We last shared a photo of the first Publix store that George Jenkins designed and built from the ground up. That building is still located on Central Avenue at Second Street NW.
Most of us remember these inspiring words on our Statue of Liberty:
Forget the plane ticket — grab your food passport and explore Winter Haven!
You will likely be seeing a lot of Jeeps in the area as February comes to a close.
The pioneers of Black History Month created an impact that has been powerful enough to transcend history. The lives of African Americans have improved throughout time because of the blood, sweat, tears, voices, and hard work of Black men and women around our great nation. I want to take this…
I miss Mardi Gras. I miss being in crowds on Fat Tuesday. I’m hoping for a speedy recovery from the pandemic so we can all congregate again.
Even though I am in my 60s, part of my brain still thinks I am still in my 20s. My 20-year-old self doesn’t want to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
When I began my career with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office 48 years ago, I remember stopping in at the Mulberry police station and watching the dispatcher answer and dispatch calls from a radio room tucked away in a tiny corner of that police station.
A quiet moment of clarity produces the reality of the major concerns 2020 has left for us to work together to resolve. We find in 2021 the need to create and maintain solutions for inequalities, race relations, the judicial system, educational institutions and economic parities locally and n…
What better way to spend a long weekend than at a resort condo, overlooking the beautiful back bay waters of Estero Bay, while sipping a cold beverage from your balcony?
Several readers took me to task when I wrote in a previous column that small business is not being treated fairly.
Every year, traffic crashes kill more than 30,000 people in the United States.
Illustrated is the Realty Commerce Building, as designed to be built during the land boom of the 1920s.
One of my favorite messages in scripture is from Ecclesiastes 3.
Perhaps you look at the political wrangling in Washington, D.C., during the worst health care crisis in 100 years – and you wonder what has become of our great country.
Pictured is the view overlooking Central Park to Fifth Street, NW, in the 1920s.
You may have seen on the news that we had a pretty scary situation happen in the southeast unincorporated part of our county.
Did you dream of owning a flying car when you were young? I know I did.
Pictured is the Winter Haven Chamber Commerce’s 1929 membership drive. Members are pictured at the intersection of Sixth Street and Avenue B, NW.
The year just concluded is one of those rare occasions which gives us cause to believe that better times surely lie ahead, because the year just past couldn’t have been any worse.
This Christmas season, we thought a neat gift we could give to our citizens would be free pet adoptions from our Animal Control facility during the week before Christmas and all the way until Christmas Eve.
Our nation has survived the worst health care crisis in 100 years.
As the odometer rolls over on the New Year on Thursday night, Bartowans (and any residents of neighboring communities who care to join us) will celebrate this annual milestone in a unique fashion.
My agency and I have a long-standing commitment to protecting children, especially those who have been victimized or exploited.
Pictured is a look at Central Avenue at Third Street, in downtown Winter Haven, taken in the 1930s.
“(Recently) Dunn-Rankin’s lead editorial stated that the government was taking 40% of his profits. I believe he should take a close look at his bookkeeper or accountant. The corporate tax rate is 21% flat, or better yet get Donald Trump's accountant. The Donald didn't pay any taxes 10 of the…
It was nine months ago, almost to the day, when I wrote my first column about the world’s new pandemic — a term usually found only in crossword puzzles — and its impact on our lives.
“Hey David. Your column about politicians not respecting small business blamed both Republicans and Democrats for the delay in passing another COVID-19 relief package.
In October, I went on a mission to find the best dessert in Polk County. The article was so well-received that I decided to keep it rolling. All November long, I tried the best voted tacos in the county.
Pictured is an evening look at Carroll Smith Hardware, when it was located on 3rd Street, NW, in what is now known as the Forum Building.
You’ve probably heard me talk about how safe it is here in Polk County.
America’s official Christmas tree — if there is such a thing — is the one erected each year at Rockefeller Center.
Division can be defined as a disagreement between a person or persons, producing tension, anger and hostility.
A bullying, unappreciative partner. There’s no other way to describe it.
Many years ago — make that many, many years ago — I began struggling with that question that has vexed parents for generations: Is there a Santa Claus?
It’s the most wonderful time of the year at Polk County Animal Control – each December, we are thrilled to hold our annual Pet Fest at our facility in Winter Haven.
Phil Robinson and Christa Morgan met while both were working at Tanners Lakeside. Phil is a chef and Christa’s background is in the hospitality industry.
This photograph from 1923, taken by Robert Dahlgren, features business leaders who participated in the Chamber of Commerce membership drive that year.
Pictured is the Exchange Packing House, which once sat downtown on the site of the present day Winter Haven Chamber of Commerce. The railroad tracks running through the photo would run directly through the Chamber’s breezeway today, so the large building was slightly east of the chamber building.
“OK, Google, I’m ready for my morning medical check-in.”
The holidays are rapidly descending upon us.
For several months, I have kept my own counsel on the Election of 2020, an event which should rate an entire chapter in history books.
Pictured are two women, replete with hats, preparing to boat on Lake Howard, circa 1910.
Another fellow American is dying from COVID-19 while you read this sentence.
Pictured, horse-drawn carriages take guests of the Florence Villa Hotel to church, circa 1910. The hotel was located on the current site of the Spring Lake Shopping Center.
Every year before Halloween, our special victims unit detectives remind registered sexual predators and sexual offenders who have restrictions related to having contact with children and participating in holidays that involve children.
Seniors have been harder hit by COVID-19 than any other age group, and it is not even close. Across the country, lawmakers, and public health officials must do everything they can to help this population, and this starts with learning the right lessons.
After reading Mr. Baker's article on the recent school board issues, I developed strong concerns about the suggestion for the rule to "make it unethical for school board members not to support a school policy once it is instated.." This sounds like a type of "cancel culture" going on today, …
As we make our transition to the Thanksgiving Holiday, we can be assured there is a new normal. The holidays ahead will be redefined in the wake of the Coronavirus. Wearing a face-mask, hand-sanitizing, social distancing and following the Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines to protec…
It feels like we are in a unique moment in history.
