Vintage Jacksonville

An orange picker at work in the 1940’s.  Ponce de Leon is credited with most likely planting the first orange trees around St. Augustine, Florida in the early to mid 1500’s.  Citrus has been commercially grown in Florida since the early 1800’s with North Florida along the St. Johns River being the early hub of Florida’s citrus business.  This photo was most likely taken in Central Florida during Loyd Sandgren’s time working for the Florida State Advertising Commission in Tallahassee, FL around 1946.

Tags: citrus, historic photograph, men, orange, orange grove, orange picker, vintage photography

“The day that Lou Bono’s Bar-B-Que opened up on 4907 Beach Blvd.  I remember what Lou said that day, “I paid too much for that land, it was $75.00 a front foot, I guess I’ve lost all my money.”  Today that property is worth $2,000 a front foot.  O yes, that was 750 feet deep, what a buy.  1954.” LS

The shadows peaking into the bottom of the frame would be Loyd’s head and view camera and perhaps on the right is Lou Bono watching the shoot progress.  Can you imagine the tonnage of meat that has gone through that smoker since this photo was taken?   An earlier photo of Lou Bono can be found here.

Tags: Beach Blvd., Bono's Bar-B-Que, building, business, cars, historic photograph, Lou Bono, parking lot, vintage photography

Looks like a 50’s era convenience store but I can’t find any signage with the business name.  It is across the street from an A&P Food Store.  I’d say they were really pushing the Lucky Strike cigarette brand!

Tags: advertising, convenience store, grocery, historic photograph, Lucky Strike, shopping, vintage photography

One of the later downtown views found in the Loyd Sandgren collection showing the St. James building which housed the May-Cohens department store, behind that is the Ivey’s department store and the newly finished Cathedral Towers stand in the background.  The Art Deco Western Union building was still a mixed use office building and palm trees were the predominant tree in Hemming Plaza.  This was probably shot from the roof of the Robert Meyer Hotel which was located where the new Federal Courthouse now stands.  Early 1970’s.

Tags: Cathedral Towers, downtown, Hemming Plaza, historic photo, Ivey's, May Cohens, Robert Meyer Hotel, skyline, St. James Building, vintage photography, Western Union

Contestant in the Miss Jacksonville Pageant held in the Palace Theater in downtown Jacksonville.  1950’s.  I’m sure the extension cords stringing the stage lights together were up to code.

The Palace was one of almost two dozen theaters located along Forsyth Street, Main Street, Bay Street and a few other locations around downtown Jacksonville during the early 1900’s.  The Palace and the Imperial Theater stood side by side on Forsyth Street at the corner of Ocean Street.  Both were demolished in 1956 and a parking lot stands at their location today.  Only the Florida Theatre remains from Jacksonville’s former theater district.

Tags: audience, beauty pageant, downtown, Forsyth Street, historic photograph, Jacksonville, Miss Jacksonville, Ocean Street, Palace Theater, Theater district, Theatre district, vintage photography

Ray Charles playing saxophone with Jacksonville promoter Ken Knight during a concert in 1960.  Everyone knows about Ray Charles’ Jacksonville connection, attending the School for the Deaf and the Blind in St. Augustine and hanging around the music clubs in Jacksonville’s La Villa neighborhood in his youth but Ken Knight has a prominent place in Jacksonville’s history as well.  Adrian Kenneth “Ken” Knight became the first black radio announcer in the South when he went to work for a radio station in Daytona Beach in 1947.  He moved to Jacksonville and produced the first black television program in Jacksonville, the Ken Knight Show which featured live gospel music on WJXT, TV-4. He continued working in radio and became the general manager of radio station WPDQ.  He is also credited as one of the founders of the National Association of Television and Radio Announcers.  Knight died in Jacksonville September 12, 1973 at the age of 64.

Tags: Chanel 4, concert, historic photograph, Ken Knight, radio, Ray Charles, Saxophone, television, vintage photography, WPDQ

Bob Hope signing autographs at the old Imeson Airport on Jacksonville’s Northside, 1948.  Love the old United Airlines prop plane (looks like a 4 engine DC-6 to me) in the background.  Don’t know if this photo in an earlier post was from the same visit or not.

Tags: airplane, autographs, Bob Hope, historic photograph, Imeson Airport, vintage photography

A display of the aircraft turrets used by Navy aircraft gunners on parade at the Naval Air Gunners School at Yellow Water on Jacksonville’s Westside where the gunners were trained in their use.  Shot while Loyd Sandgren was a Navy photographer stationed at NAS Mayport in the 1940’s.  Here is an earlier post from the facility to give an idea of the volume of munitions they used in training.

Tags: display, historic photographs, machine gun, Naval Air Gunners School, navy, vintage photography, Yellow Water Gunnery Range

A full length view of a previously featured strip tease artist in all of her feathered and sequined glory photographed in one of Loyd Sandgren’s downtown Jacksonville studios.  I think the cigarette in the cigarette holder adds a real touch of class!

Tags: cigarette, dress, historic photography, portrait, sequins, strip tease, stripper, vintage photograph, woman

Unidentified model atop a 1950’s vintage Pontiac at what looks like a car show.  I can’t figure out the location but I’m sure someone out there will recognize the distinctive tile work on the stairway.  Let me know if you figure it out.

(Update)  Thank you to the Vintage Jacksonville fans who were quick to identify the location.  The photo was shot in the showroom of the Claude Nolan Cadillac dealership on Main Street.  The building is now boarded up but the Henry Klutho designed building was built for the dealership which began in 1905, in 1910 and was used by Claude Nolan until they moved to a new location in 1985.  I spoke with Steve Terbrueggen, the Senior Sales Consultant for the dealership who started working there just before they moved from the Main Street location.  He described the main showroom as pretty much unchanged from the photo other than some of the signage.  Terbrueggen said the stairway tile was still intact and there was the original Cadillac logo inlaid into the showroom floor.    Now for bonus points, identify the year and model of the car!

Tags: bathing beauty, car, Car Dealership, car show, Claude Nolan, historic photographs, interior, Main Street, model, Pontiac, vintage photography