November 2010

Managed by West Florida Historic Preservation Inc., the Historic Pensacola Village includes museums, historic buildings, and an archaeological trail. It provides excellent opportunities to learn about 400 years of history in one of Florida's oldest cities.

The T.T. Wentworth, Jr. Florida State Museum displays artifacts from the two wrecks of ships from the De Luna Expedition of 1559, the first European attempt to establish a colony in North America.

The historic buildings that populate the Village, including the 1832 Old Christ Church and the 1871 Dorr House, testify to the city's architectural and cultural heritage, while a number of other museums, including the Pensacola Museum of Industry and the Pensacola Museum of Commerce, fill in the details of life in historic Pensacola.

At Forest Home Farms, San Ramon’s historic park, there will be tours that include hands-on activities such as washing clothes, making orangeade or lemonade, farm chores and old fashioned games. Another highlight of the tour is the wonderful display of antique tractors. Someone will also be on hand to explain about the San Ramon Sheep Coop on site.

Residing in its current location since 1845, the Historic Capitol today houses a museum that retells the stories comprising Florida's political and constitutional history. The Senate, House, and Supreme Court chambers, as well as the Governor's Suite, are all open to the public and feature exhibits and artifacts chronicling the Sunshine State's long and intriguing past.

The museum features unique historic artifacts, illustrative and informative displays, rarely seen archival photography, in-depth historical interpretation, and audio-visual exhibits, in addition to a wide variety of unique San Francisco gifts, souvenirs and memorabilia. The museum permanently displays a variety of wonderful artifacts telling the story of the city’s transportation history, including dash signs, fare boxes, even a famed Wiley ‘birdcage’ traffic signal, the peculiar way San Francisco’s intersections were controlled for decades. Dominating the display will be the replicated end of a Market Street Railway Co. ‘100-class’ streetcar, of which no originals survived.

Today, there is no visible evidence of Hernando de Soto's occupation of this site centuries ago. Visitors may walk around outside Governor Martin's 1930s home, and plans are underway for an interpretive display on the history and significance of the site. The best time to experience the property is each January, when a reenactment of de Soto's Winter Encampment takes place. An interpretive display marks the spot on which Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto's party camped for the winter of 1539.

Heritage Village, Pinellas County's 21-acre living history museum, is located in the heart of Pinellas County. The natural pine and palmetto landscape is home to some of Pinellas County's most historic buildings. First opened to the public in 1977, Heritage Village is funded in its operations by the Board of County Commissioners and supported in its activities by the Pinellas County Historical Society and other community groups. More than 28 structures and features fill the Village, some dating back to the mid- to late- 19th century.

The Village includes a school, church, railroad depot, sponge warehouse and general store as well as a variety of historic homes. The homes range from the McMullen-Coachman Log Cabin, the oldest existing structure in the County, to the magnificent Queen Anne-style House of Seven Gables.

Together these three sites form a cultural center which presents the history of the Fort Walton Beach area from prehistoric times, some 12,000 years ago, the first school in 1912, and through the close of the post office in the 1950's. At the Indian Temple Mound Museum, prehistoric Native American artifacts are on display. The actual Temple Mound is an authentic Indian ceremonial site. The Schoolhouse is filled with artifacts and exhibits of the Fort Walton beach area in recent years. The 1918 post office features exhibits on postal history.

The Heritage Museum is located on the original main street of Valparaiso, Florida. The oldest part of the building was the second home of Valparaiso State (now Vanguard) Bank. In 1964, the building became the first home of Okaloosa-Walton (Junior) College.

The Heritage Museum opened its doors in 1971. The Museum is operated by the Heritage Museum Association, Inc. and is funded by membership dues, donations, and grants from the State of Florida, Okaloosa County, and the City of Valparaiso.

The museum includes exhibits on the history of commercial fishing and the boat industry in Okaloosa County, as well as the Crestview train depot, the opening of which helped turn northwest Florida from a frontier area to an integrated component of Floridian civilization. In addition, it contains a heritage mural and a number of artifacts that range from pre-historic flint spear points to early modern school desks.*

It was French explorers who named the region. Vacationers discovered the islands in the 1870s, when wealthy people began to build summer homes while other travelers came to stay in large hotels. For more than a century the area has been a mecca for summer visitors. In the more distant past the islands were stepping stones between New York State and the Province of Ontario - in times of trouble between Canada and the United States, a place of refuge and a setting for disreputable deeds. Many islands are privately owned but ample public access can be found at island parks and villages throughout the region.