Browse Items (61 total)

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Photograph of three Weeki Wachee Mermaids in staged underwater dining scene at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park around 1950. The mermaids are eating watermelon and breathing using air hoses while sitting at a table placed on the bottom of a body of…

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Exterior photograph of the underwater theater at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park around 1950. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1922. He was a member of the swimming and diving…

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Photograph of Newton "Newt" Perry with three men in an underwater theater at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park around 1950. One of the men is holding a movie camera. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family…

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Clipping of newspaper article about Weeki Wachee Springs State Park published in an unidentified newspaper around 1950. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1922. He was a member of…

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Photograph of mermaids performing at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park around 1950. The three mermaids sit on boards in the water. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1922. He was a…

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Photograph of visitors to Weeki Wachee Springs State Park in underwater theater around 1950. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1922. He was a member of the swimming and diving…

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Photograph of a line of visitors to Weeki Wachee Springs State Park outside the underwater theater around 1950. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1922. He was a member of the…

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Photograph of a fish swimming in front of an underwater filming tank created by Newton "Newt" Perry between 1950 and 1970. This photograph may be either from Weeki Wachee Springs State Park or from Newton "Newt" Perry's career as an underwater…

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Photograph of an underwater filming tank created by Newton "Newt" Perry between 1950 and 1970. This photograph may be either from Weeki Wachee Springs State Park or from Newton "Newt" Perry's career as an underwater filmmaker. Newton "Newt" Perry was…

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Underwater photograph of a mermaid wearing goggles and holding an air hose at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, around 1950. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1922. He was a…

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A letter from the manager of the May Museum of the Tropics, Myrtle Colson, to the owner of the museum, John M. May, dated February 23, 1957. Colson expresses her belief that the upcoming tourist season would be one of the best yet, for both Weeki…

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A letter from the owner of the May Museum of the Tropics, John M. May, to the manager of Weeki Wachee Springs, Joe D. Seltzer. In the letter, May tentatively agrees to Seltzer's plan to create another walkway to the museum, but expresses hesitation…

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A letter from the manager of Weeki Wachee Springs, Joe D. Seltzer, to the owner of the May Museum of the Tropics, John M. May, dated June 17, 1959. In the letter, Seltzer expresses his and his company's wish to build a new walkway and parking lot…

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A letter from the owner of the May Museum of the Tropics, John M. May, to University of Florida entomology professor John T. Creighton, dated November 20, 1963. May extended a warm invitation to Creighton and his colleagues to visit the May Museum,…

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A letter from the owner of the May Museum of the Tropics, John M. May, to the manager of the museum, Myrtle Colson, dated May 7, 1959. In the letter, May apologizes to Colson for not informing her sooner about how to handle counting groups of…

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A letter from entomologist Charles P. Kimball to the owner of the May Museum of the Tropics, John M. May, dated June 7, 1957. In the letter, Kimball details an insect trap design that utilizes thin plastic instead of glass, to allow more sunlight…

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A memo from Weeki Wachee Springs State Park manager T.P. Brinzo, circulated to all departments, dated February 21, 1963. The memo informed the entirety of the Springs that new equipment had been acquired for the underwater mermaid shows to help…

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A letter from the owner of the May Museum of the Tropics, John M. May, to the manager of the museum, Myrtle Colson, dated January 14, 1959. May expresses his hopes that Colson is feeling better, as she recently had the flu, and informs her that his…

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A letter from the owner of the May Museum of the Tropics, John M. May, to the employees of the museum, dated January 8, 1959. May asks his employees to water the plants around the outside of the museum to ensure they don't wilt or die, and hopes that…

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A letter from the manager of the May Museum of the Tropics, Myrtle Colson, to the owner of the museum, John M. May, dated March 1, 1959. The letter celebrates the recent high number of visitors that the Museum had. Additionally, the letter informs…

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A photograph of an underwater filming scene showing Newton "Newt" Perry in a diving helmet at an underwater camera, some time between 1950 and 1970. This photograph may be either from Weeki Wachee Springs State Park or from Newton "Newt" Perry's…

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A photograph of a swimming area with bathers in front of a building at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, Florida, around 1950. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1922. He was a…

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Photograph of underwater diver in diving suit with a sunken treasure chest, some time between 1950 and1970. The photograph may be either from Weeki Wachee Springs State Park or from Newton "Newt" Perry's career as an underwater filmmaker. Newton…

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A photograph of a mermaid swimming in front of an underwater filming tank created by Newton "Newt" Perry some time between 1950 and 1970. The photograph may be either from Weeki Wachee Springs State Park or from Newton "Newt" Perry's career as an…

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An exterior photograph of the underwater theater at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, Florida, around 1950. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1922. He was a member of the swimming…

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A signed photograph of Eileen Perry Hogshead, the daughter of Newton "Newt" Perry, aged fourteen, as a Weeki Wachee Mermaid. The photograph was taken by Newton Perry around 1950. On the reverse of the photograph is a hand-written caption by Newton.…

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Advertising card for Weekiwachee Spring from around 1950. Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in 1908, and moved with his family to Ocala, Florida in 1922. He was a member of the swimming and diving teams at the University of Florida.…

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A letter dated March 26, 1981, from the Acting Chairman of the Florida Sports Hall of Fame, Val Darling, to Newton "Newt" Perry, informing Perry of his selection to the Florida Sports Hall of Fame for his "immense contributions to the world of…

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A letter dated March 31, 1997, from the director of the Museum of Florida History, Gaye Guita, to Delee Perry. In the letter, printed on Florida Department of State letterhead, Gaye Guita invites Delee Perry to attend the opening reception for an new…

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A small poster for Weeki Wachee Springs. The background of the poster is black, featuring a cartoon mermaid and three fish. The text reads, "Weeki Wachee Live Mermaids. U.S. 19 and Florida 50." Newton "Newt" Perry was born in Valdosta, Georgia in…

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A letter from John May to Joe and Martha Seltzer, the management of Weeki Wachee Springs. The letter details May's sadness that Seltzer was resigning. May expresses that he hopes to remain in contact and that Seltzer and his wife can leave their…

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The original interior of the May Museum of the Tropics in the 1950s. In the months following the photograph, several specimen began to droop and wilt in the cases due to humidity. The owner, John May, was forced to hand make new display cases out of…

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The entrance of the May Museum of the Tropics. Faux thatched roof, tiki sculptures, and a list of countries the insects in the collection came from adorn the space, giving it an exotic feel. …

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A team of people guide the placement of a Hercules beetle sculpture in the 1950s. A crane lowers the sculpture in place near the May Museum of the Tropics at Weeki Wachee Springs, Florida. The large beetle sculpture served as an advertisement to…

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A letter from the manager of the the May Museum of the Tropics, Myrtle Colson, to the owner of the museum, John May. The letter details concerns that the manager was having with an employee as well as her complaints about being excluded from certain…

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Six pages of the May Museum of the Tropics employee handbook. The owner of the museum, John May, created the handbook for his employees to follow in the 1960s. The table of contents on the first three pages gives insight to what is included in the…

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A postcard of Weeki Wachee Springs sometime in the late 1950s. Louise Nan Steer mentions this postcard in her oral history interview because the blonde girl in the pink bathing suit in the center of the postcard is her twin sister, Lynda. The rest of…

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John May at the foundation of the May Museum of the Tropics at Weeki Wachee Springs, Florida. The date written on the photograph is November 20th, 1953. …

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Orchid Gardens at Weeki Wachee Springs. The hothouse, which allowed visitors to view a variety of orchids, was one of the original attractions to join the mermaid show at Weeki Wachee Springs. …

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A letter from John M. May, owner of the May Museum of the Tropics, to the manager of the museum, Myrtle Colson, dated September 27, 1958. May reassures Colson that she is doing fine, expressing remorse for the losing an employee and hope that their…

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A letter from Myrtle Colson, manager of the May Museum of the Tropics, to the owner of the museum, John M. May, dated June 1, 1958. Colson tells May about the increasing sales to the museum due to efforts of the new owner of Weeki Wachee Springs, and…

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A letter from John M. May, owner of the May Museum of the Tropics, to John T. Creighten, an employee of the Department of Entomology at the University fo Florida, dated November 20, 1963. replying to Mr. Creighten's interest in the museum and its…

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A letter from Myrtle Colson, manager of the May Museum of the Tropics, to the owner of the museum, John M. May, dated February 25, 1959. Colson discusses a surprise audit from the owners of Weeki Wachee, The Florida Chain of Theaters. She writes that…

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A letter from Myrtle Colson, manager of the May Museum of the Tropics, to the owner of the museum, John M. May, dated March 28, 1956. Myrtle writes that earlier in the day, she allowed an African-American couple to enter the museum, as he had…

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A letter from the owner of the May Museum of the Tropics, John M. May, to the directors of the St. Petersburg Springs Co., owners of Weeki Wachee Springs, dated January 28, 1957. May discusses his concerns with management and inquires about…

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Weeki Wachee Springs employee handbook for mermaids, swimmers and trainees. The first four pages detail scheduling rules, dress code and rules of conduct. Some of the rules for mermaids cover what makeup to wear in and out of the water, where to keep…

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Bonnie Georgiadis assisting an archeological dig of a Native American burial mound at Weeki Wachee Springs in July of 1970. She is using archeological tools to uncover a vase. The dig was conducted by the University of Florida. Along with a group of…

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A postcard featuring the dinosaur-shaped Sinclair Gas Station in Weeki Wachee Springs. A handwritten note by Bonita Colson accompanies the postcard, describing a mobile home rental park across the street from the gas station that Weeki Wachee…

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A postcard showcasing the lobby of the Mermaid Motel, which was located directly across the street from Weeki Wachee Springs. Two cars are parked under a pavilion next to the building. The back of the postcard features an add that describes the…

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A postcard depicting several Weeki Wachee mermaids lounging around the pool of the local Holiday Inn with the words "Greetings From Weeki Wachee, Florida" printed on the front. The back of the postcard features an ad for the Holiday Inn that lists…

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The Mermaid Villa building at Weeki Wachee Springs. Mermaids used the building to change into their costumes for their underwater performances, shower after their performances, and lounge while on break. Along with a group of investors, Newton Perry…

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A raccoon and caged baboon on the river bank of the Weeki Wachee River. This river was used for Weeki Wachee Spring's Jungle Cruise attraction. This attraction would take guests down the river in a glass bottom boat, where they would observe caged…

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John Hamlet, naturalist, placing his hand into a trained boar's mouth as part of an attraction at Weeki Wachee Springs. Along with a group of investors, Newton Perry opened Weeki Wachee Springs to the public in October of 1947. At the time, roadside…

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Two mermaids at Weeki Wachee Springs walking a young boar on a leash. Along with a group of investors, Newton Perry opened Weeki Wachee Springs to the public in October of 1947. At the time, roadside attractions were becoming popular stops along…

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Rita King, mermaid at Weeki Wachee Springs, holding two juvenile alligators. Along with a group of investors, Newton Perry opened Weeki Wachee Springs to the public in October of 1947. At the time, roadside attractions were becoming popular stops…

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Ann Tanzler, wife of Jacksonville Mayor Hans G. Tanzler, putting on a diving mask with the aid of two Weeki Wachee mermaids. An accompanying press release sent out on November 22, 1971, describes the busy life of Ann Tanzler, who, on top of being a…

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A Weeki Wachee Springs mermaid posing underwater with a report card. The card includes grades for bathing, ballet, breathing and boys. Weeki Wachee Springs is a state park that opened to the public in October of 1949 by Newton Perry along with a…

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Bonnie Georgiadis and three other Weeki Wachee mermaids training for future performances by practicing a pose. Bonnie Georgiadis was a mermaid from 1950 to 1968. After retiring from underwater theater, she took on other responsibilities at the park,…

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A trained raccoon opening a gift from an employee of Weeki Wachee Springs in the 1950s. For several years, Weeki Wachee offered a "covered wagon" ride through the forest as one of the park's attractions. Along the sides of the forest were a variety…

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