November 2010

The Museum contains many buildings, including the Julia Weber House, the Sunshine Trail, the Liberty Harness Shop, the Ranch Blacksmith Shop, the Agricultural Equipment Center, and the Calaveras school. Exhibits displayed at the museum cover a wide range of topics, including Native American history, frontier and pioneer history, and agricultural history.

The periodic "Ride and Remember" trolley tours take visitors through five of the city's districts and narrate the African American history of each.

A resource for people seeking information about the city's early black history and culture.The Spady Cultural Heritage Museum is the former home of the late Solomon D. Spady who was the most prominent African American educator and community leader in Delray Beach from 1922 to 1957. The house is an historic two-storied Mission-Revival styled home completed in 1926 and is located on the Spady Cultural Heritage Complex in Delray Beach, Florida.

Housed in the former Atlantic Coastline Railroad depot, the Museum is home to the history of Southwest Florida. Paleo Indians, the Calusa, the Seminoles, Spanish explorers, and early settlers are just a few of the people you will meet as you view our exhibits. An authentic replica of a pioneer "cracker" house, a 1926 La France fire pumper, and a 1929 private Pullman rail car are also part of the tour. In addition, the museum also houses an extensive artifacts collection detailing early civilization, the Fort, the first settlers, the cattlemen, turn of the century, the military and agriculture, boating and fishing industries in Fort Myers are highlighted as well as a display of 1,200 pieces of depression and carnival glass.

The museum seeks to provide the public with the history of railroading and how it affected the population growth and industry boom from the 1940's to the 1960's in the South Florida area. It teaches through the use of railroad artifacts and through the design and the building of a model railroad display depicting the area during that time frame. Located in the historic former Seaboard Air Line station building in Deerfield Beach, it is the museum's goal to preserve the history of railroads in southern Florida and educate the public about the importance of railroads in the region in the past and the present. There is also an active model railroad contingent within the organization, with a 16'x18' HO layout in operation, a 4'x30' permanent HOn3 layout display under construction, and a 4'x20' N scale layout. The collection of historic artifacts is constantly growing, and donations are always welcome.

Travelers' Rest State Park marks the location of a centuries-old Native American campsite which Lewis and Clark's used in 1805 and 1806. They called the nearby creek "Travellers Rest." In Summer 2002, archeologists found evidence of the Corps of Discovery's latrine and central fire, positioning the Park as one of the the few sites in the nation with physical confirmation of the group's visit--a truly unique designation.

Discover Florida's story from the prehistoric to the present with life-sized casts of Ice Age mammals that roamed in Southwest Florida 12,000 years ago, realistic dioramas, and fossil exhibits that explain how Florida was formed. Experience Florida's First Peoples and see the world renowned Tallant Collection of artifacts, the most comprehensive collection of material from archeological sites in Florida, dating from the Paleoindian period to the arrival of the Spanish explorers in the early 1500's. Wonder at the variety of animal life through natural history exhibits and journey back to 16th century Spain in our Spanish Plaza with a replica of a 16th century chapel. Not to be missed is the changing exhibits gallery, with new and exciting programs planned throughout the year.

The History Center maintains a museum at 701 N. Tamiami Trail in Sarasota, sharing the historic Chidsey library building with the Sarasota County Visitors Center. Visit it to see permanent and rotating exhibits on various facets of the county’s history.

Numerous photos and documents are displayed and tell the story of Idyllwild and the interesting characters who made local history possible. (from website)

The mission of the Sarasota County History Center is to promote an understanding of Sarasota County’s heritage and protect its historic resources. The History Center collects information and artifacts related to the history of Sarasota County from pre-historic times to the present. These collections are kept at the Center at 6062 Porter Way in Sarasota, where they are available by request for public research. Also at that site is the MacKinlay Kantor Room, which contains books and other objects from the library of the Sarasota resident and Pulitzer Prize-winning author (1904-1977).

The lands that were originally inhabited by Ohlone Indians are now sprawling suburban cities and towns with a population of almost 300,000. The permanent exhibit traces the changes and growth of the Hayward area as a transportation and cultural crossroads from the days of the Ohlone to the present. The museum also has information about local historic properties including the Meek Estate and and the McConaghey House.