Cotanchobee Winter - Tampa Bay History Center

In is Issue
President’s Letter.......................pg. 2
Burgert Brothers Exhibition Looks at Tampa Bay
Then and Now
Burgert Brothers Exhibit..cont. pg 3
Florida Wildlife Corridor
Expedition.................................pg. 4
Adult Programs..........................pg. 6
Children’s Programs..................pg. 8
Cigar City Gala..........................pg. 10
Artifact Spotlight.......................pg. 10
Staff............................................pg. 11
Board of Trustees.....................pg. 11
History Center Foundation.......pg. 11
tampabayhistorycenter.org
The black and white landscapes that populate
the Burgert Brothers Photographic Collection
are simultaneously familiar and foreign. As the
pre-eminent commercial photographers in
Tampa during the first half of 20th century, the
Burgert Brothers Studio recorded the
development of modern Hillsborough County
one street corner and storefront at a time.
The result is a collection of almost-familiar
images – downtown Tampa bustling with
pedestrians – that are barely recognizable to
contemporary viewers.
Comparing and contrasting the old with the
new is what makes these photographs so
compelling. In the History Center’s latest
exhibition, The Big Picture: A Selection of Cirkut
Photographs from the Burgert Brothers Collection, we
see revelers gathered in suits and ties to enjoy
Gasparilla, and swimmers enjoying Sulphur
Springs, but few people are able to equate the
framed images before them with their own
personal experiences. If you didn’t visit downtown Tampa in the 1920s, for example, your mind
immediately begins to assemble the modern
pieces that are missing from the static black and
white image of Franklin and Cass streets in 1928.
You almost recognize it, but not quite.
The Burgert Brothers Studio snapped more
than 80,000 photographs for its clients between
the late 1880s and the 1960s. The photographs
appeared in national publications, including Life
and National Geographic magazines, as well as local
newspapers, advertisements, promotional
brochures, and displays for offices and stores.
After the studio closed, its photographs and
negatives were stored in a South Tampa garage,
where heat and humidity destroyed many of the
negatives. In 1974, the Friends of the Library of
Tampa-Hillsborough County, recognizing the
significance of the collection, purchased
approximately 15,000 of the negatives so that the
photographs would be available to the public.
Photo above: Downtown intersection of Florida and Franklin streets with Cass Street, looking east Tampa, Florida May 10, 1928. Photo
provided courtesy of Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System.
(Continued on pg. 3)
Planning for the Future
Four years have
passed since the Tampa
Bay History moved into
its new building. During
this exciting period, we
were guided by a strategic plan that our board
adopted shortly after our
opening. This plan was
created with input from
trustees, staff, volunteers,
supporters and other
community representatives. It served as a road
map and forced us to
focus our resources in
accomplishing the defined goals and objectives outlined in the plan. These were ambitious, but
were intended to ensure that a solid foundation would be in place in the
early years, from which the History Center could build and grow.
I am pleased to report that we have accomplished nearly all of the goals
outlined in that initial plan and it is now time to identify new goals and to
create a new plan that will guide our institution’s development over the
next several years. I would like to take this opportunity to invite all of our
friends, supporters and members to be a part of that process by sharing
your thoughts, ideas and suggestions for the future. We’re off to a good
start, but we recognize that there are many opportunities to grow the
History Center and to continue to ensure that the Center remains at the
forefront of the preservation and interpretation of our region’s history. I
encourage you to share your thoughts or suggestions with any of our
History Center team members or with me directly.
We will make certain your
ideas are given due consideration as the plan
takes shape.
Already, 2013 is
shaping up to be an
exciting year for
TBHC. This year
marks the 500th
anniversary of European contact in
Florida, reminding the community and our
nation that
Florida does
indeed have
a rich and
lengthy history.
Numerous new programs and a major
temporary exhibition titled, Charting the Land of Flowers: 500 Years of Florida
Maps, will mark the occasion.
I hope you will join us for one or more of the many events to be held
this year at your History Center and I welcome your input as we plan for
the future. C. J. Roberts
Frank E. Duckwall President and CEO
Reminder: Members Park
Free
Thanks to a new partnership with the Tampa Bay Lightning,
the History Center is now able to offer limited parking
validation for our members in the Tampa Bay Times Forum
East Lot, right next door to the History Center.*
Members will be credited with a quantity of parking
validations based upon their membership level. For more
information, contact Visitor Services at (813) 228-0097 ext. 0.
*Must present membership card and ID. Parking is available at the
Tampa Bay Times Forum East Lot, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. only. Other
restrictions and black-out days may apply. Member parking benefit is
non-transferable and does not accrue beyond membership period. One per
visit only. No cash value.
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Burgert Brothers Exhibit (Continued from pg. 1)
Thanks to the availability of inexpensive reprints, many of the Burgert
photographs are nearly ubiquitous. They adorn the walls of cafes and
restaurants, doctor’s offices, and law firms across the Tampa Bay area. Many
are familiar scenes: Gasparilla, Bayshore Boulevard or Ybor’s 7th Avenue.
But this only scratches the surface of the collection.
The Burgert Brothers’ cirkut prints – perhaps the most striking and
least-viewed images in the entire collection – form the heart of the History
Center’s exhibition. Of the thousands of images in the Burgert Brothers
Photographic Collection, only 442 are cirkut photographs.
Introduced by Kodak in the early 1900s, cirkut cameras enabled
production of panoramic photographs up to 4 feet wide by 1 foot high.
These large format rotational panorama cameras are capable of photographing a 360-degree view. The Burgert Brothers Studio was the largest
commercial studio in Tampa with this type of camera.
Cirkut cameras were originally built for photographing large groups such
as conventions, graduating classes, and other public gatherings. Commercial
photographers, like Al and Jean Burgert, quickly discovered a demand for
panoramic views of landscapes such as railroads or real estate developments,
farming and mining properties, manufacturing plants, and waterfronts and
business districts of cities.
Two prints from the mid-1920s exemplify the near-familiar feel of the
Burgert’s cirkut photographs. It’s startling to contrast the aerial view of Ybor
City in 1926 – hundreds of houses packed tightly together, almost on top
of each other – with the sparseness of today’s Ybor, its remaining woodframed bungalows siting solitarily among dozens of empty lots. Then,
there’s the image from just one year earlier, 1925, of a nascent Davis Islands
literally rising from the waters of Hillsborough Bay. Knowing what would
become of these two neighborhoods over the next 80 years is what makes
viewing these images so engrossing and so fun.
The exhibition also includes a slideshow of 80 “re-photographs”
by local photographer Bryan Weinstein. A civil engineer by trade
with a passion for history and photography, Weinstein was drawn
to the Burgert Brothers collection, enamored with the historic
architecture depicted throughout the collection, and unsettled by
photographs of beautiful buildings that have long since succumbed
to the wrecking ball.
Weinstein began revisiting locations where these historic photographs were taken. As a Tampa native, he wanted to see how the
area had changed over the years. As a photographer, he wanted to
photograph the modern scene. What was initially a quick snapshot
soon turned into a methodical reproduction, with the goal of taking
identical “re-photographs” of the location, from the same angle
that the Burgerts took their original historic photographs. The only
difference between the Burgerts’ photographs and Weinstein’s
re-photographs is the elapse of nearly 100 years.
Rounding out the collection of 22 cirkut prints and other photographs is one of the Burgert Brothers Studio’s original ledgers, an
original glass-plate negative, a 1904 “suitcase” camera of the type
the Burgert Brothers used on many of their shoots, and other
ephemera from the studio’s history.
The Big Pictur e: A Selection of Cirkut Pho tographs fr o m
the Bur gert Br others C ollection is on exhibit no w thr ough
July 15 in the Histor y Center’s To uchto n Map Galler y.
RSVP: 813-675-8988 or [email protected]
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Expedition Journeys into the “Wild Heart” of Florida
Traveling by foot, on horseback, and via canoes and kayaks, the
team hiked through waist-deep sawgrass and swamps, rode across
wide-open cattle ranches, and paddled along Florida’s rivers and
lakes as they wound their way north along the State’s eastern
edge and vast interior. They traveled north from Everglades
National Park, through the Big Cypress National Preserve,
across the Caloosahatchee River to Babcock Ranch, up the
Kissimmee River to Lake Wales Ridge, along the St. Johns
River to the Ocala National Forrest, and, finally, the
Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.
When it was complete, conservation photographer
Carlton Ward, Jr., documentarian Elam Stoltzfus, conservationist Mallory Lykes Dimmitt, and bear biologist Joe
Guthrie had travelled 1,000 miles in 100 days.
The ambitious trek – the Florida Wildlife Corridor
Expedition – documented the last remaining natural path
through the length of the Florida peninsula. During their
journey into the “wild heart” of Florida, the team met with
park rangers, ranch owners, scientists, Seminole
Indians, and conservationists, documenting scenes few
Floridians ever witness. Indeed, the remote natural
landscapes the team members explored provide a
stark contrast to more familiar images of
contemporary Florida, often defined by theme
parks, beach-front condominiums, and
sprawling highways.
This spring, a documentary and exhibition resulting from the
Wildlife Corridor Expedition will premiere at the History Center. The
Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition: Photography by Carlton Ward Jr. will
feature Ward’s captivating photographs, along with maps, video
footage, and other equipment used by team members during the expedition.
Ward is an eighth-generation Floridian whose photographs have
appeared in magazines such as Audubon, Smithsonian, Nature
Conservancy and National Wildlife. His 2009 Book, Florida Cowboys, won
a silver medal in the Florida Book Awards and Popular Photography
Magazine featured him as one of three photographers working to save
vanishing America.
The History Center will also host the Florida premiere of Stoltzfus’
documentary chronicling the expedition. Scheduled to air on public
television stations across the nation later this spring, the film will
debut in Cotanchobee Park on March 3. Stoltzfus is an award-winning
cinematographer and filmmaker whose work has appeared on the
Weather Channel, MTV, the Travel Channel, and Public
Television programs throughout Florida.
The Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition: Photography by Carlton Ward Jr. is on
exhibit in the Wayne Thomas Gallery Feb. 23 – May 5, and is suported
by The Mosaic Company, The Kimmins Family Foundation, WUSF
Public Media and the Tampa Bay Times.
The Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition documentary will
premiere Saturday, March 3 in Cotanchobee Park.
For details and updates about the exhibition and film premiere, visit
the History Center’s website, www.tampabayhistorycenter.org
Carlton Ward Jr and Joe Guthrie pole through the Shark River Slough in the Everglades. “We hadn't seen another person in 3 days,” says Ward of
this photograph. The Shark River Slough is the primary source or freshwater supplying Everglades National Park. Photo courtesy Carlton Ward Jr.
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2012 Cigar City Gala
A tropical breeze, swaying palms and guys in guayaberas set the tone
for the History Center’s 2012 Annual Gala. Held on October 27, the
event’s “Cigar City” theme gave a nod to Tampa’s storied cigar industry
and celebrated the vibrant Latin cultural influence on the region.
Patrons enjoyed a lavish spread from the Columbia Cafe, including its
famous paella, calamari, Cuban style pork tenderloin and a full dessert station of classic Spanish flan, guava empanadas and much more. Watermelon mojitos served as the signature drink of the evening, with full open
bars throughout the venue. Jazz guitarist Tom Jemmot greeted earlier
guests while the R & B sounds of The
Heather Hayes Band kept partygoers
dancing until midnight. A tropical cigar
lounge on the upper terrace included
complimentary cigars from J.C. Newman
Cigar Company and a special cordial bar
featured brandy, cognac, Sambuca and
more – all with stunning views of Tampa’s
Riverwalk and Harbour Island.
George and Mary Lib Howell
Co-Chaired the Gala, along with their
children and their spouses, Cain and Jessica
Diehl, Courtney and C. Vance Smith, and
History Center President and CEO
Mallory Howell. “It was important to us
C.J. Roberts with Mallory Howell,
Mary Lib Howell and Dot Carson.
that we lead this event as a family to
encourage our children’s generation to become engaged in supporting the
preservation of Tampa’s rich heritage,” said George Howell. June Annis
led the Gala Ambassador group to ensure the Tampa community turned
out in full force for the Gala, which welcomed more than 360 attendees
this year.
A truly multi-generational affair, this year
saw the addition of an after party, which
began later in the evening and provided an
opportunity for Tampa’s emerging leaders to
become involved with the History Center.
From Lykes family matriarch Louse Lykes
Ferguson, to Tampa’s top business leaders,
to young professionals, the Cigar City Gala
had something for everyone.
History Center President and CEO C.J.
Roberts remarked, “We are so grateful to
the Howell family, June Annis, our
History Center Trustee Dr. Anne sponsors, ambassadors and patrons for
Gormly and her husband, John.
advancing the Gala to a new level this year.
Thanks to this support, the 2012 event enjoyed a 40% increase in the
net funds raised to support the History Center’s education and community programs.”
Wooden statue of Don Gavino Gutierrez
1996.051.969
Courtesy of Hillsborough County Historical
Commission, Tampa Bay History Center
Collection.
Ybor purchased acreage where he intended to build a new cigar factory.
Meanwhile, Gutierrez continued to encourage a hesitant Haya to
move his business to Tampa. Finally convinced, Haya bought land
and began construction on his cigar factory in the company town
christened Ybor City.
Less than a year after the failed guava expedition, Gutierrez moved
to Tampa to begin work as Ybor’s surveyor and city planner. In
formulating his blueprint for Ybor City, Gutierrez considered the needs
of future residents, workers and business proprietors, laying a practical
grid pattern for the town’s streets. Gutierrez also contributed to the
architectural design of factories, buildings and employee cottages,
implementing Spanish, Cuban and American South – inspired style
elements such as balconies, wrought iron railings and “shotgun” homes.
Gutierrez and his family became permanent Ybor City residents and
Gutierrez operated several businesses there.
By appreciating Tampa’s potential, championing it as an ideal location
for business and industry, and shaping the very character of his adopted
hometown, Don Gavino Gutierrez secured his permanent place of
importance in Tampa history. This wooden statue of Gutierrez,
measuring only 13.75 inches high, came to the History Center as part
of the transfer of the Hillsborough County Historical Collection in
1996. There is little or no information in the HCHC records on who
carved the statue or even who originally donated it to the county. If
anyone who reads this has any information on the provenance of this
interesting artifact, please contact Travis Puterbaugh, Curator of
Collections and Research, at [email protected].
Artifact Spotlight
By Jaime Riedy, Collections Department Volunteer
Don Gavino Gutierrez (1849-1919) was
an Ybor City visionary, city planner, and
architect. In November 1884, the New York
entrepreneur and civil engineer, along with his associate Bernardino
Gargol, arrived on Florida’s west coast to search for a large supply of
guava fruit for their food product business. After an unsuccessful hunt,
but before returning to New York, the men took what proved to be a
fateful Tampa area tour. Gutierrez and Gargol marveled at the beauty
of the locale and quickly recognized the industry potential of land
adjacent to a deep water port, rich in natural resources and transportation options.
On the sea voyage home, Gutierrez and Gargol disembarked in
Key West, Florida, where they dropped in on their friend, cigar
manufacturer Vicente Martinez Ybor, and Ybor’s guest and fellow cigar
manufacturer, Ignacio Haya. When Ybor and Haya discussed the
possibility of relocating their business operations, Gutierrez launched
into an enthusiastic pitch, declaring Tampa ideal for Ybor and Haya’s
purpose. Gutierrez proved persuasive. After his own visit to Tampa,
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Mark your calendar for the 2013 Cigar City Gala:
Saturday, October 19!
Platinum Sponsor:
The Lightning Foundation
Thank You To Our 2012 Cigar City Gala Sponsors
Gold Sponsors:
The Alston M. Barrow Family, Caspers Company, Ferman Automotive Dealerships,
Hill Ward Henderson, Holland & Knight LLP, Macfarlane Ferguson & McMullen P.A.,
Raymond James, Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP, Tampa Bay Rays,
TECO Energy and The Touchton Family
Staff
Executive
Marketing
Emanuel Leto
Director of Marketing
C. J. Roberts
Finance & Operations
Frank E. Duckwall President & CEO
Maria Steijlen
Andrea Gallagher
Director of Accounting
Special Projects Coordinator
& Human Resources
Advancement & Membership
Lisa Richardson
Director of Advancement
Judy Miller
Administrative Services
& Membership Manager
Beth Grimaldi
Group Sales Manager
Collections
Paulette Marsh
Accounting Clerk
Visitor Services & Retail
Kristin Kite?Powell
Director of Visitor Services
Melanie Depcinski
Visitor Services Associate
Curator of Collections and Research
Uta Page
Visitor Services Associate
Malerie Carey
Education & Public Programs
Julie Henry Matus
Curator of Education
Jennifer Tyson
Assistant Curator of Education
Lee Leavengood
Adult Programs Coordinator
Board of Trustees
Officers
Joseph T. Lykes III, President
Tampa Bay History Center Foundation
J. Thomas Touchton, Vice President
President, The Witt?Touchton Company LLC
Paul A. Straske, Treasurer
Brooks Nicholson Reilly
R. James Robbins, Jr., Secretary
Assistant Manager of Retail
? Serv
Partner & Managing Shareholder, Hill Ward Henderson
ices
Rodney Kite?Powell
Saunders Foundation Curator of History
Shirley Fraser
Visitor Services Associate
Travis Puterbaugh
Assistant Registrar
Tampa Bay History Center
Foundation, Inc.
Neesheta Patram
Visitor Services Associate
Barrie Slonim
Museum Store Associate
Facility
Claus Daniel
Facility Manager
Ross Lamoreaux
C.J. Roberts, Assistant Secretary/Treasurer
Frank E. Duckwall President & CEO, Tampa Bay History
Center
Trustees
George B. Howell III
Partner, Holland & Knight LLP
Edwin Richard Rod Rodriguez, Jr
Senior Vice President? Investments, Merrill Lynch
Robert M. Wolf
Senior Vice President, Hillsborough Community Colleg
Non-Trustee Legal Counsel
Frank J. "Sandy" Rief III
Of Counsel, Akerman Senterfitt
Board of Trustees
Officers
Paul L. Whiting, Chair
Principal, AGW Capitol Advisors
Santiago C. Corrada
Chief of Staff, City of Tampa
R. James Robbins. Jr
Partner & Managing Shareholder,
Hill Ward Henderson
Marsha G. Rydberg, Immediate Past
Anne V. Gormly, Ph.D.
David L. Townsend
Dean of the College of Social Sciences,
Chair
Assistant Vice President, Mosaic Fertilizer LLC
Mathematics & Education,
The Rydberg Law Firm
University of Tampa, Ret.
Bonnie M. Wise
C. J. Roberts
Chief Financial Administrator, Hillsborough
Mark I. Greenberg, Ph.D.
Frank E. Duckwall President & CEO,
Director, Special Collections Dept. & County
Tampa Bay History Center
Florida Studies Center,
Robert Wolf
Honorable Thomas A. Lee, Vice Chair University of South Florida
Senior Vice President, Hillsborough Community
Vice President, Sabal Homes of Florida,
College
Dennis Holt, Ph.D.
Inc.
Supervisor, Secondary Social Studies &
MacDill Air Force Base Liason
Frank J. Sandy Rief III, Secretary Driver Education,
Col. Scott V. DeThomas
Hillsborough
County
Public
Schools
Of Counsel, Akerman Senterfitt
Commander, 6th Air Mobility Wing
George B. Howell III
Steven M. Raney, Treasurer
President & CEO, Raymond James Bank Partner, Holland & Knight LLP
J. Thomas Touchton, Founding Chair
Tod Leiweke
President, The Witt?Touchton Company CEO, Tampa Bay Lightning
LLC
Christopher Lykes
Director, Bay Cities Bank
Education Partners
University of South Florida
School District of Hillsborough County
Tampa?Hillsborough County Public Library
? Sys
Trustees
Governor Bob Martinez
tem
Senior Policy Advisor, Holland & Knight
Jack Amor
Smithsonian Institution Affiliation Programs
Executive Director, TECO Energy? Foun LLP
dation
Gregory B. Padgett, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of History,
June Annis
Eckerd College
Owner, Sutton Place Limited, Inc.
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NONPROFIT ORG
US POSTAGE
PAID
TAMPA FL
PERMIT NO 2249
801 Old Water Street | Tampa, Florida 33602 |
813.228.0097
FROM 1-275 NORTH OR SOUTH
• Take I-275 N/S to Ashley Drive Exit 44
• Turn left on Jackson Street
• Turn right on Morgan Street
• Turn left on Channelside Drive
• Turn right on Old Water Street
THE HISTORY CENTER IS LOCATED IN TAMPA’S CHANNELSIDE DISTRICT,
BETWEEN THE TAMPA BAY TIMES FORUM AND CHANNELSIDE BAY PLAZA.
FROM I-75 & CROSSTOWN EXPRESSWAY
• Take Crosstown Expressway to Exit 8 (Downtown East)
• Turn right on Kennedy Blvd.
• Turn left on Morgan Street
• Turn left on Channelside Drive
• Turn right on Old Water Street
FROM GANDY BOULEVARD & SOUTH TAMPA
• Take Gandy Blvd. to Bayshore Blvd.; turn left
• Take Bayshore Blvd. to the Platt Street Bridge
• Merge right onto the bridge (go underneath the
Tampa Convention Center)
• Platt Street turns into Channelside drive
• Turn right on Old Water Street
PARKING INFORMATION
Various parking options are available, including the Tampa Bay Times Forum East Lot, the Channelside Parking Garage, the Channelside Surface Lot
or park in Ybor City and ride the streetcar.
The Tampa Bay History Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation and is funded in part by the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners,
the City of Tampa, the State of Florida Office of Cultural and Historical Programs and the Tampa Bay History Center-USF Program Partnership.