HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA INC
65 E CENTRAL BLVD, ORLANDO, FL 32801 thehistorycenter.org

---

Organizations Filed Purposes: THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA, INC. EXISTS TO SUPPORT THE MISSION AND PROGRAMS OF THE ORANGE COUNTY REGIONAL HISTORY CENTER. OUR MISSION STATEMENT IS AS FOLLOWS: TO SERVE AS A GATEWAY FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, EDUCATION, AND INSPIRATION BY PRESERVING AND SHARING CENTRAL FLORIDA'S CONTINUALLY UNFOLDING STORY.

EXHIBITS: THE HISTORY CENTER'S THREE FLOORS OF PERMANENT EXHIBITS EXPLORE OVER 15,000 YEARS OF CENTRAL FLORIDA HISTORY, FROM PRE-HISTORY WHEN FLORIDA WAS DEVOID OF HUMAN POPULATION TO TODAY. THE EXHIBITS HIGHLIGHT THE TREMENDOUS GROWTH OF THE AREA OVER THE PAST 200 YEARS, HIGHLIGHTING THE FACT THAT CENTRAL FLORIDA HAS A RICH HISTORY FROM LONG BEFORE IT BECAME AN INTERNATIONAL TOURIST DESTINATION. STORYLINES INCLUDE INFORMATION ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT, EARLY PEOPLES, THE SEMINOLES, PIONEER SETTLERS, AND THE HISTORY OF CITRUS AND ITS SUBSTANTIAL IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY'S GROWTH. THE ROLE OF TOURISM IN THE BUILDING OF THE ECONOMY IS EXPLORED, AS TOURISTS BEGAN ARRIVING IN CENTRAL FLORIDA OVER 100 YEARS AGO. REAL ESTATE BOOMS AND BUSTS ARE OUTLINED, AS ARE THE IMPACT OF WORLD WAR II AND THE AFTERMATH. FINALLY, THE EXHIBITS HIGHLIGHT CENTRAL FLORIDA TODAY, INCLUDING THE RISE OF THE AREA AS A TOURIST DESTINATION AND THE RE-MAKING OF ORLANDO AS AN INTERNATIONAL CITY.

EDUCATION: THE HISTORY CENTER OFFERS A VARIETY OF PROGRAMMING FOR SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN, AS WELL AS PROGRAMMING AND EVENTS FOR FAMILIES AND ADULTS. THE HISTORY CENTER HAS A VARIETY OF SCHOOL TOURS FOR PUBLIC, PRIVATE, AND HOME SCHOOL GROUPS. IN 2018 WE HOSTED OVER 14,000 STUDENTS FOR OUR SCHOOL TOURS. WE OFFER PROGRAMMING FOR ALL AGE GROUPS, BUT CONCENTRATE ON 4TH GRADE, WHEN FLORIDA HISTORY IS TAUGHT. A VARIETY OF PUBLIC PROGRAMMING EVENTS ARE ALSO SCHEDULED REGULARLY, INCLUDING FILM SCREENINGS, AUTHOR TALKS, AND COLLECTIONS TUTORIALS. THE HISTORY CENTER OFFERS FREE FAMILY DAYS ON WEEKENDS ONCE EACH MONTH, WITH ACTIVITIES THROUGHOUT THE BUILDING FOR CHILDREN.

COLLECTIONS AND RESEARCH: THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OWNS THE COLLECTION OF HISTORICAL ARTIFACTS USED TO SUPPORT THE EXHIBITS IN THE HISTORY CENTER. THIS COLLECTION CONTAINS OVER 75,000 THREE-DIMENSIONAL ITEMS, OVER 15,000 HISTORIC POSTCARDS, AND OVER 10,000 HISTORIC PHOTOGRAPHS. IT ALSO HAS OVER 650,000 RUNNING FEET OF LOCAL TELEVISION NEWS COVERAGE FROM THE 1950S THROUGH THE EARLY 1980S. THIS FILM HAS NOT BEEN CATALOGUED, AND WHILE IT IS SAFELY STORED IN OUR CLIMATE CONTROLLED WAREHOUSE, IT IS SLOWLY DEGRADING AND IN DESPERATE NEED OF DIGITIZATION, SO THAT WE CAN SAVE THE IMPORTANT STORIES WE KNOW ARE IN THE FILM, INCLUDING THE STORY OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS STRUGGLE IN CENTRAL FLORIDA, THE BUILDING AND EARLY DAYS OF DISNEY WORLD, AND THE RISE OF NASA AND THE HISTORY OF ROCKET FLIGHT DURING THAT TIME. THE HISTORY CENTER HAS A RESEARCH LIBRARY AND A DEDICATED LIBRARIAN WHO COMPLETES RESEARCH WORK FOR THE PUBLIC. STAFF WORK TO MAINTAIN THE MASSIVE COLLECTION AND KEEP IT CATALOGUED AND STORED IN ACID FREE BOXES AND PAPER AT ALL TIMES.

---

---

Data for this page was sourced from XML published by IRS (public 990 form dataset) from: https://s3.amazonaws.com/irs-form-990/202011719349300701_public.xml