August 8, 1923 Highlander
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Last updated 8/17/2023 at 8:56pm
Courtesy Lake Wales Public Library archives
100 years ago Lake Wales was seeing very heavy rains in contrast to the situation today, as more than 36 inches had already fallen during the year. Flooding was a major concern at Lake Okeechobee. Meanwhile a local businessman was filling in a pond at the corner of First Street and Polk Avenue with plans to erect buildings at the site, and another local businessman was encouraging the town to plant trees along Scenic Highway and build an airport.
The Lake Wales Highlander of 100 years ago reveals much about the history of our community.
Each week the Lake Wales News will publish a front-page image of the former Lake Wales Highlander from 100 years earlier, tracking the growth of the community a century ago, when Florida was in the midst of a great land price boom and rapid population growth.
The images are retrieved from the digital archives of the Lake Wales Public Library.
The Lake Wales Highlander eventually became The Daily Highlander, and under several different names was published six times a week on Sunday mornings and Monday through Friday afternoons until 1995.
The original Lake Wales News was a weekly broadsheet newspaper that also served the community for many decades, later changing to a tabloid format before closing six years ago.
Lake Wales was among only a handful of small communities that supported two local newspapers, a mark of the level of literacy and community interest here.
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