by Donna Digennaro, Clermont Historical Society
Clermont’s Historic Village is home to several buildings that have a significant role in the community’s history. One of these is the original Cooper Memorial Library, aka the “Little Library” that was built over 100 years ago on DeSoto Street.
Karen Miller, a long-time Historical Society member, can be found most Saturdays in the library volunteering and sharing information about the history of the library’s name and such with the visitors. As a retired primary grade teacher, Karen has a great love for the books for children in the library and has been busy rearranging things in the “Children’s Nook.” After working on the bookshelf, she brought in a photograph (taken by Historical Society board member, Larry Oskin) from her home of books in the Dick and Jane series which now hangs above the bookshelf. Just recently she donated an original Dick and Jane book and a beautiful quilt she made featuring pictures and phrases from the books in the series. The quilt will be displayed on a bench in the “Children’s Nook.” We invite everyone, especially those of you who remember learning to read through these books, to come see the beautiful display.
The Historic Village is located at 490 West Avenue on the shores of beautiful Lake Minneola and is open to the public every Saturday and Sunday from 1 pm to 4 pm. Private tours can be arranged by calling the Village manager, Roxanne Brown, at 352-432-3496 and leaving a message. Admission to the Village is free but a donation of $5.00 per person over 12 is requested.
If you are interested in history in general or the history of Clermont in particular, consider joining the Clermont Historical Society. Dues for an individual are only $25.00 a year and $35.00 for a couple. Historical Society meetings are open to the public and are held on the second Monday of each month at 6:00PM in the train depot at the Village. The next meeting is February 9th. We hope to see you there.
