Florida is a state of transplants. Even people who relocated here decades ago still claim their birthplace as their home. They might change their mind if they knew that the Sunshine State owns one of the richest histories in the nation. Decades before the Pilgrims, the Spanish celebrated Thanksgiving in Florida. Centuries before the first St. Patrick’s Day Parade in New York, the holiday was celebrated in St. Augustine, where urban renewal was underway when Jamestown settlers arrived. Author James Clark offers a lifetime of places to explore and thousands of facts to fascinate, tracing the state’s long history from Pensacola to the Florida Keys.
James Clark is a Senior Lecturer in the University of Central Florida History Department. He has emerged as one of Florida’s leading historians, noted for his books and research. He is the author of nine books, and the editor of a three-volume anthology of Florida Literature. He is a graduate of Lennoir-Rhyne College, holds a master’s degree from Stetson University, and a doctorate in Florida history from the University of Florida. His articles have appeared in The Washington Post, Washington Monthly, The Nation, and The Miami Herald. His work has been honored by the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors, the Florida Magazine Association, and the Florida Historical Society.
Florida Voices in generously supported by the Fred J. Brotherton Endowment for Literature, established at The Four Arts by the Fred J. Brotherton Charitable Foundation. Fred Brotherton, who died in 2003, was for many years a Benefactor of The Four Arts and a strong supporter of its programs. Florida Voices, featuring the state that was Mr. Brotherton’s winter home, serves as a continuing memorial to this much-respected member of The Four Arts.