Museum of Florida History

05/31/2026

It’s National Smile Day, a good time to check out this fun button with the smiling orange! The Florida Council of 100 issued this button in 1963. Formed in 1961, the Florida Council of 100 is comprised of business leaders that advise government officials on issues pertaining to Florida’s economy and quality of life for its residents. An early focus of the Council centered on promoting tourism. In January 1963, the Council launched its Courtesy Campaign, a two-month long, statewide effort to make tourists feel welcome. The smiling orange was the theme of the campaign. State agencies, news media, businesses, and civic organizations all participated. Newspapers were encouraged to publish editorials welcoming tourists, billboards went up along some highways, and the Council issued posters and other memorabilia, including these smiling orange buttons that Floridians could wear when greeting tourists. May this cheery button help you smile today!

📷: Promotional button, 1963. Collection of the Museum of Florida History

05/24/2026

For , let’s rock out with a pair of brothers central to Southern rock history. Duane and Gregg Allman grew up in Daytona Beach, Florida, and Nashville, Tennessee. Throughout their childhood and early adulthood, both brothers played with and formed multiple bands, which took them to Muscle Shoals, Alabama; St. Louis, Missouri; and Los Angeles, California. In March 1969, they joined Dickey Betts, “Jaimoe” Johanson, Butch Trucks, and Berry Oakley to form the Allman Brothers Band in Jacksonville, Florida. The band’s sound combined the diverse musical interests and influences of its members, creating a blend of jazz, country, rock, and blues. Though their first two albums achieved little commercial success, the band became known for their jam session-inspired live performances.
Shortly after the launch of the band’s influential 1971 live album At Fillmore East, Duane Allman died in a motorcycle accident. The following year, the band released their acclaimed album Eat a Peach which featured the last studio recordings shared by the brothers.
Though deeply impacted by the loss of Duane (and Berry Oakley soon after), the band agreed to continue making music and did so with a variety of members participating over the years. This poster promotes the Allman Brothers Band’s thirteenth album, An Evening with the Allman Brothers Band: First Set, released in 1992.

📷: Allman Brothers Band Poster, 1992. Collection of the Museum of Florida History

05/20/2026

05/16/2026

Like classic movies? Then National Classic Movie Day, May 16, is for you! To mark the day, let’s take a look at “Creature from the Black Lagoon,” one of the classic monster movies of the film industry. In this movie, scientists on an expedition into the Amazon find the Gill-Man, a prehistoric creature that can live on land and in water. Of course, much mayhem ensues. Florida native Ricou Browning played the Gill-Man in the water scenes, which were filmed at Wakulla Springs, just south of Tallahassee. He also donned the Gill-Man suit for the movie’s two sequels. Browning was a professional swimmer who worked at Wakulla Springs and later Weeki Wachee Springs and Silver Springs. He went on to have a successful film career, writing, directing, and coordinating underwater stunts for a variety of television shows and movies. On National Classic Movie Day tune in to your favorite classic film—and don’t forget the popcorn!

📷: "Creature from the Black lagoon," 1954. Collection of the Museum of Florida History.

05/15/2026

Please come out to celebrate Florida's Emancipation Day, May 20th, on Park Avenue across from the Knott House Museum. This year’s program features State Historic Preservation Officer Alissa Lotane and Dr. Larry E. Rivers, Distinguished Professor of History, Florida A&M University, and music by Christopher White and Brownsville Preparatory Institute students. The program begins at 11:30 and a free lunch is available afterwards in Lewis Park. https://www.facebook.com/events/1695759631455764

05/05/2026

On May 5, 1961, Alan Shephard Jr. became the first American astronaut in space. Today, May 5 is National Astronaut Day. To mark the day, let us take a look at this medallion commemorating the astronauts aboard Apollo XI, the first manned mission to land on the moon. The Apollo XI astronauts included Neil Armstrong, Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, and Michael Collins. Armstrong had been a naval aviator, aeronautical research scientist, and test pilot before joining the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as an astronaut in 1962. The next year, NASA selected Aldrin and Collins for the astronaut program. Aldrin was a fighter pilot and engineer with a PhD from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Collins had served as a fighter pilot and test pilot. All three astronauts flew aboard different Gemini space missions before the Apollo XI mission.

Apollo XI launched from Kennedy Space Center on July 16, 1969, with Armstrong in command. On July 20, Armstrong became the first human to set foot on the lunar surface, with Aldrin following as the second human on the moon. Collins piloted the command module, which remained in orbit around the moon. He played a vital role in ensuring that Armstrong and Aldrin were able to safely dock with the command module and return to Earth. The Museum honors these and all of the astronauts who contributed and continue to contribute to the exploration of space and expand our knowledge of the universe around us.

📷: Apollo XI commemorative medallion, ca. 1969. Collection of the Museum of Florida History

04/24/2026

Did you know that today is National Historic Marker Day? First celebrated in 2021, the holiday invites celebrants to embrace their local community history by maintaining historical markers.

During the Great Depression, the Federal Works Progress Administration surveyed the historical sites in each Florida county. The cover of the report depicts a couple visiting a historical site in the 1930s. In the distance, amid the pines, lie the ruins of Camp New Hope, a fort constructed in today’s Duval County during the Patriot War (1812).

Today, the Florida Division of Historical Resources keeps track of over 1,200 markers digitally. Visit https://markers.flheritage.com/home/map to learn more about the historical markers in your backyard and across the state!

📸: Historic Florida: Report of Historic Site Survey, ca. 1933–37. Collection of the Museum of Florida History