published: Sunday, September 30, 2012

Walking tour of Historic District added to Centennial plans

We are less than two weeks away from all the celebrations, if you have been thinking of entering an event or sponsoring the event of your choice, the time is now. You can still be a part of the Centennial celebrations, but you need to act on it today. Please visit the newly redesigned website, www.Sebring100.
com, for all the forms and information, or give us a call. We want all of the community to be a part of this terrific time in Sebring's History.

This issue is focused on Thursday, Oct. 18. This is a night in delightful downtown Sebring that is not to be missed, and the reasoning is that night will be part of Sebring's new history - history being made. Starting the night off at 5 p.m. is the Downtown Sebring Chamber Mixer. This mixer is open free to the public for all to enjoy. There will be beverages of all types, foods galore, music and ... the "Historic Chamber Mixer" will take you on a walking tour of the downtown Sebring Historic District. Buildings such as the Buckeye Building located at 108 Circle Park Drive (1913), the Buckeye Building now stands on the original site of the Buckeye Club, a place for social and religious gatherings. George Sebring repurchased the property in 1921 to build a new home for his real estate company.

Did you know you could have bought the Buckeye Building in 1938 for just $25,000? And the Board of Trade Building at 309 Circle Park Drive (1916), organized in 1914 by H. Orvel Sebring, the Board of Trade operated much like today's Chamber of Commerce, promoting businesses and development in the young city. George Sebring donated the land for this building, which served at times as city council chambers, the city auditorium, and headquarters for the Red Cross during World War I. Today the city of Sebring leases the building to the Sebring Chamber of Commerce and it has been used as a satellite chamber office.

The new Sebring Chamber CEO, Steve Nyhan, is moving his office back to the downtown chamber office, helping to promote the redevelopment of the Historic Downtown District along with the CRA and many others. Did you know that the Board of Trade Building was built entirely with donated labor and materials? There is a new brochure, "The Walking Tour of Historic Downtown Sebring," you can find at the local merchants downtown. It has many more facts and fun than mentioned in this article.

Promptly at 6 p.m. on that same Thursday, we ask all of Sebring to be present as we place the Sebring 100 Time Capsule in the ground. Then at 6:30 p.m., the Mountain Dew Cloggers hit the ground, and the Mayor's Street Dance begins. This night will be fabulous; there will be music, food and more, and the streets will come alive with singing and dancing.

Did you know that every Saturday night in the 1920s, Circle Park Drive was closed for a party? People went dancing to the town band, which played on the balcony of the Roanoke.

On the new website, you can find the song, "The Centennial Ode," written by our city's mayor, George Hensley. This song you will want to learn, because we will have the streets closed just as they did in the '20s, to sing and dance in.

The Centennial Committee met with the city officials Friday morning and the stage will be on Circle Drive, facing North Ridgewood. The Back Porch Revival Band will be on stage performing, among many wonderful songs, "The Centennial Ode." So learn the song, and join all of Sebring for this wonderful night in beautiful historic downtown Sebring.

We just got the order of Centennial Christmas Ornaments in, and they are cute.

Remember to stop by the Greater Sebring Chamber of Commerce and get your coffee table book "The One-Hundred Years of Sebring" and your hat, T-shirt, lapel pin, grocery tote bag, cup or bumper sticker, all sporting the official Centennial logo. Please check out our new website, www.Sebring
100.com,">100.com, for a full line up of the Centennial events, the Mayor's song, a list of our wonderful sponsors that make the celebration week possible for all of us to enjoy and more. Join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SebringCentennial, call 655-5554 or email events@sebring
100.com and get involved.

Thanks to the News-Sun for being a sponsor and the opportunity to keep everyone informed on Sebring's Centennial Celebration. Reference this article every Sunday and you won't miss a thing!