The Lakeland Community Heritage Project celebrated generations of community memories, shared by past and present residents, at The Lakeland Spirit: Through Digital Footprints event. By showcasing a few examples of what Lakelanders contributed to the Lakeland Digital Archive during community digitization events in 2019, expert guest panelists explored the stories these materials tell us about Lakeland. 

The event, made possible through a Common Heritage Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, displayed only a fraction of the nearly 6,500 items that have been collected. These momentos span generations of memories from Lakeland residents and the diaspora to truly encapsulate the Lakeland spirit. 

Objects chosen by panelists highlighted the most transformative moments in Lakeland, and included: the original deed for Lakeland created by developer Edwin Newman, the Lakeland High School 1950 Yearbook, and images from the community’s Civil Rights era. 

Listen to the full event and Q&A between the panelists and moderator Omar Eaton-Martinez here:

The Lakeland Spirit: Through Digital Footprints from LakelandCollegePark on Vimeo.