First Floor

• Icons of Tampa Bay Suspended from the Lykes Atrium ceiling, these 14 colorful icons represent the distinctive nature and uniqueness of the region.

• Winds of Change Theater profiles the first European contacts in Florida beginning with Panfilo Narváez’s landing near Tampa Bay in 1528.

• Florida’s First People features Tocobaga and Calusa artifacts, including tools, weapons and pottery, as well as original artwork by artist Theodore Morris.

• European Exploration details the arrival of Spanish and French explorers who landed in Florida at the beginning the 16th century.

• Charles E. Knight Gallery showcases Seminole and Miccosukee clothing, patchwork, jewelry, baskets, tools and a replica chickee.

• Coacoochee’s Story Theater immerses viewers in the riveting account of Seminole Chief Coacoochee’s experiences during the Second Seminole War.

• Cigar City chronicles Tampa's cigar industry and immigrant communities while featuring one of the most extensive cigar memorabilia collections in the world.

Second Floor

• Your Tampa Bay allows visitors to take a virtual tour of significant landmarks and view historic photographs around the Tampa Bay region via an interactive map.

• Cowmen & Crackers showcases Florida’s cattle ranching history, putting viewers in the middle of an actual cattle drive.

• Tampa Bay Timeline features a series of large panels with compelling photographs, renderings and artifacts, covering the past 500 years of history in our region.

• A Place of Our Own provides historical background about the region in kid-friendly and interactive ways.

• Year-Round Play highlights the area’s recreational and social activities, including a sports trivia board and a crewing scull to row up the Hillsborough River.

• Witness to Change examines significant events that were catalysts for change in the Tampa Bay region, focusing on civil rights, urban development, and the natural environment.

• War Stories focuses on participants or those serving on the home front in the wars that have touched our state and region since the 1830s.

• A Land Remembered, inspired by Patrick Smith’s novel by the same name, this area includes a replica pioneer cabin, original artifacts, and a hands-on Discovery Center.

• Touchton Map Gallery is a changing exhibition space that focuses on maps and related cartographic materials.

Third Floor

The 2,800-square-foot Third Floor Gallery houses a rotating schedule of exhibitions. 

On July 10th, the History Center will open Obscured By Time: The Magic of Florida, featuring the Art of Hermann Trappman, an exhibition that will detail the natural history of Florida through Trappman's compelling paintings, artifact replicas and examples of the resources utilized by ancient Native Americans. 

Obscured By Time offers a glimpse of early Florida, its native peoples and geography prior to European contact in the 1500s.  A self-taught artist, Trappman's work explores the life of Florida's early peoples and is based on artifacts, fossils and other archeological evidence found along the shores of Florida.

This exhibition will remain in the Third Floor Gallery through September 26th and is included with regular admission.