Letter from Myrtle Colson to John M. May (March 1, 1959)

Letter from Myrtle Colson to John M. May (March 1, 1959)

Letter from Colson to May (March 1, 1959)

Weeki Wachee Springs (Fla.)

Tourism--Florida

Springs--Florida

Parks--Florida

Entomology

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 May that the management of the Weeki Wachee Springs, where the museum was located, wanted a daily report of sales as well as weekly and monthly reports. As John May lived in Colorado and the May Museum of the Tropics was located in Florida, communication between employer, employees, and other staff at Weeki Wachee Springs was limited predominantly to letters of correspondence.

The May Natural History Museum of the Tropics is a non-profit organization that displays the world’s largest private insect collection. James May acquired the thousands of insects and arthropods that make up the collection from the late 1800s until his death in 1956. John May continued his father’s legacy, building a museum in Weeki Wachee, Florida, that lasted from 1954-1964, and a museum in Colorado that opened in the 1950s and is still open today. John May also took parts of the collection across the United States and Canada to display at fairs and exhibitions.

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.

Colson, Myrtle

Original 1-page typed letter from Myrtle Colson to John M. May, March 1, 1959: May Natural History Museum, Colorado Springs, Colorado.

1959-03-01

Weeki Wachee Collection, Hernando County Collection, RICHES.

image/jpg

4.08 MB

1-page typed letter

eng

Text

May Museum of the Tropics, Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, Weeki Wachee, Florida

Donation

History Teacher

Humanities Teacher

Originally created by Myrtle Colson and published by RICHES.

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

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

Rebecca Schwandt's Thesis Project

O'Neil, Rhiannon

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Ammidown, Margot. "Edens, Underworlds, and Shrines: Florida’s Small Tourist Attractions." The Journal of Decorative and Propaganda Arts 23, 1998, 238-259. Accessed November 9, 2018. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1504171?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents.

Georgiadis, Bonnie and Lu Vickers. Weeki Wachee mermaids: thirty years of underwater photography. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2012.

Hollis, Tim. Glass Bottom Boats &amp

Mermaid Tails: Florida's Tourist Springs. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2006.

Pelland, Maryan. Weeki Wachee Springs. Arcadia Publishing Inc, 2006. .

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

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