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Tarpon historical group to mark building's centennial

Mark Schantz/SUNCOAST

Leslie Alissandratos, chairwoman of the Tarpon Springs Historical Society Children's Art Contest, was pleasntly surprised by the quality of the entries from Tarpon Springs Middle School students.

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By Mark  Schantz | The Suncoast News

Published: November 13, 2009

Updated:

TARPON SPRINGS - The Tarpon Springs Area Historical Society is marking the centennial of the building that is its home.

At 2 p.m. Saturday, the historical society will kick off the second century of the Depot Museum, at Tarpon and Safford avenues, with ceremonies announcing the winners of its Children's Art Contest.

The contest is one of the outreach programs the society is undertaking to get young families and their children interested in the city's illustrious past.

Tarpon Springs Middle School students were invited to draw their own renditions of the downtown museum from photographs. "The results were remarkable," said Leslie Alissandratos, chairwoman of the art contest.

Seventh- and eighth-graders from the school submitted 110 entries to the contest. The works are on display at the museum.

Prizes will be awarded today in five categories.

Alissandratos, a former chairwoman of the annual Dunedin Art Harvest show, said everyone was surprised at the caliber of the artwork from the students. The entries included brilliantly colored watercolors, mixed media and pen and ink drawings.

Thanks to the contest, local residents, children and adults alike, are taking notice of the museum, according to Alissandratos. "Many have said they pass it by every day, but have never been inside, she said.

The museum building started life in 1909 as a depot for the Orange Belt Railway. It replaced a 20-year-old depot that had been destroyed by fire the year before. Passenger rail service to the city ended in the 1970s and that last freight change chugged away from the depot in 1985.

The former train station has been the museum's home for 32 years. The city undertook renovation work on the building in 2005.

The Children's Art Contest was so successful, Alissandratos said, it will likely become a yearly event and students from Tarpon Springs High School will be invited to participate.

Future art contests can focus on other historic buildings in the city, Alissandratos said. They include Safford House, originally the residence of town pioneer Anson P.K. Safford, or the Tarpon Springs Cultural Center, the former City Hall, she added.

Getting more local residents involved in the Historical Society or even visiting to see what the museum offers, is one of its missions in its second century.

The historical society's president, Carol Mountain, said the more people who get involved, the more the society can do in the community. She can remember a time when only the large front room of the former railroad depot was open to the public and a small band of volunteers kept the museum's doors open.

While most of the museum's collection is memorabilia from Tarpon Springs, it also has items from the East Lake, Crystal Beach, Ozona and Palm Harbor areas. The museum only accepts items from North Pinellas.

The museum's collection includes copies of the Tarpon Springs Leader stretching back to the beginning of the last century, thousands of photographs and newspaper clippings along with historical items and artifacts.

Mountain said the Historical Society plans to have more informational talks on different aspects of the city's history and outreach programs, along with its annual tours of homes and the city-owned Cycadia Cemetery.

Volunteers are needed to help at the museum and be a part of its second century. For information call 727-943-4624.

Mark Schantz can be reached at 727-815-1075 or mschantz@suncoastnews.com.

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