Musuems

If sea levels were to rise to the point where the coastline of Florida was submerged, our peninsular state would become a series of islands. At the heart of one of those islands, a neo-Gothic tower of coquina and marble would rise 205 feet into the sky.

Bok Tower Gardens near Lake Wales is on one of the highest points in the state, 298 feet above sea level.

President Calvin Coolidge presided over the dedication of the Singing Tower and its adjacent bird sanctuary and gardens on February 1, 1929. The facility was conceived and built by Edward Bok as a gift to the American people for the opportunities he had been given.

Bok was born in 1863 in Dans Helder, Netherlands. He immigrated to the United States with his family in 1870. He grew from a boy who didn’t speak English to become a confidant of American presidents and a friend to literary figures such as Mark Twain and Rudyard Kipling. He made a fortune in publishing.

“At 26 years old, he became editor-in-chief of The Ladies’ Home Journal magazine, which became the first magazine in the world to have over a million subscribers,” says Brian Ososky, a director at Bok Tower Gardens.

Bok would come from Pennsylvania to spend his winters near Lake Wales. He enjoyed watching sunsets from Iron Mountain and decided to stop plans to build a housing development there by purchasing the land. He hired landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. to transform a sand hill into a lush and thriving garden sanctuary.

Olmsted worked with his father, who designed New York’s Central Park. He landscaped many of the most prominent landmarks in Washington D.C., and served as the first director of the National Park Service.

It took Olmsted six years to create the Bok Tower Gardens, bringing in rich soil, developing an elaborate irrigation system, and planting acres of carefully selected trees, plants, and flowers. The pathways through the gardens all led to the Singing Tower.

“The pathways were all specifically meant to be meandering, and you would slowly go around corners in anticipation of what you would see next,” says Ososky. “All the while you might catch a glimpse of the tower and then it would disappear behind some oaks or behind some other types of trees.”

When the tower comes into full view, it is a spectacular sight.

The tower is a combination of Gothic and Art Deco influences, made of coquina stone from St. Augustine and pink and gray marble from Georgia. It was designed by architect Milton B. Medary, who also created the Washington Memorial Chapel at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, and the Justice Department Building in Washington, D.C.

Carved into the tower is a unique combination of sacred, secular, and distinctly Floridian images. The bird, animal, and floral depictions were created by sculptor Lee Lawrie, best known for his “Atlas” statue at Rockefeller Center in New York.

Metal worker Samuel Yellin crafted the large brass doors on the north side of the tower that depict the story of creation, as well as the wrought iron gates leading to the doors. On the south side of the tower, Yellin contributed to the sundial that features a bronze snake amid the signs of the Zodiac and Roman numerals that display the time of day. Yellin’s work can be seen on college campuses including Yale, Harvard, and Princeton, and on numerous churches including the Washington National Cathedral.

Tilemaker J.H. Dulles Allen created the elaborate floor of the tower, and added color to the top third of the structure.

Walking through the gardens, a visitor might hear the tower before they see it.

The Singing Tower houses one of only 600 carillons in the world. It has 60 bronze bells, the largest of which weighs about 12 tons. A keyboard instrument at the top of the tower is attached to clappers which strike the bells, creating music.

“This tower and this sanctuary is unique,” says carillonneur Geert D’hollander. “The gardens are like a natural concert hall. No traffic. Beautiful, peaceful, serene.”

Bok’s grandmother advised him to “make you the world a bit better or more beautiful because you have lived in it.”

He followed that advice.

Just blocks from the bustling urban setting of downtown Miami is an oasis of Classical beauty in a serene and idealized natural setting.

Known today as Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, the 40 room mansion surrounded by acres of meticulously landscaped gardens was originally the home of industrialist James Deering.

As early as the 1890s, the Deering family started wintering in St. Augustine. James Deering’s parents later moved to Coconut Grove, which would become part of Miami.

“James Deering was what’s known as an agricultural industrialist,” says Mark Osterman, guiding programs manager at Vizcaya Museum and Gardens. “His firm created agricultural farming equipment across the United States. It became one of the largest manufacturing firms in the entire world. He was vice-president of the firm International Harvester.”

In 1908, at the age of 49, Deering retired from the International Harvester Company and initiated plans to create a palatial estate called Vizcaya. Deering’s Gilded Age display of incredible wealth in Florida would rival the San Simeon Castle built by William Randolph Hearst in California.

“It’s really unique,” says Osterman. “It’s Italian inspired mainly on the exterior of the home, but when you’re on the interior, especially in the central courtyard, that has Spanish influence, or what we call Mediterranean influence. The house itself is really an adaptation of European traditions brought to this subtropical climate.”

Construction on Vizcaya began in the fall of 1913, and Deering moved into the home on Christmas Day, 1916. Deering wanted all of the latest technology available incorporated into the home, including a telephone, but he had architect F. Burrall Hoffman Jr. design a structure that appeared to be about 400 years old.

It would take until 1921 to complete the fantastic Vizcaya Gardens.

“The gardens were designed by Diego Suarez,” says Osterman. “He was a landscape architect who worked on the project along with Paul Chalfin, who was chief designer of the overall project. Diego Suarez was Columbian born but an Italian trained landscape architect, so the gardens themselves are deeply influenced by Italian estate gardens ranging from the 1600s to the 1800s.”

The elaborate gardens of Vizcaya express the Classical ideals of balance, symmetry, and rational design. The meticulously manicured shrubbery, trees, plants, and flowers are augmented by man-made structures intended to add to the beauty of the natural surroundings.

“Throughout the gardens there are a series of follies,” Osterman says. “These are sort of unexpected moments. They could be sculptural, they could be a fountain piece, but they typically service as end points or transition points within the gardens. The gardens were designed essentially as outdoor spaces or rooms.”

The biggest and most unique “folly” at Vizcaya is a piece of fantasy architecture sitting in the water in front of the mansion. “The Barge” is a concrete representation of a ship designed to greet visitors arriving to the estate by boat from Biscayne Bay. Deering envisioned what would seem to be the back of his home as the front entrance, facing the water.

“The Barge” was originally adorned with shrubbery and fountains, and had a small summer house on board. Today, the structure is the least well-preserved aspect of the estate.

Deering’s grand attempt to control nature was challenged by nature itself on multiple occasions.

A hurricane in 1926, and two in 1935, severely damaged the estate leading to extensive repairs of the gardens. In 1992, hurricane Andrew impacted the property, particularly the Barge. In 2005, hurricanes Katrina and Wilma further damaged the Barge and caused water intrusion into the home.

Deering did not live to see the destruction to his carefully designed estate.

“He was here less than ten years,” says Osterman. “He passed away during a cruise on his way back from Paris to New York in 1925, which was unfortunate, but he did enjoy his winters here staring from 1916 through 1925.”

In 1951, Deering’s nieces, who were his heirs, sold the Vizcaya estate to Dade County and donated the interior furnishings of the house. The property opened as a museum the following year.

Modern visitors to Vizcaya can be amazed by the excessive splendor of America’s Gilded Age in Florida and contemplate the illusion of control over our natural environment.

More than five centuries ago, Spanish conquistador Ponce de León used celestial navigation to guide his ships to the land he would name La Florida.
Today, the Hubble Space Telescope provides us with incredibly detailed images of celestial bodies that Ponce could have only imagined.

With the event “A New Era of Discovery” to be held November 14 at the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science in Cocoa, the Florida Historical Society recognizes more than 500 years of exploration with a special showing of the Jackson Walker painting They Called it La Florida, and the new exhibition “Eye on the Universe: The Hubble Space Telescope.”

The Florida House in Washington, D.C. owns the Walker painting depicting Ponce’s 1513 landing in Florida, and is loaning the work to the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science. The artist is pleased to see this painting visiting Florida, particularly Brevard County.

Ponce’s own records indicate that he first landed in Florida just north of present day St. Augustine. “A second landing further south resulted in a first sighting of inhabitants,” says Walker. “Those people were the Ais Indians, natives of Brevard County.”

A team from Delaware North and the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex is designing and installing the $200,000 exhibit “Eye on the Universe: The Hubble Space Telescope” at the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science. The exhibit is on extended loan.

“We tell the NASA story to people from around the world,” says Therrin Protze, Chief Operating Officer of Delaware North Corporation Parks and Resorts at Kennedy Space Center.

“A natural extension is to share NASA content through other educational learning centers in our community. We are partnering with the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science to share the amazing story of the Hubble Space Telescope. This community outreach enables our organizations to inspire young minds through science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) content.”

Launched into space in 1990 aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery, the Hubble Space Telescope is helping us to better understand our universe.

“Because of Hubble, we understand how planets and galaxies form, have documented black holes and have discovered dark energy – an unusual force causing the universe to expand faster and faster as time passes,” says Protze. “The size of a school bus, Hubble has seen galaxies that are billions of light years away as well as the birth and death of stars.”

The new “Eye on the Universe” exhibit features large scale models of the shuttle Discovery and the Hubble Telescope. Some of the amazing images captured by Hubble are also displayed.

“The Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science has dedicated a huge amount of space for the Hubble exhibit,” says Protze. “To prepare for the installation, Delaware North crewmembers are making drywall repairs, painting walls, readying surfaces, adding lighting effects, creating background music, designing custom graphics and installing the exhibit.”

At the special event “A New Era of Discovery,” there will be live music, gourmet hors d’oeuvres, beer and wine, and the new exhibits commemorating human exploration from Ponce de León to the Hubble Space Telescope.

The Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science will also be showcasing their current exhibits including skeletons of a mastodon, a giant ground sloth, and a saber tooth tiger. An exhibit on the Windover Archaeological Dig is featured, along with an extensive collection of archaeological artifacts.

The museum is now also home of the Florida Historical Society Archaeological Institute. Bruce Piatek is director of both the institute and the museum. Piatek believes that the archaeological exhibits and the new Hubble exhibit complement each other.

“Archaeologists look at the past,” says Piatek. “We excavate sites to try to find artifacts that tell us about the history of humankind. Astronomers do something very similar. When you look at the images from the Hubble Space Telescope, you’re actually looking at light that is millions if not billions of years old. As astronomers look at the universe, they’re looking back in time as well, to learn more about our world and our universe.”

Dr. Ben Brotemarkle is executive director of the Florida Historical Society and host of the radio program “Florida Frontiers,” broadcast locally on 90.7 WMFE Thursday evenings at 6:30 and Sunday afternoons at 4:00, and on 89.5 WFIT Sunday mornings at 7:00. The show can be heard online at myfloridahistory.org.

Some of the world’s most powerful leaders have made important decisions while staying in a relatively modest residence in Key West, Florida.

Seven Presidents of the United States have stayed at the Harry S. Truman Little White House. The home bears Truman’s name because he was the one who most fully utilized the facility while in office, spending nearly six months of his presidency in his second home.

“It’s somewhat unique,” says Robert Wolz, executive director of the Harry S. Truman Little White House Museum. “The only location quite similar would be Camp David,” the presidential retreat in Frederick County, Maryland.

Truman’s presidency saw the end of World War II with the use of atomic weapons on Japan, the founding of the United Nations, the Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe, the start of the Cold War with the Soviet Union, and the racial integration of the military and federal agencies.

The Little White House was more than just a vacation retreat for President Truman. While working in Key West, he signed documents that would advance civil rights, help lead to the creation of Israel, and result in the firing of General Douglas McArthur.

“They were literally running the country from Key West, Florida,” says Wolz. “He actually was enacting legislation from this site. It all reads ‘The White House, U.S. Naval Station, Key West, Florida.’ So, Harry Truman is our first president to realize that where the president is, there the White House is.”

The home was originally constructed in 1890, as a Navy Officer’s residence.

The first president to stay at the house was William Howard Taft, in 1912. “Taft came via Flagler’s railroad and then sailed from Key West to Panama to see the building of the canal,” says Wolz. “He was very instrumental in the building of the Panama Canal, making eight trips here as Secretary of War, and then as President of the United States.”

In addition to Taft and Truman, U.S. Presidents Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, James E. Carter, and William Jefferson Clinton have stayed at the Little White House.

Key West is closer to Cuba than to most of Florida. John F. Kennedy spent time at the Little White House during a crucial period in U.S. history, when tensions with Cuba were at their height.

Kennedy first came to the Little White House in March 1961, just 23 days before the U.S. led invasion of Cuba known as the Bay of Pigs. “Russian missiles were discovered in Cuba, and Key West became an armed camp overnight,” Wolz says. “Tourism died, and even after the crisis passed, tourists did not return.” In November 1962, Kennedy visited Key West again, to demonstrate to potential tourists that it was safe to return to the island.

When the U.S. Navy switched from diesel submarines to nuclear submarines in 1974, the Naval Base at Key West was closed. The new nuclear subs were too large for Key West harbor. A private developer purchased the property following the base closure, and it sat unused and deteriorating for twelve years.

The house came under state ownership in 1987, thanks to the efforts of then Governor Bob Graham.

Since 1990, the Harry S. Truman Little White House has been open 365 days a year, offering guided tours. Details such as the magazines on coffee tables, the prints on walls, and glasses behind the bar, make walking through the Little White House like stepping back in time to 1949. Almost all of the articles in the home are genuine artifacts from the Truman presidency.

“Probably the most iconic items would be the president’s poker table that was made as a gift for him from the Navy cabinet shop, and also the president’s piano and presidential desk where he ran the country,” Wolz says. “These are important things that people seek out when they’re touring the house.”

The house itself is an authentic American artifact.

“Visitors, especially our international visitors, are always surprised at how homey and ordinary it is,” says Wolz. “It is not glitzy. It’s certainly not Washington, and it’s certainly not Versailles or any of the palaces that the rest of the world expects from their leadership.”

Dr. Ben Brotemarkle is executive director of the Florida Historical Society and host of the radio program “Florida Frontiers,” broadcast locally on 90.7 WMFE Thursday evenings at 6:30 and Sunday afternoons at 4:00, and on 89.5 WFIT Sunday mornings at 7:00. The show can be heard online at myfloridahistory.org.

Two venerable institutions that celebrate the past are facing a brighter future together.

Today begins a new era for both the Florida Historical Society and the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science as the oldest cultural organization in the state takes ownership of an outstanding local museum.

The facility is now also the home of the Florida Historical Society Archaeological Institute.

“I’ve been connected with the Florida Historical Society for almost twenty years now, and this is the most exciting event I’ve seen happen,” says FHS President Leonard Lempel. “This museum is a tremendous new edition to the Florida Historical Society. I’m just real excited about all the opportunities it presents.”

The Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science was established in 1969. The nearly 15,000 square foot facility sits on a 20-acre nature preserve with walking trails through three Florida ecosystems. The museum is adjacent to Eastern Florida State College and the University of Central Florida Cocoa campus.

The change in ownership from Brevard Museum, Inc. to the Florida Historical Society was amicable and even welcomed. With a passionate and emotionally invested Museum Guild already in place, the addition of Florida Historical Society personnel and resources will allow the museum to become even better than it already is.

“There certainly is a passion,” says Lee Bailey, president of the outgoing Brevard Museum Board of Trustees. “Unfortunately it takes more than just passion. It has to have really good, solid understanding and knowing how to run a museum. I think with this in place, we’re going to see it thrive.”

The centerpiece of the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science is an exhibition on the amazing Windover Archaeological Dig. In 1982, an ancient pond cemetery was discovered near Titusville. Hundreds of ritualistically buried bodies were remarkably well preserved, wrapped in the oldest woven fabric found in North America. Ninety-one skulls even contained intact brain matter.

The Windover people were between 7,000 and 8,000 years old, making them 2,000 years older than the Great Pyramids and 3,200 years older than King Tutankhamen.

The museum also features exhibits on other native peoples, the Spanish Colonial period, pioneer culture, and has numerous archaeological artifacts.

Many improvements were made to the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science under the leadership of outgoing executive director Nancy Rader. She refreshed exhibits, improved the museum branding, and increased attendance. Her proudest achievement was adding a mastodon skeleton that joined the bones of a giant ground sloth and a saber tooth cat on display.

Rader is very supportive of the changes happening at the museum. “I feel like the Brevard Museum is a real treasure and I really want the community to jump on board and support it,” Rader says.

The museum’s mission to educate the public about local history compliments the Florida Historical Society’s statewide focus. From the prehistoric era to pioneer settlement to the launching of America’s space program, Brevard County serves as a microcosm of Florida history.

Established in 1856, the Florida Historical Society maintains an extensive archive at the Library of Florida History in Cocoa, publishes books and periodicals, produces radio and television programs, operates the Florida Historical Society Archaeological Institute, and manages the Historic Rossetter House Museum in Eau Gallie. An Annual Meeting and Symposium is held in a different Florida city each May, and the organization participates in festivals, events, and educational outreach throughout the state.

Bruce Piatek is the new Director of the Florida Historical Society Archaeological Institute and the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science. Piatek has an extensive background as both a professional archaeologist and a museum administrator. He was City Archaeologist in St. Augustine where he also ran a successful museum. For 20 years, Piatek was executive director of the Florida Agricultural Museum, building it into the most popular tourist destination in Flagler County.

“I think the Brevard Museum is great. It’s got tremendous potential,” says Piatek. “There’s been 45 years of hard work by the folks who put the museum together, got it operating, and have continued to operate it. I think it’s exciting what the Florida Historical Society has planned for coming into the museum and making it a more vibrant and viable operation.”

Dr. Ben Brotemarkle is executive director of the Florida Historical Society and host of the radio program “Florida Frontiers,” broadcast locally on 90.7 WMFE Thursday evenings at 6:30 and Sunday afternoons at 4:00, and on 89.5 WFIT Sunday mornings at 7:00. The show can be heard online at myfloridahistory.org.