Exhibits That Tell a Living Story
The Museum of the Everglades is designed to tell a story of continuity—of people living with, not against, the wilderness. Its exhibits trace the history of human settlement from prehistoric Native American cultures to the development of modern communities.Native Roots: The First Inhabitants
The museum’s early galleries explore the Calusa and Miccosukee peoples, whose presence in the Everglades predates European exploration by centuries. Artifacts such as shell tools, pottery fragments, and carvings reveal sophisticated societies that adapted ingeniously to the aquatic environment. The museum contextualizes their relationship with nature—not as conquerors but as stewards of balance.
Frontier Settlers and the Rise of Everglades City
The next chapters showcase the pioneers who arrived during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These settlers—farmers, hunters, trappers, and fishermen—faced extreme isolation and harsh living conditions. Their homes were built on stilts, their livelihoods dependent on tides and weather. Photographs, letters, and household items bring these early lives vividly to light, while oral histories record the voices of their descendants who still reside in the region.
The Collier Era and the Building of the Tamiami Trail
Central to the museum’s story is the Tamiami Trail, a 275-mile engineering marvel completed in 1928 under the vision of Barron Collier. Exhibits display construction tools, blueprints, and rare photographs that depict workers battling mosquitoes, floods, and heat to carve a highway through the wilderness. The museum honors this achievement while also acknowledging the environmental consequences it brought to the fragile ecosystem. shutdown123