We’re going back to the legendary mermaid attraction, Weeki Wachee Springs! In this episode, host Laura von Holt interviews emerging museum historian, Rebecca Schwandt, about her project, The Women of Weeki Wachee Springs State Park, an online exhibit of artifacts and oral history about the experiences and history of the mermaid performers who have worked at Weeki Wachee over the decades. Rebecca shares what she discovered about the fascinating intersection of Florida history, women’s history, labor rights, environmentalism, and American roadside attractions...plus plenty of surprises that happened while cataloguing pieces of Weeki Wachee’s seventy year history.
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Important Links:
- View the online exhibit at University of Central Florida’s RICHES website: https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka/exhibits/show/the-women-of-weeki-wachee-spri?fbclid=IwAR3y049AZ6KhRE6ZtNvIGO6T7cjxA0V9Ws69ewI0ruLP47Pl0naSdn9WPAo
- Some highlights of the exhibit, as discussed in the podcast:
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- Florence McNabb: https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka/exhibits/show/the-women-of-weeki-wachee-spri/item/11153
- Beetle at May Museum of the Tropics: https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka/items/show/11186
- Trained racoon at Weeki Wachee Springs: https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka/items/show/10475
- Mermaids pose on the original shell roof of The Mermaid Theater:https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/ome: ka/items/show/11191
- Read more books by Laura Lovely: lauralovelybooks.com
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