It was organized pandemonium the day of Feb. 19, 1999. Volunteer after volunteer filed in line to lug 480 flats of strawberries and 678 half-sheets of shortcake from a refrigerated trailer to an enormous table set up on North Drane Street. The delicious dream was to break the Guinness World Record for the world’s largest strawberry shortcake.
Dodging busy bakers, bystanders gathered at McCall Park to watch the workers build the gigantic cake. Scurrying like ants, the volunteers could be seen squirting whipped cream on each other in between stacking shortcake and spreading the berry mixture on top.
Although it took an entire day to prepare and then clean up, it took only 35 minutes for the cake to be created. City surveyors took careful notes. At the end, one of the cake’s committee members confirmed the measurements while on the phone with a Guinness representative in New York.
The final shattering measurements: 827 square feet.
Plant City residents have a chance to relive the exciting moment in the town’s strawberry history. The not-so-shortcake not only was recorded by the Guinness Book of World Records, but also, a videographer taped the tasty treat and edited the footage into an 18-minute commemorative montage.
The footage was discovered tucked away in Photo Archives and History Center Executive Director Gil Gott’s home. The center will host a screening of the film at 7 p.m. Aug. 29. Refreshments will be available, as well as copies of the DVD for $20.
The monstrous masterpiece was big enough to feed the whole town. For $1 bystanders and volunteers could get a piece of the glory — quite literally.
“That was something,” Gott says. “I remember it well.”
The idea to break the record originated with the Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce. After reading about different records held for the largest shortcake, the chamber vice president at the time wanted to beat them all.
It took the entire community to concoct the cake. The Florida Strawberry Association donated strawberries. Winn-Dixie supplied the refrigerated trailer and shortcake sheets. Winn-Dixie’s Superbrand Dairies whipped up enough white fluffy topping.
The strawberries were taken to St. Clement Catholic Church, where 150 volunteers de-stemmed and processed hundreds of berries.
“All those people were just so kind,” Gott said.
The table was made specifically for the shortcake out of sheets of plywood. The cake was so heavy that the table legs sunk into soft areas of concrete.
Plant City High School football players helped carry the heaviest sheets of shortcake from the trailer.
The cleanup was as momentous as breaking the record. But, it also was a time to celebrate. Somewhere in a hidden corner of the park, a keg was set up. Volunteers were slipping and sliding on the oily whipped cream that had melted on the ground. The fire department lent a hand by using hoses to clear the mess.
For years, Plant City enjoyed the distinction as not only the Winter Strawberry Capital of the World, but as the town with the largest shortcake in the world. It was listed in the 2000 edition of the Guinness Book of World Records.
Now, the largest strawberry shortcake made weighs in at 21,213.4 pounds. It was created March 20, 2004, by various bakers, in conjunction with the Municipality of La Trinidad at the La Trinidad Strawberry Festival, Benguet, Philippines.
Contact Amber Jurgensen at ajurgensen@plantcityobserver.com.
BY THE NUMBERS
40: The number of cases of whipped topping
45: The number of flats of berries that crowned the cake
107: The number of five-gallon containers used to carry the berries
480: The total number of flats of berries at St. Clement
678: The number of half-sheets of shortcake
SHORTCAKE SCREENING
WHEN: 7 p.m. Aug. 29
WHERE: Plant City Photo Archives and History Center, 106 S. Evers St.
CONTACT: Gil Gott, (813) 754-1578 or (813) 417-7559