An obviously happy youngster, who couldn’t be more than 5 or 6 years old, beckoned her equally enthused friends into a building that you might not expect to pique the interest of small girls – a jail house. Nevertheless, the girl’s friends followed her to the old structure.
Inside, they found a statue of a prisoner in a striped uniform. Perhaps the girls’ experience unleashed their curiosity just a bit about their state’s past. The jail building stands amid other attractions at Palm Beach County’s Yesteryear Village. It is a living history park where the volunteers and staff’s aim is “opening people’s eyes to Florida’s history,” said Steve Barnard, a volunteer since 1998.
He is one of many volunteers who donate their time, among other things, portraying people from the state’s past. In Barnard’s case, he plays a fictional character, Lt. Ambrose Hall, a man inspired by Barnard’s family history. Ambrose was an “old family name,” he added. Barnard can speak with authority about one attraction in particular, a village fire department housing old-fashioned fire trucks. Barnard, a West Palm Beach resident, is a retired fireman who joined the city’s department when he was 40. He recalled that when he joined the department, it was a time of horses and buggies.
Recently, he showed a visitor several fire trucks at Yesteryear dating back to the 1920s. Up until then, the trucks were horse-drawn, he said. Barnard, a man with grey hair and mustache, sporting work overalls on a recent day, speaks with a scratchy voice and states, “I love South Florida, it has some real cool history that most people don’t know about.”
The village comprises 9 acres on the South Florida Fairgrounds. ”If it wasn’t for the fairgrounds, the village wouldn’t be here,” said Paige Poole, Yesteryear’s Education and Community Relations Manager. The village displays buildings and artifacts from 1895 to 1945. Through audio on telephones, visitors can browse and learn about the original and replicated buildings including an old school, a farm, a blacksmith shop, a general store, a jailhouse and other places. In addition, Yesteryear features “the only big band museum in the United States, the Sally Bennett Big Band Hall of Fame Museum.”
Poole recommends that visitors allot at least two hours to tour the entire village. She says, “Past visitors love it, they absolutely love it, adding they’ve come from afar as Germany, Italy, Spain and Russia. There are a lot of unique exhibits here that people really enjoy.” For instance, if you wish to learn about a major crop in Palm Beach County, you can visit the sugar-processing exhibit.
Yesteryear Village also showcases a Southern Bell Telephone Exhibit dedicated to the history of the telephone. That term might sound like one from the past – especially in this day of cell phones and other technological advances.
“Speaking of technology, the village affords visitors and others a chance to unplug and go back in time,” said volunteer Marie St. John. On a recent day, St. John, in character, was showing youngsters how pioneers churned milk to make butter and make the liquid safe to drink. Back in her character’s day, everyone helped prepare a meal. “Everyone’s prepared some food for a feast,” she said.
Visitors can learn about history at Yesteryear Village, one of Palm Beach County’s most unique cultural attractions. Yesteryear Village, located at 9067 Southern Blvd. in West Palm Beach. Hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday. https://www.southfloridafair.com/p/yesteryearvillage