REL 3938 Assignment 3: Silver Springs

REL 3938 Assignment 3: Silver Springs

            As my classmate and I are walking through nature trails, we get tangled in a spider web and become a bit frightened.  I glance at Christian to make sure he is all right and I see a huge spider crawling up his neck and I quickly advice him “shake it off!”  Thankfully no one was hurt, but it was at this point where we knew we where most likely not in the correct area of Silver Springs.

            However not everything in this part of the park was a waste: we found a very old Wild West replica labeled “Florida Cracker Homestead.”  In comparison to Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings’ home (the previous park we visited) this replica emphasized a community of people as opposed to just one person’s house (since there were many other buildings besides homes, such as a church, sugar cane syrup station, blacksmith, smokehouse, etc).  Even though it was fun observing this area that was most likely representing 1800s type of living, the more well know Silver Springs was quite different.

            After concluding that we were in the wrong area, we decided to drive north to another entrance.  The moment I saw the huge sign that boasted “Silver Springs” (which faced a Wal-Mart sized parking lot), I knew that Silver Springs was going to be different than the any other state park I have ever visited.  Walking into the entrance, I felt like I was entering a sort of ghost amusement park – hardly anyone was there yet I could imagine crowds of families lined up at the ticket booths eager to explore what Silver Springs had to offer.  The whole place had a very nostalgic feeling.

            After looking around we found a tiny museum that gave us some incite as to what this forgotten treasure was like back in its prime.  Old postcards reminisced the vibes and feelings of the park’s history with their pictures of swimmers, bottom-glass boats, and crystal clear water.  The park was definitely pictured as the topic tourist attraction in Florida for its time. 

            Before we dive into the park’s prime, at the museum I learned that the river was the sight of many movies before being known as a tourist attraction.  Such movies include “The Creature of the Black Lagoon,” “Tarzan,” “The Yearling,” “James Bond movies,” and many others.  The man to thank for this popularity was Mr. Underwater, or Newt Perry.  Perry was a pioneer in the art of making underwater movies (according to the museum).  Because of his contributions to cinema, people were attracted to this area in order to actually see where such films were shot.  At this point in the park’s history it was mostly a roadside attraction.  The first attendees were military men who were doing their training in Florida.  However, as history has shown, Silver Springs did not remain a small attraction.

            As time went on, Silver Springs added onto its river attractions, including the Twin Oaks Amphitheatre (which is almost as ornate as George Washington’s Mt. Vernon), the river boats and later the Ross Allen Reptile Institute.  The people who worked at Silver Springs made small dioramas that were “used in road shows in the 1950s and 1960s” to show to people in an attempt to draw customers to visit the park.  The Ross Allen Reptile Institute was home to a world famous Herpetologist name Ross Allen.  Allen was famous for “milking venom from snakes” (according to the museum).

            Even though the park began to grow larger, there were still problems that occurred that wouldn’t have been happening today.  One of those problems was how Allen would import endangered species of snakes into the Institute – something that is “not allowed these days with international endangered species laws.”  Another problem (perhaps not seen as a problem then) was the segregation of “colored” and
“white” visitors: the colored visitors would attend a part of the park called “Paradise Park.”  This portion of the park still had ferries – still had swimming – still had bathrooms – except the “colored” visitors were unable to intermingle with the white visitors.  After the Civil Rights Act of 1964, this segregation was eliminated. 

            So now, in this point in history, since everyone can enjoy this popular park, why don’t parents bring their kids to Silver Springs these days for a summer vacation?  The answer is quite obvious: in the latter half of the 20^th century a man named Walt Disney opened a theme park in Orlando, sucking the life and attraction from Silver Springs.  Since there was very little ability to compete, Silver Springs became lost in history.

            As my classmate and I wandered around this historic attraction, we noticed how the area was just recently made into a state park around 2013.  I am glad that this park is now under the protection and care of the State and is recognized as a historic landmark, not only because it is beautiful (with its water is that almost as clear as a pool and romantic gardens) but also because one can feel the life and attractiveness that guests in the past once felt.  Sure this park may not be Florida’s number one tourist hot spot any more, but the joy and awe that so many people must have felt went entering Silver Springs 50 years ago must have been as comparable as a child entering Disney World today.