Beaches Museum

06/17/2026

Remembering Senator Duncan U. Fletcher today.

Born in 1859 in Americus, GA, Fletcher attended Vanderbilt University and was admitted to the bar in 1880. He moved to Jacksonville and set up his law practice, where he became a founding member of the Jacksonville Bar Association and its first President. In 1896, Fletcher was one of three attorneys appointed to administer the bar examination to James Weldon Johnson, who in addition to his many other accomplishments, was the first African American man admitted to the Florida Bar by examination. It was Duncan Fletcher who moved that Johnson be admitted to the bar over the objection of another examiner.

Fletcher served as the 21st and 25th Mayor of Jacksonville and was instrumental in rebuilding the city after the Great Fire of 1901. He also served five consecutive terms, from 1909 until his death in 1934, representing Florida in the United States Senate as a Democrat. One of his most notable achievements while in the Senate was introducing legislation in 1928 to create Everglades National Park, which was signed into law by Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1934.

Fletcher died June 17, 1936 from a heart attack while still in office. His remains are interred in Jacksonville at the Evergreen Cemetery.

In addition to having our two schools named in Fletcher’s honor, a dormitory at University of Florida is named after him. It is part of the historic Murphee area and it forms half of the “F” in the iconic “UF” buildings. Fletcher High School was built in 1937, after Senator Fletcher’s death through a federal grant he received to build it.

Researched and written by Linda McCauley.

06/16/2026

Thank you to the The Ponte Vedra Recorder for sharing our 2026 Legends Announcement!

https://www.pontevedrarecorder.com/stories/2026-beach-legends-announced,178761?

Each year, the Beaches Museum honors individuals, families and businesses who have made a significant contribution to the island communities of Mayport, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville …

06/16/2026

Our next talk in the AB100 schedule of events is "Behind the Names: The People and Places of Atlantic Beach" featuring Johnny Woodhouse!

Explore the origins of some recognizable place names throughout the City of Atlantic Beach with us on Thursday, July 16. Register at bit.ly/behind-ab

06/16/2026

Pete's Bar and package store, May 1948 - This Neptune Beach bar was one of our earliest and still stands to this day! Do you have memories of Pete's back in the day? Comment with your Pete's Bar stories!

Pete's Bar was prominently featured in the Neptune Beach section of the permanent exhibit, which is currently under renovation. Stop by the Museum when construction is finished in a few months to see Pete Jensen featured as one of our 'legends' in the Pioneers and Legends section of the exhibit!

06/15/2026

On June 15, 1925 the town of Pablo Beach became known as Jacksonville Beach!

Jacksonville Beach was originally named Ruby Beach after Ruby Scull, the daughter of William and Eleanor Scull, the first settlers to the area.

As Ruby Beach began to be more developed it was given a new name, “Pablo Beach” after the San Pablo River, now better known as the Intracoastal Waterway.

After becoming a tourist destination, Pablo Beach was changed to Jacksonville Beach so potential tourists would better recognize its location.

The Florida State Legislature voted for the name change on June 8, 1925 and the name became official locally on June 15, 1925.

06/14/2026

On June 16, 1942, four N**i spies departed from a submarine just off the coast of Florida landing in Ponte Vedra. Upon landing, they concealed explosive materials and other items in the sand, and disappeared into the unsuspecting beachfront community with intentions of sabotaging American war efforts.

The spies were quickly captured, though they had already left the state of Florida, and newspapers across the nation were filled with the trial regarding the fate of the saboteurs.

After “Operation Pastorius” was discovered beachfront security was tightened, particularly in the strip of land where the saboteurs had landed.

Learn more about Operation Pastorius here: https://www.beachesmuseum.org/operation-pastorius/ or in our exhibit Beach Front Home Front: https://www.beachesmuseum.org/waratthebeaches/

06/14/2026

Girl Scouts raise the flag in front of the Jacksonville Beach Bicentennial Flag Pavilion.

06/12/2026

https://youtu.be/RzvWEDk5-xc Dr. Wood's presentation recording is now uploaded on our YouTube channel!

Northeast Florida has a rich and diverse collection of architectura...

06/12/2026

Last night's talk with Dr. Wayne Wood was a hit! Our next Florida Humanities speaker will be Dr. Keri Watson. She'll be sharing some exciting Florida art history, including that of the Florida Highwaymen. Pre-register at https://bit.ly/picturingparadise - we hope to see you there!

06/11/2026

In June of 1959, the United States delivered mail to Mayport using a submarine launched rocket!

The guided missile Regulus I was launched from the USS Barbero, a submarine that was stationed 100 miles off the U.S. coast in international waters, and landed at Naval Auxiliary Air Station Mayport 700 miles away, 22 minutes later.

This launch allowed the U.S. to show off it’s rocket technology at a time when the Cold War and the Space Race was big news.

Unfortunately, Missile Mail was not to be. The Regulus 1 carried about 3,000 pieces of mail. The cost of 1 Regulus missile was $1 million at the time. That means each letter cost $333 to send across the country. The cost of postage in 1959 was 4 cents a letter.
You can watch actual footage of the launch here: https://youtu.be/XnB6aqdhpB0