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On
this page:
~About
Yesteryear Village~
Step Back in Time
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Scary, Spooky, Supernatural, 1st Friday of the Month
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South Florida Fair 2011
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Condoites Volunteer at Yesteryear Village ~
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Visitors at YYV during 2010 South Florida Fair
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Yesteryear
Village
--
an Historic Village of Restored Buildings --
on
the South Florida Fairgrounds
in
West Palm Beach, FL
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About
Yesteryear Village — |
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Nestled
on the South Florida Fairgrounds at 9067 Southern Blvd., in West Palm
Beach, Florida, visitors will find the historic Yesteryear Village,
comprising of a collection of more than 20 restored buildings from all
over Florida, most of which date back to the turn of the century
through the early 30s and 40s.
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View
of the School House (left) from the Bink Glisson Museum yard.
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The
first building to -- the one that started it all -- was the
Loxahatchee Two Room School House. It now houses a school room on one
side and the World War II Museum on the other.
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Riddle
House
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The
Riddle House, a beautiful three story frame house, was built in the
early 1900s. It was known as The Painted Lady because of its bright
painted colors of Flagler yellow, Jefferson green, white and sky blue.
(The underside of the wrap around porch roof is painted sky blue which
was said to discourage carpenter bees from making their home in the
rafters.) Built by some of Henry Flagler's hotel construction workers
and using some of the materials from the hotel construction, the
Riddle house was erected on the Jefferson Park land owned by Joseph
Jefferson, the most famous American actor of the time. It became the
home for the first West Palm Beach City Manager and Superintendent of
Public Works, Karl Riddle. The house was donated to the Village by
West Palm Beach.
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The
Bink Glisson Historical Museum was built entirely by volunteers and
donations of materials and remains the largest single contribution to
the Village, valued at $450,000, and is a replica of the 1858 Haile
Plantation House which still stands in Alachua County, Florida. It
houses artifacts from the late Bink Glisson's collection. Mr.
Glisson's family came to the area in the early 20s and he was very
instrumental in the development of Wellington, Florida.
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View
of the Church (right) from the porch of the Riddle House.
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Other
buildings at the Village include the L Street House, Sewing Circle,
Smoke House (it is in operation during the Fair), the Fish & Bait
House, Church, Corbett House, Fire Museum, Print Shop, Wood Shop,
General Store where visitors can purchase period merchandise,
preserves, some baked goodies, candies and more,
Bridge Tender's House, Seller's Farm, Blacksmith Shop, Post Office,
Telephone Museum,
and more.
The
entrance to the Village is graced by the 1934 West Palm Beach Country
Club Arch Donated by the Town of Golfview, Florida.
The
Yesteryear Village is "populated" by a "community"
of volunteer reenactors in period dress. There are quilters, candle makers, weavers, spinners, woodworkers, leather
craftsmen, and more. You will experience the sights, smells and
sounds of old Florida. The village is a product of the hard work and
dedication of these volunteers.
The Village is
open year round for group tours by appointment.
For
more information, please call (561) 795-3110.
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Scary,
Spooky, Supernatural |
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WEST
PALM BEACH, FL – It is said that if you
quietly stroll by the Riddle House in historic
Yesteryear Village at night, especially late
evening, you could experience a chilling
sighting or sound. Climb the creaking, wooden
stairs inside and you might just bump into
someone or something very frightening.
Do
you dare? Do you have the bravery to see what’s
really going on in Yesteryear Village?
For
years, there have been whispers of hauntings,
ghost sightings and cloaked figures in several
of the town’s buildings. Some spirits have
been chronicled on national television.
Paranormal experts from throughout the nation
have visited to conduct their own investigations
and document evidence. Now, see for yourself!
Beginning
next month, "An Evening in the Dark..a
Ghostly Affair Walking Tour" will be
offered. Scheduled stops include the Riddle
House where a soul believes he was wronged in
death and cannot move on. From there, step to
the mysterious Corbett area shack where legend
says bodies were once found. What about the
abnormal clock at the Pineapple Processing Plant
that stopped working at midnight and was found
on the floor stuck at 3:00 A.M., the identical
time a soldier was killed a century ago?
As
you eerily wind your way through Yesteryear
Village, your tour guide reveals the haunts,
history and bizarre sightings of these buildings
and others. The first tour is scheduled for
Friday, August 5 and is presented every first
Friday of the month thereafter (except January)
from 9:00 to 11:00 P.M. Tour capacity is
limited. Admission is $15. Reservations can be
made at southfloridafair.com/Ghosttours
or phone (561) 790 5232.
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South
Florida Fair 2011
By
Betty Thomas |
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This
year’s South Florida Fair theme centered
on science, technology, space and the environment.
Exhibits by Scripps Florida, NOAA, the Smithsonian
Institute, NASA, the South Florida Science Museum, Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki
Museum, the Max Planck Florida Institute, The Climate
Project and others, allowed fairgoers to interact with
today's technology and tomorrow's vision.
Fairgoers
also enjoyed the Yesteryear Village -- A History Park
located in the heart of the Fairgrounds. It is a small
town of over 20 authentic buildings and peopled by living
history re-enactors depicting life in Palm Beach County
between 1895 and 1945. Visitors see how the early local settlers
went to school, church, farmed and lived and experience the
slower-paced life of the courageous, strong-willed
pioneers who settled Palm Beach County. The
general store carries early Florida merchandise for
shoppers to choose from. Strolling around
at your leisure or sitting a spell with a costumed
re-enactor.
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Condoites
Volunteer at
Yesteryear
Village
Photos
by Jimmy Shirley |
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Lynn
& Sheldon Mead have been volunteers at the Yesteryear
Village's Riddle House (it is said to be haunted)
for 13 years. They have lived in Century Village, WPB, for
14 years. Sheldon is also a volunteer with the West Palm
Beach Police Department (now with CSI at the Department),
and a C.O.P. at Century Village. |
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Lynn
has been an "Avon Lady" for 37 years and her
customers in Manchester, N.J. where they spend 8 months
out of the year, often call her while she is in Florida
with their orders. She is a volunteer at Community
Hospital in N.J. The couple have been actors for 25 years
and perform at the Leisureville West Players Club in N.J.
Sheldon
is also a mediator for the courts in New Jersey. He once
handed a judge 109 settled Landlord/Tenant lawsuits that
he mediated in one morning.
Lynn
and Sheldon Mead have been married for 25 years. |
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Eleanor
Walker is a new volunteer at Yesteryear Village. She, too,
volunteers at the Riddle House. Eleanor has lived at
Golden Lakes Village Ph. B for 5 years. She came to Palm
Beach County from Miami where she lived since 1935.
She was born in Georgia. |
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Visitors
at Yesteryear Village during the
2010 South Florida Fair |
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Photo
by Jimmy Shirley
Yesteryear
Village visitors during the 2010 South Florida Fair:
standing
from left to right are Gary Wichterman (Cresthaven
Barkley), Joy Jasmin (Lake Osbourne Estates), Mario
Bianco (Cresthaven Barkley) and seated, Anna
Wichterman (Cresthaven Barkley) |
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The
Condo News print newspaper is published every other Wednesday. It is circulated
throughout Palm Beach County, from Delray to North Palm
Beach, and from Singer Island, Palm Beach and South Palm
Beach to Royal Palm Beach, in Condominium, Cooperative and
Home Owner Association Communities. For more information, or
to have the Condo News brought to your community,
e-mail us or write to: P.O. Box 109, West Palm Beach, FL
33409. Tel:(561) 471-0329 |
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