Exploring Historic Manatee County,
Florida
Manatee
County’s rich history is commemorated and preserved through informative
landmarks, fascinating re-enactments and a multitude of restoration projects.
One such landmark, Madira Bickel Mound State Archaeological Site, has the
distinction of marking the site of the county’s earliest inhabitants; digs at
this ceremonial Indian mound have unearthed artifacts dating from the Christian
era up until the arrival of the Spanish in the mid-1500s
Bradenton’s
DeSoto National Memorial memorializes the
1539 landing of legendary Spanish explorer Hernando Desoto. Park rangers at
this popular tourist destination recreate the living conditions Desoto and his
fellow explorers experienced while camping along the shoreline. Other
attractions at the park include a nature trail that takes visitors along a
winding path through a mangrove swamp and a display of artifacts dating to the
Southeastern Temple Mound Builders, a civilization that appears to have
vanished once the Europeans arrived in the region.
Manatee
Village Historical Park is home to seven historical architectural efforts,
carefully preserved by the County Historical Commission. In addition to the
county’s first court house, there’s also a rustic home in the “Cracker Gothic” style, a church dating to 1889, a
single-room school house, a barn and smokehouse reproduced in the style of the
1800s, a mercantile and a sugar-cane mill.
The oldest
of Manatee County’s buildings dates to 1844. Major Robert Gamble, an officer
whose skills were put to the test during the Seminole Wars, built this historic
mansion, which is now operated under the watchful eye of the Florida Parks
Service. Furnished with antiques and period décor, it sits majestically within
the 16-acre park that is known as the Gamble Plantation, once one of the
country’s most prosperous sugarcane plantations and the only remaining such
plantation in all of Florida.
Heritage
Park, located within the history-laden city of Palmetto, offers visitors an
opportunity to experience the bygone days of yesteryear. Lush greenery,
brick-lined pathways, sculpted wrought iron fences and even an authentic 19th
century post office make this beautiful historical park – and the adjacent
Carnegie Library, which documents much of the region’s history – must-sees for
visitors and newcomers.
This
pathfinder is an attempt to guide the user through the resources of the Manatee
County Central Public Library, with an emphasis on The Elizabeth Eaton Florida
History Reading Room. A trip to the
Central Library is a must as there are many documents and photographs displayed
in the Eaton Room, that are not available anywhere else in the world. Especially noteworthy is a City of Palmetto
scrapbook of its’ 1965 Centennial Celebration.
The
subject headings listed below are the general headings that can be used when
searching Manatee County On-Line Catalog, WorldCat and also for internet search
engines. The Dewey Decimal call sign for
Manatee County History is 975.962.
Manatee
County –History.
Myakka
City (Fla.) -- History.
Palmetto
(Fla.) -- History.
Bradenton
(Fla.).
Anna
Maria Island (Fla.) -- History.
Duette
(Fla.) -- History.
Terra
Ceia (Fla.) -- History.
Ellenton
(Fla.) -- History.
Parrish
(Fla.) -- History.
Cortez
(Fla.) – History.
Many
books have been published detailing the history of Manatee County, but most of
them detail the individual communities spread throughout the County.
Abel, R. E. (1967). One hundred years in Palmetto; History of
Palmetto, Florida, 1868-1968. Palmetto, Fla: Palmetto Centennial
Association.
Anderson, R. (1981). Manatee County historical markers and
locations. Bradenton, Fla: Manatee County Historical Commission.
Chancey, P. K. (1993). A history of Duette and area schools.
S.l: s.n.
Green, M. F., & Molto, L. (1997). Cortez-then and now.
[Fla.?]: The Society.
Harlee, S. S. (1969). History of agriculture in Manatee County.
King, C. D. (1979). A tour of the historic old village of
Manatee.
Liddle, C., & Frost, J. A. (1936). Brief history of Manatee
County. S.l: s.n.
Pinardi, N. J. (1980). The plant pioneers: The story of the
Reasoner family, pioneer Florida horticulturists and their nursery.
Torrington, Conn: Rainbow Press.
Robbins, H. E. (1930). History of Braden Castle, Florida: A
soliloquy by the old castle in history and romance, a true story. S.l: s.n.
Schofield, A. C. (1975). Yesterday's Bradenton, including
Manatee County. Miami, Fla: E.A. Seemann Pub.
The history, development, accomplishments and programs of the
Agricultural Research and Education Center, Bradenton, Florida 1925-1982.
(1982). Gainesville, Fla: IFAS, Univ. of Fla.
Warner, J. G. (1980). Biscuits and 'taters: A history of cattle
ranching in Manatee County. St. Petersburg, Fla: Great Outdoors Pub.
A
few of the more interesting people of Manatee County are in the books listed
below.
Hastings, J. R. (1977). The Reasoner brothers: Florida's
pioneer nurserymen. [Sherman, Tex.]: E.H. Gillespie.
McClure, R., Stern, D. and Banks, M. A., (2006). Crosley: two brothers and a business empire
that transformed the nation. Cincinnati, OH: Clerisy Press.
Osborne, R. M. W. (1987). Pioneer days and Wiggins history: A
brief history of the Wiggins family who came to Manatee County, Florida about
1890.
Pinardi, N. J. (1980). The plant pioneers: The story of the
Reasoner family, pioneer Florida horticulturists and their nursery.
Torrington, Conn: Rainbow Press.
The
Eaton Room has numerous maps and aerial photography of Manatee County
throughout the years. The collection
includes:
·
Sectional
Maps
·
Plat
Books
·
Sea
Maps/Coast Charts
·
Land
Atlases
·
Street
Maps
The
following is a list of periodicals that are available in the Eaton Room.
Many
of these have not been published for years, but would be quite
appropriate
for learning about the history of Manatee County and its’ people.
AASLH,
booklets from the American Association for State and Local History
AcMc,
newsletter of the Arts Council of Manatee County
Battlecry,
a Civil War newsletter
Board
of County Commissioners meetings
Broward
Legacy
Business
Sarasota / Manatee (name varies over the years)
Calendars
(duplicates)
Calusa
News
Citrus
Industry
City
Tempo, Sarasota
Contributions
of the Florida State Museum 1956-1969 (#1 - #15)
Current,
Manatee County Chamber of Commerce
DeSoto
Celebration Booklets
Drummer’s
Roll, a Civil War newsletter
Economic
View of S.W. Florida 2000 –
Enterprise,
Manatee County Chamber of Commerce, 1986 – 1993
Florida
Anthropologist
Florida
Anthropological Society Newsletter
Florida
Frontier Gazette
Florida
Heritage
Florida
Historical Quarterly
Florida
Historical Society Report
Florida
Living / Florida Monthly
Florida
Municipal Record 1983-1986
Florida
Preservation News
Florida
Preservationist
Florida
Public Documents
Florida
Trend
Forum
La
Guia del Golfo
History
and the Arts
History
News
Hurricane
Andrew (clippings)
Image
Journeys
for the Junior Historian, Fla. Historical Society
Kiplinger’s
Florida Business Letter
Manatee
(box of miscellaneous titles)
Manatee
County Employees Newsletter
Manatee
County Historical Commission papers
Manatee
River Soil and Water Conservation District newsletters
Manatee
Voter, League of Women Voters
Medical
Care in Manatee County (booklets)
New
Business 1983-1988
Night
Heron, Audubon Society
Polk
County Historical Quarterly
Port
Manatee (booklets)
Poopdeck,
Bradenton Yacht Club
Quality
Cities (formerly Florida Municipal Record)
Rancher,
Florida Sheriff’s Association
Real
Florida
Red
Cross
Sarasota
1998-2001
Sarasota
Jazz Sounds
See
Bradenton 1981-1990
Sheriff’s
Star
Soto
States Anthropologist
South
Florida History
Sunland
Tribune *
Tampa
Bay History*
Tequesta
Tampa
Bay Regional Planning Council (booklets)
Time
Sifters Anthropological Society
Tropicana
(booklets)
La
Voz Hispano
Water
Matters, South West Florida Water Management District
Yesterday
in Florida
Local Newspapers on
the Eaton Room Periodical Shelves
Anna
Maria Island Sun
East
County Observer
Gulf
Coast Business Review
Islander
(Anna Maria Island)
Longboat
Key News
Longboat
Observer
Manatee
River News
Morning
Call (bound)
North
River News
Parrish
Village News
Tempo
Most
of the guides and handbooks available are of a more recent vintage, however
they do include historical locations and information.
·
Bradenton
and Manatee County Visitors Guide 1937-1938, Commonwealth Press.
·
Bradenton
Herald. (1995) The insiders’ guide to Sarasota and Bradenton. Bradenton, FL:
Bradenton Herald.
·
The
Manatee County Handbook: warm welcome to Florida. (1990).
Bradenton, Fla. : Vreman Publications.
There are many
sites on the internet for some of the most historic places in Manatee County.
·
National
Park Service, Department of the Interior, DeSoto National Memorial, Bradenton,
FL.
·
Florida
Online Park Guide, Florida State Parks, Gamble Plantation Historic State Park.
http://www.floridastateparks.org/gambleplantation/
·
Manatee
County Water Atlas, an edition of WaterAtlas.org.
http://www.manatee.wateratlas.usf.edu/history/
·
Manatee
County Public Library Historical Photograph Collection
http://www.lib.usf.edu/public/index.cfm?Pg=ManateeCountyPublicLibraryHistoricPhotographCollection
·
Manatee
Village Historical Park Official Website
http://www.manateeclerk.com/ClerkServices/HisVill/mchvillage.htm
·
National
Register of Historic Places –Florida (FL), Manatee County
http://www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/FL/Manatee/state.html
·
Palmetto
Historical Park Village
http://www.clerkofcourts.com/ClerkServices/HisVill/palmetto_park.htm
·
Cortez
Village Historical Society, Cortez, FL
http://cortezvillage.org/default.aspx
This Page created
by Vickie Pollock
School of Library
and Information Science
University of South
Florida
Last updated on
December 2, 2008
e-mail:
vptravel@aol.com