Two Weeki Wachee Mermaids in Costume Performing a Scene from "Peter Pan"

Two Weeki Wachee Mermaids in Costume Performing a Scene from "Peter Pan"

Black and White Photograph: Weeki Wachee Springs Mermaids Performing "Peter Pan," c. 1971

Weeki Wachee Springs (Fla.)

Tourism--Florida

Photograph albums--1960-1970

tourism & museum

Tourism--1960-1980

Mermaids--Florida--Weeki Wachee--History

Theater--20th century

Kodak Safety Film Strip consisting of two images. These images show two Weeki Wachee mermaids performing a scene from "Peter Pan." One mermaid is in a Captain Hook costume and the other is in an alligator costume. A prop pirate ship is pictured behind the mermaids. Image was taken sometime in 1971, when the show was performed.

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 Florida roadways. The attraction consisted of an amalgamation of vendors, an orchid garden, a river boat tour, as well as the star attraction: a mermaid show that took place in an underwater theater. Eventually, the May Museum of the Tropics, an "abandoned Seminole village", a show called “Birds of Prey”, and a petting zoo were added. After peaking in the 1950s and 1960s, attendance began to decline as theme parks and highways changed the dynamics of Florida's tourism. The State of Florida took over the attraction as a state park in 2008. Since then, the park has focused on appealing to a modern audience while preserving its history.

Black and white photograph of Mermaids Performign "Peter Pan"

Weeki Wachee Spring State Park

Sparky Schumacher

Original black and white photograph of Weeki Wachee Springs Mermaids Performing in "Peter Pan," c. 1971: Private Collection of karen Geiken.

RICHES

c. 1971

Digital reproduction of original photograph: c. 1971. Scanned by RICHES team. RICHES, Orlando, Florida.

Weeki Wachee Collection, RICHES.

image/jpg

2.15 MB

B&W Photograph

Still Image

Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, Spring Hill, Florida

Donation

History Teacher

Humanitites Teacher

Visual Arts Teacher

Theater Teacher

Originally created by Sparky Schumacher, owned by Karen Geiken, and published by RICHES.

Copyright to this resource is held by Karen Geiken and is provided here by RICHES for educational purposes only.

Florida Humanities Council Community Grant Program and Friends of Weeki Wachee Springs State Park

Schwandt, Rebecca

Private Collection of Karen Geiken.

Allman, T.D. Finding Florida: The True History of the Sunshine State. New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, 2013.

Ammidown, Margot. “Edens, Underworlds, and Shrines: Florida’s Small Tourist Attractions.” The Journal of Decorative and Propaganda Arts 23, (1998): 238-259.

Georgiadis, Bonnie and Lu Vickers. Weeki Wachee Mermaids. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2012.

Hollis, Tim. Glass Bottom Boats and Mermaid Tails: Florida’s Tourist Springs. Mechanicsburg: Stackpole Books, 2006.

Pelland, Dan and Maryan Pelland. Images of America: Weeki Wachee. Mount Pleasant: Arcadia Publishing, 2006.

Revels, Tracy J. Sunshine Paradise: A History of Florida Tourism. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2011.

Vickers, Lu. Weeki Wachee City of Mermaids: A History of One of Florida’s Oldest Roadside Attractions. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2007.