City Of Lakeland issued the following announcement on Mar. 11.
#FlashbackFriday with the Lakeland History & Culture Center: Who was Trailblazer Winifred "Peggy" Brown?
Winifred "Peggy" Brown (1915-2003) came to Lakeland at 11 years old from Palatka, Florida in 1926. She was a partner in her family's furniture business, Cook Furniture Company, before taking full control of the business in 1968. After selling the company, she owned a variety of retail stores in Lakeland and became a member of the Chamber of Commerce.
Outside of her businesses, she was passionate about gardening. She wrote a gardening column that appeared in The Ledger for 47 years. She was very active in the Lakeland Garden Club, lectured on gardening topics, and served as a judge for flower shows. In the 1970's, she began hosting a cable television show called "Around Town with Peggy Brown." In 1974, she ran for an at-large seat in the Lakeland City Commission. She won the seat after defeating her opponent in a run-off election. Part of her focus while serving as a commissioner was on the beautification of Lakeland and the expansion of recycling services.
She was selected as Mayor pro tem by her fellow commissioners in 1975. One accomplishment of her first term as mayor was commissioning author Hampton Dunn to write a book about Lakeland. Dunn's book, Yesterday's Lakeland, was published in 1976. She was selected to be mayor for a second time in 1984. One of her final acts as mayor was overseeing the Centennial celebration of the incorporation of Lakeland in January 1985.
In total, she spent 21 years as a member of the Lakeland City Commission. Peggy Brown passed away on May 11, 2003. A venue building located near Lake Mirror near the children's playground is named in her honor as is a road on the Sun 'n Fun campus.
To learn more about the Lakeland History & Culture Center at the Lakeland Public Library, visit LakelandGov.net/CultureCenter!
Original source can be found here.
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