JHS 450th exhibit and 15 others honored by Preservation Commission
Jacksonville Historical Society was honored by the Jacksonville Historic Preservation Commission on May 7 for outstanding achievement in heritage education. More specifically, the society was recognized for its June 2014 […]
A Remarkable Gift: Delores Barr Weaver’s grant in perpetuity begins in 2015
Delores Barr Weaver recently announced a remarkable gift to the Jacksonville Historical Society and 19 other area organizations. Beginning in 2015, the society along with the other non-profit groups will […]
The glories of a Jacksonville winter…black history month and the physical reminders of the past…
A spectacular North Florida February reminds us of the glories of “wintering” in Jacksonville. As Jacksonville residents, warm wintery days often take center stage when analyzing area history. This current […]
A Different Kind of Gingerbread House
This December, as the Jacksonville Historical Society celebrates its 13th annual Gingerbread Extravaganza, we’re reminded of one of the most elaborately decorated homes ever built in Jacksonville—one whose extravagant, exuberant […]
If you want to be historically accurate this holiday, serve alligator
In the autumn of 1621, in celebration of their first successful corn harvest, the Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony hunted wildfowl and held a feast that was attended by local members […]
Is This the Most Famous Photo in Jacksonville History?
It was interesting to watch people’s reactions as they looked up at the photo on the banner hanging outside The Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens touting a current exhibit: […]
Liberty Ships
The circumstances were grim. The year was 1941. War raged only an ocean away. The country and the citizens rallied in an unparalleled effort. In a four-year span, at eighteen […]
The Forgotten Village of Silvertown
Silvertown was a curious real estate development, appearing on the 1887 LeBaron Map of Jacksonville as a small rectangular subdivision immediately to the west of Riverside, which at that time […]
Martha Reed Mitchell: Putting the D in Doyenne
A doyenne is a woman considered to be the senior, or most prominent, member of a group. In the highest social echelons of late nineteenth-century Jacksonville, that woman was Martha […]
Jacksonville’s own Blue Angels
At the end of World War II, Adm. Chester W. Nimitz, the Chief of Naval Operations, ordered the formation of a flight demonstration team to keep the public interested in […]