History center: New ‘Orlando Collected’ exhibit marks city’s 150th birthday

[Disney4me]

The Orange County Regional History Center is celebrating the 150th birthday of Orlando with an exhibit that features 150 items that tell the story of the city.

The bulk of the items for “Orlando Collected” come from the museum’s vault — and some have never been displayed before.

It’s a wide range of artifacts, including seats from Tinker Field, the sign from Ivey’s Drug Store and chopsticks from Little Saigon restaurant. A deed for land at Greenwood Cemetery is featured.

Many of the items were selected by what organizers call “community curators,” and others are on loan to the history center for the duration of the exhibit — which rolls out to the public Saturday.

“While the name Orlando dates back to the 1850s it was not officially incorporated as a town until 1875, so this exhibition is the history center’s contribution to the events that will be marking this 150th anniversary,” said Katie Kelley, curator of exhibitions.

It’s “an opportunity to feature some of the items we’ve been caring for throughout the city’s history and putting them on display for the public to enjoy,” Kelley said.

Exhibit items are bunched by categories — such as arts, sports, attractions and business — rather than being presented in chronological order. Orlando High School graduates John Young, an astronaut, and Marshall Nirenberg, a Nobel Prize-winning biochemist and geneticist, are found in the education area.

The item count is higher than most exhibits. More information about individual pieces within “Orlando Collected” is found in the artifact guide — which is organized to match the expected flow of the exhibit.

The initials of Arnold Palmer are prominent on a golf bag he owned. It’s part of the sports section of the “Orlando Collected” exhibit at Orange County Regional History Center. (Macbeth Studio/Orange County Regional History Center)

In the sports section, there are a golf bag owned by Arnold Palmer, an Orlando Pride soccer jersey, a ticket from the first Orlando Magic game, a Dubsdread Country Club postcard and more.

Of the unexhibited items, one is a piece of 1926 sheet music written about Orlando recently recorded by Opera Orlando for use within the display.

“We were thrilled to actually hear it, hear what the song sounds like, and to be able to include that,” Kelley said.

On the more nefarious side, some of the museum’s artifacts are related to a 1921 case involving Lena Clarke, the West Palm Beach postmistress who tried to frame an Orlando man for embezzlement she committed. She ended up shooting him in the San Juan Hotel in downtown Orlando — but she pleaded insanity and was acquitted. She did spend time in a mental hospital, though. The exhibit features a Smith & Wesson revolver and a Colt pistol.

“One of them is supposedly the murder weapon. And we don’t really know, because different articles and sources list different kinds of weapons,” Kelley said.

There are also Clark’s purse and the court ledger from her trial. (The story is complicated, involving postal workers, empty moneybags, recanted confessions, morphine, a crystal ball, 12 past lives and a New York Times headline that “says she is superwoman.”)

The sign from Lili Marlene’s Aviators Pub & Restaurant is included in “Orlando Collected.” The exhibit also features a waitress’ uniform from the Church Street Station business. (Macbeth Studio/Orange County Regional History Center)

“Orlando Collected” is included with regular admission to the Orange County Regional History Center. A preview night is scheduled for 7 p.m.-9 p.m. Friday with a cash bar and entertainment. Tickets, available at thehistorycenter.org, are $10.

The exhibit will remain on display through Jan. 11.

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