Vanished Sanford

Vanished Sanford. Sanford est. 1877. , Sanford Avenue thrived as a commercial corridor in the first half of the 20th century. From the 1960’s onward the city faced a period of disinvestment and population decline, due largely to the closure of the Sanford Naval Air Station. Many buildings were lost for various reasons ranging from demolition, to fire, and lack of maintenance lead to collapse. Often times the sites of these “vanished” buildings were left vacant for decades or developed as parking lots, leaving a void in the urban fabric. The area outlined on the map below represents the footprint of buildings which are no longer in existence. , , Over the decades Sanford Avenue was home to a wide variety of businesses, including groceries, barber shops, tailors, doctor’s offices, dance and billiard halls, and restaurants. Many of these businesses served the needs of Sanford’s African American communities during segregation. , , The earliest records available for the buildings listed below date to 1917. It is likely that a number of these buildings were constructed prior to then. , , A. 301-307 S. Sanford Avenue, 1922 . B. 309-311 S. Sanford Avenue, 1920 . C. 313-317 S. Sanford Avenue, 1917 . D. 319 S. Sanford Avenue, 1920 . E. 321-329 S. Sanford Avenue, 1917 F. 302-304 S. Sanford Avenue, 1909 . G, 308-316 S. Sanford Avenue, 1917 . H. 318-326 S. Sanford Avenue, 1917