Historic Downtown Sanford

By Kevin D. Gardner It was once a centerpiece for the community, providing education for generations of young African American students in Sanford’s Georgetown neighborhood. Now, thanks to the hard work and dedication of members of the community, Historic Hopper Academy has been reborn as a community center and is a point of pride once again and an example of ...

Then Now Top row: Kelly Phelan, Marian McNamara Yeadon, Nancy Tron, Lisa Finnerty; 2nd row: Valeri Davis, Linda Miller, Karen Adam, Christina Hollerbach; first row: Nancy Van, Lynn Sweeney, Shakirah Johnson BY KEVIN D. GARDNER The Woman’s Club of Sanford has been a fixture in the city since April 1913. Its clubhouse at 309 S. Oak Ave. — built in ...

Christine Dalton The Sanford Civic Center was constructed in 1958 during the height of popularity for the Mid-Century Modern style of architecture. Mid-Century Modern buildings were characterized by clean lines, lack of ornamentation, and space-age influenced design details. Defined shapes (such as spheres and rectangles) were juxtaposed against one another to create dramatic visual effects. Materials were expressed in natural ...

Park History Christine Dalton Shortly after Sanford was incorporated in 1877, Henry Shelton Sanford hired Mr. E.R. Tra­fford to draw a plat of the new city. The city was laid out on a grid with land set aside for churches, schools, and parks. Five of the original park sites still exist today, one of which is the site of Paw ...