Sanford Historical Society

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Sanford Historical Society

The Sanford Historical Society, Inc., a 501c3 not-for-profit organization, was founded in 1984. The Society functions as an auxiliary for the Sanford Museum.

The Sanford Historical Society's purpose is to foster interest in the preservation of information and artifacts related to the history of Sanford, Florida, while supporting the efforts of the Sanford Museum. It supports and promotes the objectives of the Museum through fundraising and by providing volunteers. The Society holds six meetings during the year, which includes programs relating to the area’s history.

06/20/2026

Summer is here and so are the ducks. 🦆 The Great Sanford Duck Hunt! is on!

Each week from June 20 through July 18, 20 patriotic rubber ducks will be tucked away at different downtown businesses, just waiting to be discovered. Calling all hunters ages 12 and under — grab your sense of adventure and start searching! Each duck has a unique number and special information on the bottom that kicks off an exciting adventure to claim a prize! Redeem prizes at the Sanford Museum!

06/19/2026

"The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free."
— General Order No. 3, read by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger in Galveston, Texas, June 19, 1865

This striking photograph captures an Emancipation Day celebration in "East Woods" on East 24th Street in Austin, Texas, on June 19, 1900—exactly 35 years after the first Juneteenth.

Though the Emancipation Proclamation was issued in 1863, it couldn't be enforced in areas still under Confederate control. True freedom didn't reach Texas until June 19, 1865, when Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay and announced that more than 250,000 enslaved Black people were free.

What followed was Reconstruction—a time of great hope, uncertainty, and monumental struggle. Defying over 200 years of enslavement, communities moved quickly to reshape the nation: reunifying families torn apart by slavery, building schools, running for office, and pushing for sweeping new legislation.

Juneteenth is America's second Independence Day. It remains a timeless reminder of the power of hope, the strength of community, and the ongoing pursuit of absolute equality.

Happy Juneteenth! 🇺🇸

📷 Photo: Austin History Center
📝 Historical context: National Museum of African American History and Culture
🔗 nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/historical-legacy-juneteenth

06/14/2026

🇺🇸 Happy Flag Day, Sanford!

On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress adopted the Stars and Stripes as the flag of the new United States.

This photograph by Bob Frey for the Sentinel Star, from our museum collection, captures a flag-raising ceremony at Veterans Memorial Park. Look closely and you'll see what makes Sanford, Sanford: neighbors lined shoulder to shoulder along the riverfront, a color guard standing at attention, palm trees and open water framing it all, and a whole community turning out to honor the flag together.

It's neat to see the park as it looked before the Riverwalk project began in 2003 — the flagpole no longer stands here on the peninsula. Today it rises from the middle of the roundabout just outside the park.

(A little detective work: the Sentinel Star only went by that name from 1973 to 1982, so this photo is right around 50 years old.)

Nearly 250 years later — and right in the middle of America's 250th birthday year — we're still gathering to raise it proudly here on the shores of Lake Monroe.

Moments like this one are exactly what we work to preserve. Stop by the Sanford Museum to see more of the photographs and artifacts that tell our city's American story.

Were you there, or do you remember the old peninsula flagpole?

06/06/2026

A little Sanford history, found in a bathroom. 🚽

Yes, we’re aware we’re posting a photo of a toilet. Bear with us — there’s a good reason, we promise. 😅

A couple board members were in the right place at the right time this morning and got a tour of a magnificent home in the residential district built in 1909.

Look closely at the front of the bowl: “C.H. DINGEE. SANFORD, FLA.”

The fixture was made by Haines, Jones & Cadbury of Philadelphia (their William Penn trademark is stamped on the back), one of the largest plumbing supply houses in the country back then. But the Dingee name is our local connection — these companies fired the hometown plumber’s name right into the porcelain. So Charles H. Dingee was Sanford’s plumbing man, ordering fixtures from Philadelphia with his own name on them and installing them around town. We also know a Charles H. Dingee was made a Captain in the Seminole County Guard in 1917 — almost certainly the same fellow.

It was far from the fanciest thing in the house — but an original fixture still doing its job over a century later, with its maker’s stamp intact? That was cool to see.

And that’s about all we’ve got. So we’re asking you:

👉 Do you have family stories or memories of the Dingees?
👉 Any old ads, photos, or directory listings of his business?
👉 Does your old Sanford home have a fixture with his name on it?

06/03/2026

Some things in Sanford never go out of style. 🚲

Long before the Riverwalk had its paved path, these two young cyclists were already enjoying the same Lake Monroe shoreline — bikes, lake breeze, and all. More than a century later, that exact stretch is where so many of us still ride and stroll.

Happy World Bicycle Day! 🚴‍♀️

06/01/2026

From citrus groves to celery fields, Sanford's agricultural roots run deep. The Crate Expectations exhibit at the Sanford Museum showcases the beautiful crate labels that traveled with our local produce — back when Sanford was shipping to the world and earned the nickname "Celery City." Stop by and see this colorful piece of our history! 🍊

📍 520 E. 1st St., Sanford
🕐 Tue–Sat 9am–5pm
💚 FREE admission — donations appreciated!

05/26/2026

Thank you to everyone who came out to our May program, Sanford’s Spy in Europe: A Civil War Secret Revealed. It was great hearing from David Perry on Sanford’s connection to Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War. We’re on a summer break for programs, but we’ll keep you updated on our next one.

05/25/2026

Meet the flight crew of the Mis-cellaneous — six men stationed at Naval Air Station Sanford, photographed in 1944 in front of their B-25 bomber. Next to them, a pinup bears the names of six women — their wives and girlfriends back home, carried with them on every mission.

On the back of this photo, someone wrote: "Flight Crew NAS Sanford FL 1944 A/C PB-J Army B-25."

This Memorial Day, we honor men like these — young guys from somewhere, loving someone, serving their country from right here in Sanford. Some came home. Some didn't.

Thank you to Gerald Bohm for donating this piece of Sanford history. 🇺🇸

Do you recognize anyone in this photo, or have a family connection to NAS Sanford? Share your story in the comments.

Address

520 E. First Street
Sanford, FL

Telephone

(407) 688-5198

Website

https://sanfordhistory.net/

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