Florida Historical Society finalize Seward Day plans for May 20

Florida - The Village of Florida’s favorite son, William H. Seward, will be honored at the annual Seward Day program on Saturday, May 20. (Seward was actually born on May 16, 1801.) The ceremonies will start with a wreathe-laying ceremony at 9:45 a.m. at the Seward Monument on North Main Street. That monument, the work of noted sculptor Daniel Chester French, was dedicated in 1930. It recently was placed on the National Registry of Historic Places. The program will then move to the S.S. Seward Institute where the theme of “Here’s Looking at You, Mr. Seward,” will be carried out by various school groups, including the fourth grades from Golden Hill and the seventh grades from S.S. Seward. Participants will include Orange County Historian Theodore Sly, author Alan K. Lewis, book illustrator Bob Fletcher and members of the Florida Historical Society. The “Looking at You” theme will center upon the re-dedication of the large portrait of Seward, painted by C. Brower Darst in 1910, which hangs in the Seward library/media center. The large steel engraving of the “Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation,” featuring President Abraham Lincoln and Secretary of State Seward, also will be displayed. Several local historical books will be exhibited and will be available for purchase and signing. The Historical Society’s museum at the Village Hall complex will be open from 1 to 4 p.m., and the Florida Public Library will also hold their used book sale on that day. And St. Joseph’s School on Glenmere Avenue will offer a day long tag sale. Refreshments, including the traditional birthday cake, will be served following the program in the cafetorium. Florida Historical Society president Gary Randall extends an invitation to the entire community to join the birthday celebration.