What are the opening hours?

Wednesday 10am - 2pm Thursday 10am - 2pm Friday 10am - 2pm Saturday 10am - 2pm Sunday 10am - 2pm

Sanibel Historical Museum & Village Inc

Name: Sanibel Historical Museum & Village Inc
Address: 950 Dunlop Road, Sanibel, FL, 33957, US
Telephone: (239) 472-4648
Price range: $
Rating: 5

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Sanibel Historical Museum & Village Inc

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The village is a tribute to Sanibel's past, where one can glimpse the Sanibel of the 1880s-present
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10/15/2026

Did you know that before the 1950s, the Sanibel Lighthouse had live-in lighthouse keepers?

Pictured here is the England family in the 1940s, enjoying a family picnic on the beach. Bob England was the last official lighthouse keeper, and his family lived with him at the lighthouse residence during his tenure.

Bob’s lighthouse role began in 1946. By the end of 1949, the lighthouse had become automated, bringing an end to the need for a live-in keeper. The England family stayed on Sanibel for many years after, and Bob later worked at the Sanibel Post Office before retiring.

Photo Credit: Sanibel Public Library

10/08/2026

📣 We’re Hiring: Operations Coordinator

The Sanibel Historical Museum & Village seeks an organized, dependable, and welcoming part-time Operations Coordinator to support daily Village operations and help deliver an exceptional visitor experience.

Responsibilities include welcoming visitors, processing admissions and gift shop sales, coordinating volunteer docents, preparing the Village for tours and programs, and providing administrative support.

To apply, email a cover letter and résumé to [email protected]. For more information, https://sanibelmuseum.org/careers/

Please share this opportunity with someone who would enjoy helping us preserve and share Sanibel’s history!

09/22/2026

A look back to the 1980s and Emmy Lu Lewis, known as “the great lady of island conservation.”

Emmy Lu and her husband began wintering on Sanibel in 1942, and after that she went on to play an important role in the island community. She was instrumental in establishing Saint Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church, Sanibel and became an active member of the “Ding” Darling Committee, which later became the Sanibel Captiva ConservationF oundation (SCCF) where she served as its founding chairperson.

Her dedication to conservation helped shape the Sanibel we know today, leaving a lasting mark on the island and its commitment to protecting the natural beauty that makes Sanibel so special.

Photo Credit: Sanibel Public Library

09/08/2026

DID YOU KNOW a Calusa skeleton was once displayed inside the Rutland House?

In 1974, historian Ellie Dormer helped excavate a Calusa skeleton discovered near her bayfront home. The conditions were challenging, to say the least:

“As sea water rose to our chins, we grappled in the mangrove muck to pull out bones.”

When the Historical Village was established in 1984, the full skeleton was displayed on a low bed of sand, decorated with shells, in the back bedroom of the Rutland House.

It’s an unexpected chapter in the history of the Village, and one that offers a fascinating glimpse into how Sanibel’s past was once preserved and shared.

Special thanks to historian and author Betty Anholt for sharing this historical tidbit!

07/28/2026

DID YOU KNOW located next to the former location of the Over Easy Cafe on Tarpon Bay Road is Captain George Cooper's original homestead, built on his 160-acre claim. The two-story house was completed just before April 1891, when his daughter, Genevieve, became the first baby born at the Sanibel Lighthouse.

Born in Georgia, Cooper served as a drummer boy in the Confederate Army at age sixteen during the Civil War before later settling on Sanibel. He went on to farm, become a merchant, and become a community leader on the islands. Using material from the Calusa shell mounds, Cooper built Tarpon Bay Road to transport produce to his warehouse on Tarpon Bay.

Read more about the Cooper homestead in Ellie Dormer's history, "The Sea Shell Islands," available in our gift shop.

Photo Credit: Sanibel Public Library
A photograph of the old Cooper home on Tarpon Bay Road and Periwinkle, taken sometime between 1955 and 1965, decades after George Cooper sold the property in 1913.

07/24/2026

📢 We're Hiring: Operations Manager

The Sanibel Historical Museum & Village seeks an organized, proactive, and collaborative Operations Manager to help lead the daily operations of a museum and historical village dedicated to preserving and sharing Sanibel's rich history.

For more information: https://sanibelmuseum.org/careers/

07/21/2026

DID YOU KNOW that the Sanibel Tomato Pickers baseball team, named after the Island’s most famous crop, was the pride of the young community? In 1910, the team’s historical milestone came when they captured the Caloosahatchee Valley Baseball Championship (1910 Team Pictured).

One standout player was Will Reed, who served as the Sanibel Postmaster for 40 years. Another player, Pete Jenny, had his life forever changed when he hit another player in the head with a ball. Thinking that he had killed the man, Jenny fled Sanibel and kept running until he reached Alaska. Forty years later, he learned that the man had just been unconscious. “Uncle Pete” returned to SW Florida, living in a small trailer in Bonita near the Gulf for the rest of his days.

Read more about Pete Jenny's story, along with many others, in "Once Upon the Island Known as Sanibel," co-authored by Betty Anholt and Charles LeBuff.

Photo Credit: Sanibel Public Library

07/10/2026

We are excited to welcome our new Executive Director, Vacharee Howard (Vah-shah-REE), to the Sanibel Historical Museum & Village!

With nearly 20 years of nonprofit leadership experience, Vacharee brings a passion for community engagement, strategic growth, and preserving the stories that connect us. As we begin this exciting new chapter, we look forward to building on our mission to celebrate Sanibel's rich history and inspire future generations.

Please join us in giving Vacharee a warm welcome to The Village! We can't wait for you to meet her and be part of what's ahead.

The full announcement is available on our website, we invite you to read more about this exciting milestone! https://sanibelmuseum.org/new-executive-director/

07/07/2026

DID YOU KNOW that over the years, Sanibel has been home to any number of colorful characters? One resident may have foreshadowed the popular performance artists—Blue Man Group!

According to author/ historian Jeri Magg: “One of the best stories was about a gentle alcoholic named Albert. This particular fellow used to lock himself in his house, strip naked, and paint himself blue (with house paint).” She continues to explain how Captain Leon Crumpler, Sanibel’s long time ferry boat captain, would bring an ambulance to the island to take Albert to Fort Myers for medical treatment—and, obviously, to remove the paint.

Watch an interview with the grandchildren of the long-time ferry boat captain: "Stories from the Crumpler Family" on the SHMV websites' Pioneer Stories, https://sanibelmuseum.org/pioneer-stories/

06/30/2026

DID YOU KNOW that located near the Lighthouse, Palm Lodge, later known as The Palms, was operated by Pearlie (Rutland) Shanahan and her mother Irene Rutland. The Rutland family came to Florida in 1895 after the Great Freeze of 1894-95 destroyed their citrus groves in central Florida.

In 1936, the building and its contents were destroyed by a devastating fire. Some guests escaped by tying bedsheets together to climb out the windows. Author Edna St. Vincent Millay lost the only manuscript of a book she had just completed.

Read more about the fire in Betty Anholt’s definitive book, "Sanibel’s Story, Voices and Images". Available in our Gift Shop during season!

Photo: Palm Lodge (The Palms), 1934
Photo Credit: Sanibel Public Library

Address

950 Dunlop Road
Sanibel, FL
33957

Opening Hours

Wednesday	10am - 2pm
Thursday	10am - 2pm
Friday	10am - 2pm
Saturday	10am - 2pm
Sunday	10am - 2pm

Telephone

(239) 472-4648

Website

http://www.sanibelmuseum.org/

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