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This exhibit explores agricultural enterprises as the foundation of non-indigenous settlement in the Everglades. From the Union-controlled pioneer farms feeding the garrison at Ft. Taylor to vegetable picking and packing operations that grew to serve the nation, the story of the area’s growth and development is synonymous with farming and food growing. As a part of this exhibit, the museum has partnered with the students and staff at Everglades City School to collect recipes and oral histories that explore the culinary aspects of the culture that evolved around the food that grew there naturally or was introduced and cultivated.
All Collier County Museum locations offer free admission.
The exhibition Wallace W. Abbey: A Life in Railroad Photography serves as a platform to present the life work of one of America’s most dynamic and lesser-known railroad photographers, Wallace W. Abbey. Abbey offers a full understanding of all aspects of railroading and delivers his visual ideas in an exciting presentation enjoyable to the railroading community and the general public alike. Abbey’s unique roles with Trains and later the SOO Line as a photographer, journalist, historian, and railroad industry executive allowed him to capture often overlooked perspectives spanning primarily from the 1940s through the 1970s. He witnessed and photographed the sweeping changes in the railroad industry following the shift from steam to diesel locomotives, and showcased the transformation of transportation and photography after World War II.
All Collier County Museum locations offer free admission.
Photographers have taken to the air over Collier County for almost a century. Viewed from Above displays some of the aerial photos that have been preserved in the collection of the Collier County Museums. Airbourne photographers captured the unique landscape of Southwest Florida from a vantage point that many of us never see. Captured from above, changes to the landscapes and towns of our county are documented over time, showing us how places have changed or stayed the same over the years. The exhibit also contains contemporary drone photography to provide a “then and now” comparison of some of the historic landscapes and landmarks of Collier County.
All Collier County Museum locations offer free admission.
Saloma Olds grew up on Marco Island between 1902 and 1924. As a teenager she was a photographer and diarist. Come see Marco Island through the eyes of a pioneer girl in her teens. Learn how she developed film at the edge of civilization and admire the beautiful images she composed.
All Collier County Museum locations offer free admission.
This exhibit explores the little-known story of the Bracero Program, the largest guest worker program in US history. Between 1942 and 1964, millions of Mexican men came to the US on short-term labor contracts. This bilingual exhibit explores the experiences of the workers and their families. “Bittersweet Harvest: The Bracero Program” was organized by the National Museum of American History in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, and received federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center. All photographs by Leonard Nadal.
All Collier County Museum locations offer free admission.