by Liz Daube
Staff Writer
Emily Lisska dwells on the past. It’s her job.
As executive director of the Jacksonville Historical Society, Lisska’s current endeavors range from property management to research to archive maintenance. But the focus of her job is delving into – and preserving – the city’s past.
She took Workspace on a tour of the Merrill House, a historic property located next to the Baseball Grounds. The historical society completed the $650,000 renovation in November 2005 after six years of work. Lisska said the house is interpretive: It’s supposed to look exactly as it would have in 1903, offering visitors a snapshot of life in Jacksonville at a time when chamber pots were the norm.
“It was a fun period to interpret in the city’s history,” said Lisska. “It was near the grand resurgence after the fire of 1901 ... This was one of the only houses that didn’t burn down.”
In 1903, the house was owned by James E. Merrill, who owned one of the biggest shipbuilding companies in the South in the 1880s. He lived there with his wife, three sons and daughter. Years later, the house was sold and eventually abandoned. Lisska said the house – and the historical items within it – were mostly damaged or stolen by the time the City purchased the home in 1999.
“I literally drove up and watched people with crowbars taking apart the front porch,” she said.
The City originally planned to demolish the house to clear the way for Better Jacksonville Plan structures like the Arena. After some argument, the house was moved rather than destroyed.
Lisska said it was originally located where the now-closed Amsterdam Sky Cafe is presently. The City moved the house again when the Baseball Grounds were built – otherwise, Lisska said, it would be sitting on third base.
Education is the goal behind the preserving and interpreting the house, Lisska said. She takes both private parties and school groups on tours, revealing short stories of a culture both foreign and familiar, obsolete and lingering.
“You won’t find any Teddy bears in this house,” Lisska said. The reason? According to legend, Teddy bears became a trend after Pres. Theodore Roosevelt refused to shoot an old, injured bear that someone corralled for him on a hunting trip. Lisska said the hunting trip was in 1903, but the resulting Teddy bear trend would not have reached the Merrill household for at least a few months or years.
These sorts of details are important to Lisska. The figures and dates aren’t as vital as the stories behind them, she said.
“If I can excite people about the history of this city, I know they’re going to have more appreciation for the city, more respect and love for the city,” said Lisska. “It’s an exciting history to tell.”