The History and Transformation of Baldwin Park in Orlando
By Brendan Bunting O’Connor from the Spring 2025 Edition of Reflections Magazine Baldwin Park, located just minutes from downtown Orlando, is a vibrant and picturesque community that combines modern living with a deep sense of history, and just a dash of Stepford-like planned-community plastic falseness. One of the things that
Jonestown’s Silent Remembrance: Uncovering the History of Orlando’s First African American Community
By Sarah M. Boye, from the Spring 2025 Edition of Reflections from Central Florida On a breezy fall day, a group of tour attendees stood solemnly by the grave of Osborne Brooks in Orlando’s Greenwood Cemetery, listening as the tour guide explained his family’s connection to the city. Like many
Will Wallace Harney: Central Florida’s Pioneering One-Man Chamber of Commerce
By William S. Morgan V. from the Spring 2025 Edition of Reflections from Central Florida In the tumultuous years following the Civil War, a man arrived on the Central Florida frontier with a vision of how its untamed wilderness might be transformed. Where others saw only dense forests, swamps, and
Beyond the Veil: Oral Histories from Cassadaga
By Adedoyin Adekunle and Justine Truc, 2024 University of South Carolina Oral History Fellows The Orange County Regional History Center’s oral histories cover a wide range of topics, including narratives from the Volusia County community of Cassadaga, sometimes called the “Psychic Capital of the World.” Such narratives are recalled in
Orlando’s Suburban Shift: Colonial Plaza and the Evolution of the City’s Retail Landscape
By Rachel Williams from the Spring 2025 Edition of Reflections Magazine “The one-stop shopping center of tomorrow that’s here today” – that was the tagline in the Orlando Sentinel when Colonial Plaza officially opened on Jan. 31, 1956. What might seem like an ordinary shopping center to 21st-century residents was
The Chan Family: Martial Arts Mastery and a Real-Life Mulan
By Justine Truc, 2024 University of South Carolina Oral History Fellow The metro Orlando area is often recognized for its theme parks and sunny weather, but it’s also a rich cultural melting pot. In an oral history with the Orange County Regional History Center, Mimi Chan offered a fascinating glimpse
Orange County Parks at 100
By Mandy Kimmer from the Fall 2024 edition of Reflections Magazine In the century since 1924, what began with a family’s gift of 8 acres has blossomed into 113 parks and trails, boat ramps, recreation centers, and sport facilities that serve 13 million residents and visitors each year. The 1920
A College Park Century
By Tana Mosier Porter from the Fall 2024 edition of Reflections Magazine In 1924, developers officially kicked off and named the Orlando neighborhood that soon manifested the look and feel of a small town. One hundred years ago the Cooper-Atha-Barr Real Estate and Mortgage Company broke ground for a new
Washington Kilmer: Unsung Central Florida Pioneer
By Paul Trembly from the Fall 2024 edition of Reflections Magazine The year was 1872, and Washington Kilmer was dying. In poor health, barely able to walk and suffering a general physical breakdown, he was given, at most, a year to live. As he departed his physician’s office, he took
Rediscovering Ethel
By Don Philpott from the Fall 2024 Edition of Reflections Magazine After a decade-long quest that began with a hidden grave marker, the volunteer Wekiva Wilderness Trust is bringing to light the story of a lost town near Rock Springs. Ethel is one of Florida’s many forgotten communities that once