A new issue of the Journal of
Florida Studies has been released this spring at Daytona State
College.The journal, published by Daytona State’s Center for Interdisciplinary Writing and Research, is a peer-reviewed electronic publication dedicated to the study and appreciation of Florida. It features an eclectic mix of research articles, poetry, fiction, photography and other digital arts that reflect on some facet of the Sunshine State’s past, present and future.
The themed Spring 2013 issue, called “CONTACT,” commemorates the 500th anniversary of the European encounter with Florida. In 1513, Juan Ponce de León set foot on the east coast of our state, instigating a long and complicated relationship between Spain and Florida, according to the journal’s editor-in-chief, Dr. Casey Blanton.
“The journal interprets ‘contact’ widely, offering historical articles on a range of topics: the tricky relationship between white settlers and Seminoles in 1859, Florida’s ghost towns and the brutal Matanzas massacre of 1564, when hundreds of French settlers were mercilessly slaughtered by Spanish soldiers,” she said.
Scientific essays explore Florida’s battle with invasive, non-native species such as the Brazilian pepper tree and, perhaps more insidious, the exotic fungus Raffaelea lauricola, which is quickly killing red bay trees up and down our coast.
In addition to these academic articles, this issue offers poetry, photography and book reviews.
For more information, contact Blanton, BlantoC@DaytonaState.edu, or Managing Editor Michael Flota, FlotaM@DaytonaState.edu.
