Untold Florida: Recent Episodes
Ryan Vasquez
Untold Florida is a podcast helping you learn more about the unknown and under-covered stories in your community.
Buildings, especially old buildings, can go by many names and purposes over their lives. But sometimes the original owners or purpose of the building can get lost to time. Taylor Levesque looked into the histories of two such buildings in Florida one that even local historians don't know what its original purpose was, and the other a once-popular roadside attraction on US 301 that sat closed and untouched for a number of years
Returning to your alma mater might bring about memories of late-night food runs to a favorite local restaurant or nights out on the town hitting up local pubs and clubs. But for former University of Florida students and long-time Gainesville residents, those familiar places seem to be disappearing faster than you can say progress. Ethan Budowsky takes a look at some of those favorite businesses lost to time. Then Sofia Mingote talks with residents and historians about what happens if and when a town loses some of its identity.
Florida has a rich baseball history, but some people may be unfamiliar with teams of long ago. Ethan Budowsky has a story on the history of Negro league baseball in Florida. Then Harrison Smajovits looks to find out whatever happened to Gainesville's minor league baseball team, the G-Men.
Their names adorn buildings from government office buildings to schools, but Josiah T. Walls and Jonathan Clarkson Gibbs aren't exactly household names. That's despite the fact that they were two of Florida's trailblazing Black politicians during Reconstruction. Sofia Mingote first provides a history of Josiah T. Walls and his rough road to being a congressman. Then Harrison Smajovits has a look at the life of Jonathan Clarkson Gibbs who had many firsts to his name.