Florida Historical Society Transferring Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science Management to City of Cocoa

Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science was conceived in 1969 and opened in 1973

WATCH: The Florida Historical Society is located at 435 Brevard Avenue in Cocoa. The Florida Historical Society saved the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science from imminent closure when they took over management of the facility in September 2014.

BREVARD COUNTY • COCOA, FLORIDA – The Florida Historical Society is transferring management of the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science to the City of Cocoa, effective March 1.

Located at 2201 Michigan Avenue in Cocoa, the museum has exhibits exploring local and state history and culture from the Ice Age to the Space Age. The museum sits on a 22-acre nature preserve with trails winding through several Florida ecosystems.

The Florida Historical Society saved the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science from imminent closure when they took over management of the facility in September 2014.

While the Florida Historical Society owns the museum collections, the City of Cocoa owns the property and museum buildings. The Florida Historical Society is gifting the museum collections to the City of Cocoa as part of the transfer of management and termination of their lease agreement with the city.

The Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science has been significantly improved under the leadership of the Florida Historical Society.

The centerpiece of the museum, “The People of Windover” exhibit, was expanded to include actual artifacts used by local residents between 7,000 and 8,000 years ago, an interactive archaeology lab space to augment the recreated excavation, a video component, and an incredibly lifelike sculpture of a Windover Woman created using forensic reconstruction techniques.

New displays include the large exhibit “The Hubble Space Telescope: Eye on the Universe” provided by the Kennedy Space Center. Existing displays have been refreshed and refurbished.

Two new rotating exhibit spaces have been added, allowing for the display of significant touring exhibitions such as “Viva Florida: Florida Before Statehood” and “Beaches, Creatures, and Cowboys: Florida Movie Posters”; and new original temporary exhibits including “The Apollo Journey: Birth of the Space Coast” and “Stetson Kennedy’s Multicultural Florida.”

The annual Florida Frontiers Festival, which was canceled due to COVID-19 in 2020, brought diverse Florida musicians, artists, and vendors to the museum grounds each year.

The Florida Historical Society Archaeological Institute provided a variety of public presentations at the museum, serving local residents and attracting visitors from throughout the state and around the world.

The Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science was conceived in 1969 and opened in 1973.

The Florida Historical Society is working with the City of Cocoa staff to facilitate a smooth transition of management, to keep the Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science open and available to the public.

DEDICATED TO PRESERVING FLORIDA’S PAST

Established in 1856, the Florida Historical Society is dedicated to preserving Florida’s past through the collection and archival maintenance of historical documents and photographs, the publication of scholarly research on Florida history, and educating the public about Florida history through a variety of public history projects.

The Society maintains an extensive archive at the Library of Florida History, publishes books through the Florida Historical Society Press, manages the Historic Rossetter House Museum and Gardens, and operates the Florida Historical Society Archaeological Institute.

The Florida Historical Society produces Florida Frontiers: The Weekly Radio Magazine of the Florida Historical Society which airs on NPR affiliates throughout the state, and the public television series Florida Frontiers.

The organization also maintains a content-rich website at MyFloridaHistory.org and a dynamic Facebook page with more than 27,000 daily followers at “Florida Historical Society.”

The Public History Forum is held in a different location in May each year featuring round table discussions, tours of historic sites, awards and more.

The Annual Meeting and Symposium is held at the University of Central Florida each October, featuring paper presentations and academic conversations.

Other educational outreach projects and programs include active participation in events and festivals throughout the state, frequent public talks on a variety of subjects, workshops for teachers and students, history-based theatrical presentations, exhibits and much more.

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