History of flower market shared

DOWNEY - Author Peggi Ridgway will give a history of the Los Angeles Flower Market when she presents a slideshow presentation July 22 at the Downey City Library.Ridgway, author of "Sending Flowers to America," will give her presentation in the Cormack Room from 7-8:30 p.m. With more than 350 photos, the book records the contributions made by European immigrants to California's agricultural history. Their stories and anecdotes of years gone by are told in this book, along with photos. The book showcases the role they played in supplying flowers to florists and consumers nationally during the years before imports, when fresh flowers could only be obtained domestically and California was the state that supplied them throughout the year. Crucial to the book is the role played by the Los Angeles Flower Market, the "grand central" of the Southern California flower industry since its inception in the early 1900s. Project manager Ridgway authored the main chronological history, sidebar stories and many of the family stories published in the book. Ridgway has served as editor of The Bloomin' News, the bi-monthly newsmagazine of the Los Angeles Flower Market, since 1999 and is an award-winning freelance writer of more than 500 feature articles. Everyone who attends the program will be entered in a drawing to win a free copy of "Sending Flowers to America." For reservations, call the Adult Information desk at (562) 904-7360, ext. 1320.

********** Published: July 10, 2009 - Volume 8 - Issue 12

NewsEric Pierce