By Stephen Kindland
Staff writer
ORANGE PARK – Carolyn Clark will be married to Town Manager John Bowles this weekend, but the two will go back to their spouses when a day-long celebration ends at Clarke House Park.
It’s their mutual love of history that brings the pair together as husband and wife from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 20, when Clark portrays Carrie Clarke, a town pioneer who set up one of the town’s first churches. Bowles will dress up as Clarke’s husband, William, who moved his family from North Main Street in Jacksonville to a 30-acre parcel off Kingsley Avenue in the early 1900s.
Their modest re-enactment is all part Carrie Clarke Day, a free festival that is expected to draw hundreds of visitors who can visit the Clarke family’s house, which Clark and other members of the Orange Park Historical Society helped to save from the wrecking ball several years ago.
Now in its seventh year, Carrie Clarke Day has developed a history of its own. With unrelenting support from Town Councilman Steve Jones, the event has evolved into a day-long festival that will include continuous live entertainment, a collection of Model A cars, an art exhibit sponsored by the Art Guild of Orange Park, hay rides for children, hot dogs and hamburgers sold by the Orange Park Lions Club and, of course, guided tours of the restored Clarke House, courtesy of Carrie and William Clarke.
"She was the founder of the First Baptist Church," Carrie Clarke’s portrayer said. "Mrs. Clarke would hold Sunday School classes on her front porch, so word got around that she wanted to build a church. There were only two other churches at the time."
Mrs. Clarke ended up paying $1 at a government auction for a parcel on Kingsley Avenue near River Road, close to what is now the Orange Park Woman’s Club. As the congregation grew, the church relocated to what is now Island View Baptist Church on Park Avenue; and again to the First Baptist Church on Kingsley, which is offering free parking from its location across the street from Clarke House Park, a meticulously kept 15-acre parcel that features a playground, picnic pavilions, walking trails and an outdoor volleyball court.
"No one bid against her [at the auction] because they knew why she wanted it," Clark said. "That was back in 1921."
This year's festival will include a special children’s performance presented by the Clay County Community Band. Spokeswoman Suna Hall said she hopes parents will take their children to hear selections from Sergei Prokofiev’s "Peter and the Wolf," a narrated symphony in which different instruments are used to depict the story’s characters. Rob Sweeting of WJXT-TV Channel 4 will serve as narrator.
The band will perform other "kid friendly" music as well, including themes from Walt Disney movies, highlights from the "Shrek" soundtrack, variations on "Yankee Doodle" and a novelty piece imitating a cat’s meow called "The Waltzing Cat," starting at 11 a.m.
Other entertainment will be presented by musicians from Orange Park High School, Wanda Dillaberry, the Light Soldiers Quartet, Tony Silcox and Richard Valliere.
March 18th 2010 - 4:55PM