BOAORKT S
THIS DAY
IN FLORIDA
A Look at Florida Over the Years
LYRICS FOR
COSMIC MUSIC
MAY/JUNE 2020 | TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE 141
Andrew Frank, the Allen Morris Professor of History
at Florida State University, along with archivists J.
Hendry Miller and Tarah Luke, have devised an
ingenious book that covers Florida’s 500-year history
one day at a time titled This Day in Florida History. It tells 366
stories of our state’s history, beginning with the Rosewood
Massacre entry for January 1st, and ending on December 31st,
when the Florida State Board of Health created the division of
Venereal Disease Control in 1938. The extra day is leap year’s
February 29th, when in 1864, the first integrated free school
opened in Jacksonville. Each entry concludes with a notation
for further reading.
The book is filled with fascinating events such as the March
1st story about Jim Morrison of The Doors, who attended St.
Petersburg’s Junior College before later exposing himself in
1969 onstage at Miami’s Dinner Key Auditorium. After being
found guilty, he died in Paris while out on bail during his appeal.
In 2007, then Gov. Charlie Crist led the movement to give
Morrison a posthumous pardon, which was granted in 2010.
These are not the 366 most important or best known events
in our state’s history, but this book provides an interesting look
at events that give Florida its own special charm for lack of a
better word. This Day in Florida History is published by University
Press of Florida at upf.com, and can also be purchased
at major booksellers. 9
A former jazz singer, Patricia Walters graduated from the University
of California-Davis with a degree in theater arts before
moving to Tampa in 1972. After earning a master’s degree
with honors at the University of South Florida, she spent 40
years as a psychotherapist, continuing to write poetry. This book is a
compilation of some of her creations. They range from short thoughts
to longer expositions, but each opens up a curtain into her thoughts
and feelings, individually expressing them at various moments, as
she reacted to events in her life. The book is filled with poetic truth
and beauty. Patricia opens her heart, and words spill out to paint a
picture of her thoughts. Lyrics for Cosmic Music, featuring poems by
Patricia Walters, can be purchased at amazon.com. 9