Overview

Mission
HistoryMiami connects people by telling the stories of Miami ‘s communities, individuals, places and events.

Vision
HistoryMiami will be recognized as the leading institution in gathering, organizing, preserving and celebrating Miami‘s history. Our impact will be seen in the public‘s understanding of the importance of the people, places and events of the past in shaping Miami‘s future.

History
Research, education and collection began with the founding of the Historical Association of Southern Florida in 1940 and nonprofit incorporation in 1941. During the 1960s, the creation of permanent staff positions saw the development of collections policies and increased education, exhibition and outreach programs in line with its mission. The association opened the Historical Museum of Southern Florida in 1962, its first museum. Ten years later the Historical Museum moved to a larger facility and expanded its educational programs. In 1976, the Miami-Dade County Commission invited the museum to be a major tenant in the planned Miami­-Dade Cultural Center in downtown Miami, funded by a $40 million “Decade of Progress” Bond Issue.

In 1984, the Historical Museum of Southern Florida moved into its third home, an imposing, Spanish fortress-like structure, itself a reflection of the South Florida and Caribbean history it would hold. Designed by world-renowned architect Phillip Johnson, the then forty-year old organization, one of the oldest cultural institutions in Miami, occupied a third of the new Miami-Dade Cultural Center, and the remainder two-thirds housed the Miami-Dade Main Public Library and Miami Art Museum.

Contributions ranged from local school board funds to federal grants, including the National Endowment of the Arts, and from local arts philanthropist Mitchell Wolfson Jr., heir of Wometco Enterprises. Object donations also flooded in, including a complete double elephant folio edition of John James Audubon’s The Birds of America.

On April 29th, 2010 the Historical Museum of Southern Florida was renamed to HistoryMiami. HistoryMiami is the premier cultural institution committed to gathering, organizing, preserving and celebrating Miami’s history as the unique crossroads of the Americas. Through exhibitions, city tours, education, research, collections and publications, HistoryMiami advocates for helping everyone understand the importance of the past in shaping Miami‘s future.

Top