Weeki Wachee Springs Brochure, c. 1950s

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Dublin Core

Title

Weeki Wachee Springs Brochure, c. 1950s

Alternative Title

Trifold Brochure of Weeki Wachee Springs, printed in the 1950s

Subject

Weeki Wachee Springs (Fla.)
Tourism--Florida
Photograph albums--1960-1970
tourism & museum
Tourism--1960-1980
Mermaids--Florida--Weeki Wachee--History

Description

Trifold brochure of Weeki Wachee Springs State Park highlighting the park's attractions in the 1950s, such as the May Museum of the Tropiscs. For a little over a decade, the May family of Colorado displayed some of their family's private collection of tropical bugs and animals in a museum on Weeki Wachee Springs property.

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.

Abstract

Color Trifold Brochure of Weeki Wachee Springs

Creator

Weeki Wachee Spring State Park

Source

Original color trifold of Weeki Wachee Springs, c. 1950s: May Natural History Museum Collection.

Publisher

Date Created

ca. 1950s

Date Copyrighted

ca. 1950s

Date Issued

ca. 1950s

Is Format Of

Digital reproduction of original trifold brochure of Weeki Wachee Springs.

Is Part Of

Format

image/jpg

Extent

70.70 MB, 7.53 MB

Type

Still Image

Coverage

Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, Weeki Wachee, Florida

Accrual Method

Donation

Mediator

History Teacher
Humanities Teacher
Theater Teacher

Provenance

Originally created by Weeki Wachee Springs, owned by May Natural History Museum, and published by RICHES.

Rights Holder

Copyright to this resource is held by May Museum of Natural History and is provided here by RICHES for educational purposes only.

Contributing Project

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

Curator

Schwandt, Rebecca

Digital Collection

Source Repository

Personal Collection of May Museum of Natural History

External Reference

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.

Citation

Weeki Wachee Spring State Park, “Weeki Wachee Springs Brochure, c. 1950s,” RICHES, accessed December 24, 2024, https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka/items/show/11193.

Locations

Categories