HOLLAND, MI (WHTC-AM/FM) – Perhaps lost among the buzz that Tulip Time brings to Holland is the commemoration of a cultural icon that has a link to the Tulip City.
On May 6, 1919, L Frank Baum, the author of “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” and most of the OZ literary franchise, passed away at the age of 62. He wrote some of those books in “Macatawa, Michigan,” which is currently part of Holland’s South Side, and Linda Hart of the Holland Area Visitors Bureau was among those who spearheaded the “Holland OZ Project” that helped create a number of statues outside of Herrick District Library based on the original book illustrations, as well as a “living” OZ floral book that goes on display at Centennial Park during the summer months.
“As we launched the project (in 2019), it all had this kind of momentum,” Hart said on “WHTC Morning News” during her weekly “Destination Downtown” segment on Thursday. “All of a sudden, somebody reached out to us and said, ‘Oh, by the way, Frank Baum, on this day in history (died).’ It was all serendipity, a coming together, so keep that memory alive and keep that story alive.”
A number of Tulip Time visitors have made it a point to see the statues during their stay in Holland.
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