The Palm Harbor Museum returns from its summer break with a pair of free public programs and a new initiative inviting residents to record their own local memories.
Pirate historian Robert Jacob brings his "Pirates of the Florida Coast" presentation to the Palm Harbor Library on Sept. 2, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., according to a Tampa Bay Beacons report. Jacob, a Palm Harbor-based author who spent more than 50 years in living history portrayals before retiring to Florida in 2013 as a Marine Corps Chief Warrant Officer 5, will separate fact from folklore on figures like Edward Teach, Francis Drake and Jose Gaspar.
Jacob has appeared on the History Channel's "Beyond Oak Island" as a pirate expert and was inducted into the International Pirate Hall of Fame. Signed copies of his books will be available, including "A Pirate's Life in the Golden Age of Piracy" and the new "Blackbeard: The Truth Revealed." Pirate-themed refreshments round out the evening. No RSVP is required, and the library offers free parking and wheelchair accessibility.
Talk highlights Chinese immigrant's citrus legacy
Three weeks later, museum volunteer and historian Quinton Spiaggi presents "From China to Florida's Citrus Groves" on Sept. 23, from 6 to 7 p.m. at the East Lake Community Library. The free talk explores the life of Lue Gim Gong, a Chinese immigrant who settled in DeLand and developed a cold-resistant orange variety that earned him the American Pomological Society's Silver Wilder Medal in 1911. The Florida Department of State recognized Gim Gong as a "Great Floridian" in 2000.
Spiaggi, who curated Heritage Village's ongoing exhibit "The Citrus Wizard's Journey: Lue Gim Gong and the Immigrant Spirit" in Largo, will also share stories spanning more than 330 years of Chinese American history in Florida.
Artist Kirk Ke Wang, who is creating a bronze sculpture of Gim Gong for Heritage Village, captured the renewed interest in the horticulturist's legacy in a Tampa Bay Beacons profile published in June: "I didn't even know Chinese immigrants lived here, nor his history."
New initiative to record local memories
Beyond the lecture series, the museum has launched the Power of Place Oral History Initiative in partnership with Heritage Village. Residents can record a three- to five-minute video about a personal memory connected to Pinellas County, filmed at the museum or at a location meaningful to the storyteller. Photos are welcome. To schedule a session, email [email protected] with "Oral History" in the subject line.
Museum seeks artifacts, adds new exhibit
The museum is also seeking historical artifacts and documents to grow its rotating collection. Recent donor Jessica Brueland of Palm Harbor United Methodist Church contributed documents and photos from the Rheba Sutton White Chapel Archives, and volunteer Jade Johnson curated the latest tabletop exhibit, "School Years," now on display in the Crystal Beach/Faith Mission Room.
The Palm Harbor Museum, housed in the historic Hartley House at 2043 Curlew Road, is open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. It serves the roughly 95,000 residents of Palm Harbor and East Lake.
