History of the Coronado Flower Show

by Leslie Crawford

The first Coronado Flower Show opened on May 13, 1922, starting a tradition in Coronado that has stood the test of time for almost one hundred years.  Coronado citizen Harold Taylor, founding father of the Coronado Floral Association and Coronado Flower Show, wanted to create an event to bring the community together.  His love of horticulture provided the theme, and his love for Coronado gave him the motivation to launch a lasting legacy.

Taylor’s family moved from England to California when he was a young man.  Before arriving in Coronado in 1912, Taylor traveled extensively around the state Taylor focused on nature to hone his craft.  His iconic photographs of Yosemite Valley are some of the earliest images photographed to show the grandeur of that scenery. At the 1915 Exposition he won the grand prize for his photograph of seagulls in flight.  

Taylor became the resident photographer at the Hotel del Coronado.  Through the years he photographed presidents and celebrities including Franklin Delano Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, Woodrow Wilson, Duke of Windsor, Charles Lindbergh, Cardinal Hayes, and Thomas Edison.  Eventually moving his studio to Orange Avenue, he also immersed himself as the local photographer, immortalizing graduating CHS classes and sports teams.  

He never wanted to go into politics but felt very strongly about serving his community.    He was a charter member of the Rotary Club of San Diego in 1911, and of the Rotary Club of Coronado in 1926.  Harold Taylor was a humble man.

Taylor was good friends with Alfred Robinson, the founder of the San Diego Floral Association.   They shared a mutual interest in plants and trees and frequently traveled together exploring nature and hunting for new specimens to grow.  Assuming some mentoring from Mr. Robinson, Harold Taylor founded the Coronado Floral Association in 1922 and put on our first flower show in East Plaza, now known as Spreckels Park. 

The show was in the open air of the park with a few windbreaks to keep the breezes from knocking over vases of flowers.  Local boys and girls gathered flowers from canyons, beaches and fields to create decorative arrangements of wild flowers for the show.  San Diego Floral Association sent over a large basket of flowers wishing success to the Coronado show. 

 

Entrance to the show was free.  Memberships to the Coronado Floral Association were $.50.  The show was scheduled for only May 13, but considered too pretty to tear down after one day, it was extended another day.  The Boy Scouts volunteered to stay overnight and used the occasion to practice night operations in the park, formally changing guard every two hours while their small campfires crackled and sparkled in the dark. 

Each year the show grew and improved.  Earlier in the day, on Thursday, May 1, 1924, a May Day Pageant was staged by the children of the grammar school.  The Flower Show opened at 1:00pm. The Hotel Del Coronado orchestra provided a beautiful music backdrop at the show as visitors wandered among the flowers.  In 1925, the date for the show was moved to April, timed better for the blooming of the roses. Decorated table arrangements were introduced to the show that year.   Naval Air Station San Diego (North Island) contributed by exhibiting the crops being cultivated on the base. Huge cabbages, beets and onions were proof of what could be produced in the fertile soil of Coronado.

Homefront judging was done Friday afternoon so that exhibitors could then cut their flowers for their entries in the show.  

Exotic plants from the garden of Mrs. Rew, an avid member of the CFA, were assembled as a tribute to her dedication to the organization.  The President of San Diego Floral Association headed up the judges for the show, which included Miss Kate Sessions, famed San Diego horticulturalist, and John Morley, superintendent of Balboa Park. At the closing of the show, all the cut flowers were gathered and taken over to Balboa Naval Hospital to brighten the rooms of the infirmed.  In subsequent years, flowers were auctioned off with the proceeds going to the Coronado Hospital fund. 

In 1926 NAS San Diego provided some tents for shelter since heavy rain was in the forecast.  The following year the commanding officer provided three huge canvas airplane hangars which officially began the tradition of tenting the show.   The Hotel Del Coronado provided colored string lighting for the evening, as well as tables and trellises. The high school loaned desks and typewriters.  

Since 1922  the show has been cancelled 5 times. In 1929 the show was canceled due to lack of volunteers, but citizens rallied the next year to put on a robust show in 1930. The next time the show was cancelled was 1942. The February 13, 1942 issue of the Coronado Journal reported that “Hitler and Mikado cancel Flower Show.”  The Coronado Flower Show was put on hold during WWII but was resurrected in 1946.  During those war years, the Coronado Floral Association continued the spirit of the show by having floral arrangements displayed in storefront windows and publicizing each week where the displays could be seen. This year the COVID19 pandemic has shut the show down for its 6 year in almost 100 years.

Harold Taylor was president of the Coronado Floral Association for 10 years and played an active role for many years. Considering that Taylor was an accomplished photographer, there are surprisingly few photos of the early Flower Shows, and none from the first year.  Thankfully, those few rare images are housed in the archives of Coronado Historical Association, along with paper awards, trophies, and other ephemera through the years. 

The Coronado Flower Show is now the largest tented flower show in the nation.  Arrangements in the Design Section are of the highest caliber, and the Horticulture Section has an incredible array of plants grown in Southern California.  Coronado Flower Show contributors come from all over San Diego County. Entries are scored by judges accredited by the National Garden Clubs of America. Over 200 volunteers work at the show during the event epitomizing the tradition of a true community event.

This year we will celebrate our show virtually, a first for Coronado Floral Association. Send your gardening pictures and anything Flower Show related to info@coronadoflowershow.com.  We are posting your images on our website www.CoronadoFlowerShow.com for all to see.

Let’s keep Coronado’s longest running tradition alive and our community spirit strong!  We can’t wait to see what’s growing in your garden!