Graduation Year

2011

Document Type

Thesis

Degree

M.A.

Degree Granting Department

Humanities and Cultural Studies

Major Professor

Sara Dykins Callahan, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Daniel Belgrad, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Andrew Berish, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Elaine Smith, Ph.D.

Keywords

citrus industry, city planning, community, identity, preservation

Abstract

The purpose of this project is to explore how the community planning and style of housing of Temple Terrace Estates embodies the socio-economic conflicts inherent to the United States in the 1920s. To account for missing narratives, I will approach this research from a critical cultural perspective. I chose this approach as a way to investigate the power dynamics in the city during the time it was known as Temple Terrace Estates Inc. The Estates attracted investors by encouraging northerners to purchase a Mediterranean Revival or Spanish Colonial style villa in conjunction with a parcel of a large orange grove, which would be tended by paid laborers. The rigorous nostalgia for a colonial past resulted in marginalization of the laboring class and a loss of their voice in history. Thus, my objective is to bring attention to unrepresented experiences that exist within a dominant narrative

The following chapters outline the history of Temple Terrace Estates, examine primary sources, and discuss my experience of living in the city. They also explain the theories and methods I use in the analysis such as space/place theory, critical cultural theory, and suburban theory. I tell the story of the conception and construction of The Estates as part of the story of Tampa, Florida, and the United States during the 1920s. Next, I examine the presence of both domestic and agricultural labor in the Estates and discuss the inherent exclusion of laborer's voices in the city's history. I analyze maps, ads, marketing, newspaper thesiss, housing styles, and agricultural practices of the Estates.

Knowledge of the city's past provides a way to create meaning in contemporary issues such as historic preservation, crime, and education in the city. Addressing social inequality and implied violence in the history of labor at the Estates might strengthen current accusations of continued racism. However, the omission of the voices of laborers also perpetuates secrecy and mistrust. If Temple Terrace's recent initiative toward historic status is to succeed, there must be support from the community. Scholars and community members of Temple Terrace must acknowledge the continual re-production and re-presentation of the past with a more inclusive narrative. This study demonstrates that the application of critical cultural theory has relevant application today in its ability to diffuse current conflict and aid in historic preservation. Inclusive narratives of the past can help produce safer and more beautiful more beautiful communities for the future.

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