Decked out for Chasco

By JEFF MILLER, West Pasco Historical Society
Published October 22, 2007

This car was decorated for first Chasco Fiesta in March 1922. The festival, the largest in Pasco County, continues each spring in New Port Richey. This picture was taken on Main Street in New Port Richey. The large building is the Snell Building, which housed several businesses and the Avery Library. The smaller building was the Palms Theater, which, as the sign indicates, showcased a Chasco event called the Moonlight Cabaret, which featured singing and dancing and a blackface monologue. According to a newspaper account, the theater was packed to the doors. The purpose of the first Chasco Fiesta was to raise funds for the city's library, which was started with a collection of books donated by Elroy Avery, who later became the first mayor of the city.- Jeff Miller, West Pasco Historical Society

[Last modified October 21, 2007, 21:16:38]