The Historical Society of Avon ParkAVON PARK, FL · EST. 1886
Menu
Admin Sign-In

W. E. Pabor and Avon Park Journalism in the 1906 Florida Press

During the decade following the Great Freeze of 1895 and prior to the arrival of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad in 1912, Avon Park served as a notable outpost of Florida literary journalism and regional press syndication, driven by resident colony promoters William E. Pabor and Oliver R. Thacher.[jax-sun-1906][dsc-1905-08-18]

W. E. Pabor and The Sun of Jacksonville (1906)

William E. Pabor (1834–1911), who founded the neighboring pineapple colony of Pabor Lake in 1892 and edited the Pabor Lake Pineapple through 1897, maintained an active national and statewide literary career from his residence in Avon Park.[jax-sun-1906][ocala-1911-09-04]

In 1906, Pabor served as the literary editor of The Sun (Jacksonville), a prominent Democratic weekly published by reform editor Claude L’Engle (later a U.S. Representative).[jax-sun-1906]

  • The “Bright Literature” Department: Pabor wrote and edited a regular books-and-periodicals review department titled “Bright Literature.” The standing editorial notice instructed:

    Books, Magazines and other matter for notice in this department should be addressed to Literary Editor of THE SUN, Avon Park, Fla.[jax-sun-1906]

  • Literary Scope: The department reviewed leading national periodicals (such as Everybody’s Magazine, The Century, and The Arena), poetry, and contemporary agricultural science, maintaining an intellectual nexus between the Lake Wales Ridge and Jacksonville’s statewide media network.

O. R. Thacher and The De Soto County News (1905–1906)

Concurrently, pioneer grape grower and land agent Oliver R. Thacher (whose initials “O. R.” were occasionally garbled in typographical typesetting as “J. O. Thacher”) represented Avon Park in the county press at Arcadia.[dsc-1905-08-18]

  • The South Florida Sun Department: Because Avon Park lacked a local mechanical printing plant, Thacher syndicated his newspaper, The South Florida Sun, as a standing weekly section within The De Soto County News under the header “Department of The South Florida Sun, Avon Park, Florida: Conducted by O. R. Thacher.”[dsc-1905-08-18]
  • Local Coverage: Thacher reported weekly meteorological records, church assemblies, civic construction, and local business news, soliciting local correspondence at his Avon Park office and bridging the town’s news gap until municipal incorporation.

References

Where this comes from

Evidence
corroborated — More than one independent source agrees.
Review
unverified — Drafted from sources but not yet checked by a volunteer.
Rights
society

Sources

  1. The Sun (Jacksonville, Fla.), Claude L'Engle editor, Bright Literature, conducted by W. E. Pabor, The Sun (Jacksonville, Fla.), 7 and 14 July 1906 (1906)
  2. O. R. Thacher (department editor), The De Soto County News, Arcadia, Fla., The De Soto County News, 18 August 1905, page 8: Department of The South Florida Sun, Avon Park, Florida (1905)
  3. Ocala Evening Star, Ocala Evening Star, 4 September 1911, page 2: W. E. Pabor (1911)

Something here wrong, or incomplete? The Society would rather know. Tell a volunteer.

Have a question about this record?

← Back to collection

Ask A.P.

Ask the archive

    Try asking:

    0 / 500

    A.P. answers only from the Society's own archive and cites what it used. Questions are not linked to you; search history is stored on your device only (how it works).Ask a volunteer for anything it cannot answer.