Help Keep History Alive In Tampa Bay At 15th Annual Gala Friday Night

TAMPA, FL — For years it's shown its appreciation for Tampa by preserving its history. And now it's time for Tampa residents to show their appreciation to the Tampa Bay History Center by helping to raise funds to keep the center thriving.

Hosted by former Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio and her husband, Mark Woodard, the 15th annual Tampa Bay History Center Gala will take place Friday from 7 to 11 p.m. at the center, 801 Water St. in Water Street Tampa.

The gala is being presented in an “open cocktail party” format with no assigned seats, agenda or auctions, providing for an evening of socializing and networking among all sponsors and guests, including access to the center’s exhibit galleries, live music and meticulously prepared cuisine.

The gala supports the preservation of Tampa Bay's cultural heritage and the history center's education programs. Tickets for the gala start at $300. Click here.

With more than 100,000 annual visitors, the history center is one of Tampa’s premier cultural venues and an anchor of the city’s cultural arts district. The history center’s hands-on exhibit galleries, interactive exhibits, 90,000 historical artifacts, theaters, educational programs and community events offer an entertaining and educational experience for visitors and locals of all ages.

Located on the Tampa Riverwalk and open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the Tampa Bay History Center includes three floors of permanent and temporary exhibition space focusing on 12,000 years of Florida’s history and culture, the Touchton Map Library and Florida Center for Cartographic Education, and the Witt Research Center.

It is also home to the Columbia Cafe, a branch of the world-famous Columbia Restaurant, featuring signature Spanish-Cuban cuisine, a staple of Tampa’s iconic immigrant community of Ybor City.

The history center has a museum store, classrooms, temporary exhibition galleries and event rental spaces as well.

Founded in 1989 by the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners, the history center opened its new, 60,000-square-foot facility on Tampa’s Riverwalk in 2009.

Accredited in 2015 by the American Alliance of Museums and a Smithsonian affiliate museum since 2012, the history center's galleries allows visitors to take a look at Florida’s first residents, who inhabited the peninsula some 10,000 years ago, the arrival of European explorers in the 1500s, Tampa Bay’s modern role as a port city and the industrial capital of west-central Florida.

The Touchton Map Library and Florida Center for Cartographic Education is the only cartographic research center of its kind in the state, containing one of the most comprehensive collections of Florida cartography in the world with holdings spanning five centuries.

It features a regular schedule of changing exhibitions, and is open by appointment to researchers and students.

Its exhibit, "Cuban Pathways," which was on display until Feb. 11, was the recipient of the 2022 Southeastern Museums Conference Gold Exhibition Award, presented for showcasing the best regional exhibition in Southeastern museums. The exhibit led visitors through the 500-year story through the lenses of people whose labor, political crusades and search for refuge illustrate Cuba’s complex history.

“This is an incredible honor and recognizes our outstanding curatorial team,” said

C.J. Roberts, president and CEO of the Tampa Bay History Center, said Cuban Pathways was a testament to the creativity and detail of the center's curatorial team.

“'Cuban Pathways' took two years to develop and included more than 120 objects that told the stories of our community’s deep connections with the island nation," he said.

Roberts said expectations and standards were exceptionally high for the 2022 applicants for the Southeastern Museums' conference award. The competition received a record-breaking number of applications from a variety of museums across the Southeast. The competition recognizes exhibitions for overall excellence or for stretching the limits of content and design through innovation. Recipients of the awards were judged by an appointed jury of museum professionals across the region who specialize in curatorial studies and exhibition design.

More recently, the history center was recognized by the Hillsborough County Commission on Sept. 7 for its permanent exhibit, "Travails and Triumphs," that tells the 500-year story of how people of African descent have lived in the Tampa Bay area. Roberts and Fred Hearns, the center's curator of Black history, accepted the commendation.

Created by the staff at the Tampa Bay History Center and sponsored by Hillsborough County, TECO and the Tampa Bay Lightning, "Travails and Triumphs" chronicles hardships the Black community faced over the centuries, in addition to exploring achievements made by Black Tampa Bay area residents. The exhibition took three years to conceptualize, design and install, and it features over 100 objects on display.

"As we know, Black history is American history, and let me add American history is world history," said Hearns.

Especially popular with children who visit the center is the permanent exhibit, "Conquistadors, Pirates and Shipwrecks," featuring a 60-foot, 18th-century pirate ship as its centerpiece. The exhibit introduces visitors to the explorers who landed in “La Florida” more than 500 years ago as well as little-known pirates like “Calico” Jack Rackham and Anne Bonny, who prowled Florida’s coasts in the 1700s.

Artifacts in the exhibit, featured in the Treasure Seekers Gallery, date back to the 1600s andes include navigational tools, weaponry, pottery and other items recovered from Florida waters.

The center is especially proud of the fact that volunteers outnumber Tampa Bay History Center staff 2-1, and are the driving force behind the gallery experience.

"Our volunteers are the heart of the museum," said Nancy Dalence, director of education. "They greet, guide and share our history with locals and visitors. We could not operate without them. TBHC volunteers love our community and love our history. They want to spend their time in productive and fun ways. It’s easy, fun and rewarding."

Volunteer opportunities include:

• Tampa Bay History Center Education Department (docent, gallery guide, community outreach speaker, special events, special projects).
• Chinsegut Hill Historic Site in Brooksville (docent and greeters).
• Collections Department (limited availability).
• Administration (limited availability).
• Marketing Department (writing projects only).
• There are also volunteer opportunities for teens ages 15 and up.

Volunteers receive annual history and skills training with on-site training sessions, a chance to shadow experienced volunteers and self-study.

Volunteers also receive perks like free admission for volunteers and up to nine guests at a time, appreciation events, the volunteer newsletter, membership discounts in the museum store and discounts at the Columbia Restaurant. Click here.