather than later.

The lumber company advertised its experience in home-building and offered “many pamphlets and booklets” of ideas to save customers time and money.

FROM THE WINTER GARDEN HISTORY CENTER ARCHIVES

This scan came from a 1968 Orlando Sentinel newspaper article titled "Ding Dong, Three School Bells Ring No More,” which gave the history of West Orange County’s small wooden schools. The Oakland Elementary School for African American children appears here. Constructed in 1925, it stood at the west end of Hull Avenue. It closed in 1968 but served later as a Head Start Center. Some of the students educated here became teachers: Charles Bing was director of music at Florida A&M University; Ruby Benton Lee taught in Killarney and Orlando; Edna Jones was a teacher at Orlando’s Holden Street School; Wilbur Postell and Ernestine Brown taught in New York; and Martha Walton taught in Atlanta.