Florida Spectacular

Episode 232: (Bonus Episode) Submerged Stories, Prospect Bluff, and Hidden Florida History

Send us your Florida questions! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1527562/open_sms] This week, Ryan Worthington and Cathy Salustri talk about their forthcoming podcast, Submerged Stories: Florida's Other History. Find Submerged Stories [https://www.facebook.com/groups/floridasotherhistory] on Facebook. Find Ryan [https://www.instagram.com/the_fl_excursionist] and Cathy [https://www.instagram.com/cathysalustri] on Instagram. Links We Mentioned Prospect Bluff: Part of the Underground Network to Freedom [https://apalachicolariverkeeper.org/prospect-bluff-lonely-place-with-a-rich-history/] Dale Cox YouTube Episode [https://youtu.be/M2xudBNF_HE?si=mqd2kH2aSLYp0HFj] Fort Gadsden and the Underground Railroad [https://www.fs.usda.gov/r08/florida/recreation/underground-railroad-fort-gadsen]   Support the show [https://paypal.me/floridaspectacular?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US] Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com [cathy@floridaspectacular.com]. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter [http://eepurl.com/df4f_T], and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com [http://greatfloridaroadtrip.com/]. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com [http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/] and get his books at rickkilby.com [https://www.rickkilby.com/]. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy [http://www.facebook.com/SalustriCathy] and everywhere else as @CathySalustri [http://www.twitter.com/CathySalustri]; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth [https://www.facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth], Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/oldfla.bsky.social]), and IG (@ricklebee [http://www.instagram.com/ricklebee]). NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link [cathy@floridaspectacular.com?subject=Plant%20question]!

Episode 231: Reunite the River, the Ocklawaha River, and a Conservation Hero

Send us your Florida questions! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1527562/open_sms] The Florida Wildlife Federation calls Karen Chadwick a conservation [https://floridawildlifefederation.org/conservation-champions-karen-chadwick/] hero. She's spent her life on and around the waters of Central Florida, and she talks about her passion for the Ocklawaha, the impacts of keeping the dam, and the splendor of the regular drawdowns. Links We Mentioned Ocklawaha River [https://lake.wateratlas.usf.edu/waterbodies/rivers/1149/ocklawaha-river] Rodman Reservoir and Dam [https://reunitetherivers.com/location/rodman-reservoir-and-rodman-dam/] Cross-Florida Barge Canal [https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/earth-systems/blog/florida-environmental-history-the-cross-florida-barge-canal/] Kenwood boat ramp [https://reunitetherivers.com/location/kenwood-recreation-area/] Buckman Lock [https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/buckman-lock-st-johns-loop-north-south] North Star Charters [https://northstarcharters.net/] Karen's YouTube channel about the Ocklawaha [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceeHT3cq5J8]  A Cruising Down the River [http://www.captainerikasfloridaboatcharters.com/] Photo of Karen Chadwick by Alan Halaly. Support the show [https://paypal.me/floridaspectacular?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US] Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com [cathy@floridaspectacular.com]. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter [http://eepurl.com/df4f_T], and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com [http://greatfloridaroadtrip.com/]. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com [http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/] and get his books at rickkilby.com [https://www.rickkilby.com/]. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy [http://www.facebook.com/SalustriCathy] and everywhere else as @CathySalustri [http://www.twitter.com/CathySalustri]; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth [https://www.facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth], Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/oldfla.bsky.social]), and IG (@ricklebee [http://www.instagram.com/ricklebee]). NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link [cathy@floridaspectacular.com?subject=Plant%20question]!

Episode 230: Aids, Arcadia, and Accusations

Send us your Florida questions! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1527562/open_sms] Jason Vuic (rhymes with Buick!) talks about his latest book, A Town Without Pity: Aids, Race, & Resistance in Florida's Deep South. In it, he delves into two notorious cases from Arcadia: the Ray brothers [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_brothers], and the James Richardson [https://www.cltampa.com/arts/watch-this-free-film-about-a-black-arcadia-man-wrongfully-imprisoned-for-21-years-for-killing-his-seven-children-12309840/] case.  Links We Mentioned A Town Without Pity [https://amzn.to/4p6k4Q3] Swamp Peddlers [https://amzn.to/3JYhr40] Wheeler's Cafe [https://www.yelp.com/biz/wheelers-cafe-arcadia] Florida's Peace River Frontier [https://amzn.to/4p4snMn] by Canter Brown, Jr.  PHOTO:  In 1987, Arcadia brothers Ricky (left), Robert (center), and Randy (right) Ray suffered from hemophilia and contracted the AIDS virus through tainted blood factor. Ostracized by their community and thrust into the national spotlight, they were the victims of intense anti-AIDS hysteria (courtesy Tribune Publishing). Support the show [https://paypal.me/floridaspectacular?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US] Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com [cathy@floridaspectacular.com]. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter [http://eepurl.com/df4f_T], and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com [http://greatfloridaroadtrip.com/]. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com [http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/] and get his books at rickkilby.com [https://www.rickkilby.com/]. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy [http://www.facebook.com/SalustriCathy] and everywhere else as @CathySalustri [http://www.twitter.com/CathySalustri]; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth [https://www.facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth], Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/oldfla.bsky.social]), and IG (@ricklebee [http://www.instagram.com/ricklebee]). NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link [cathy@floridaspectacular.com?subject=Plant%20question]!

Episode 229: Florida Men Who Erased Women, Peonage, and Henry Flagler

Send us your Florida questions! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1527562/open_sms] Robin Mimna [https://www.robinmimna.com/] talks about the darker side of Henry Flagler, Stetson, and other "founding fathers" in Florida. We also talk about the women behind the men, and how the men controlled the narratives about them. Links We Mentioned Lake Helen [https://www.lakehelen.org/] Flagler's Law [https://wheninyourstate.com/florida/flagler-divorce-scandal-and-florida-mansion/] Arthur Hamlin [https://openplaques.org/people/19529] Mary Grace Quackenbos [https://chrissysenecal.com/mary-grace-quackenbos-mrs-sherlock-holmes/] Annie Laurie's Triumph [https://amzn.to/47qQfUH]  Support the show [https://paypal.me/floridaspectacular?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US] Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com [cathy@floridaspectacular.com]. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter [http://eepurl.com/df4f_T], and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com [http://greatfloridaroadtrip.com/]. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com [http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/] and get his books at rickkilby.com [https://www.rickkilby.com/]. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy [http://www.facebook.com/SalustriCathy] and everywhere else as @CathySalustri [http://www.twitter.com/CathySalustri]; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth [https://www.facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth], Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/oldfla.bsky.social]), and IG (@ricklebee [http://www.instagram.com/ricklebee]). NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link [cathy@floridaspectacular.com?subject=Plant%20question]!

Episode 228: The Florida Spooktacular, Robert the Doll, and Haunted Florida History

Send us your Florida questions! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/1527562/open_sms] Elizabeth Randall, author of Florida haunted history books, joins the podcast — this week only, we've changed the name — to tell us some fantastic Florida ghost stories.  Links We Mentioned Elizabeth Randall website [https://www.elizabethrandallauthor.com/] Bosque Bello Cemetery [https://fbfl.us/1081/Bosque-Bello-Cemetery] in Fernandina Amelia Island Museum of History [https://ameliamuseum.org/] (the old jailhouse) Robert the Doll [https://amzn.to/4nvzaOa] by David Sloan David Sloan ghost tour and VIP Robert the Doll Experience [https://gtotours.com/st_tour/fort-east-martello-ghost-tour-vip-robert-the-doll-experience/] Robert the Doll Florida Spectacular episode [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1527562/episodes/13845017] Books from Elizabeth Randall  Women in White [https://amzn.to/4oGmapA] Murder in St. Augustine: The Mysterious Death of Athalia Ponsell Lindsley [https://amzn.to/4ohPWS3] Haunted St. Augustine [https://amzn.to/4hEm3sG]  Support the show [https://paypal.me/floridaspectacular?country.x=US&locale.x=en_US] Question or comment? Email us at cathy@floridaspectacular.com [cathy@floridaspectacular.com]. Subscribe to The Florida Spectacular newsletter [http://eepurl.com/df4f_T], and keep up with Cathy's travels at greatfloridaroadtrip.com [http://greatfloridaroadtrip.com/]. Keep up with Rick at studiohourglass.blogspot.com [http://studiohourglass.blogspot.com/] and get his books at rickkilby.com [https://www.rickkilby.com/]. Find Cathy on social media: Facebook.com/SalustriCathy [http://www.facebook.com/SalustriCathy] and everywhere else as @CathySalustri [http://www.twitter.com/CathySalustri]; connect with Rick Facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth [https://www.facebook.com/floridasfountainofyouth], Bluesky (@oldfla.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/oldfla.bsky.social]), and IG (@ricklebee [http://www.instagram.com/ricklebee]). NEW: Florida landscape questions — Send us your Florida plant questions and we'll have an expert answer them on the show! Use this link [cathy@floridaspectacular.com?subject=Plant%20question]!