Preserving the past
By MCKENZIE CASSIDY, mcassidy@breezenewspapers.com
The Cape Coral Historical Museum offers city residents and historical enthusiasts the opportunity to learn about the history of the city dug out of raw land in 1957.
It was originally housed at the Cape Coral Country Club until 1977 when the museum was moved to the Four Freedoms Park. Almost 10 years later in 1983, it was moved to where it is today on Cultural Park.
Anne Cull, the curator of the museum, explained that even though the city has only been around for 50 years, it has a rich history that is displayed proudly at the historical museum.
“People are going to learn about the unique story about Cape Coral, even though it is a short time, it is very interesting,” said Cull. “Today, it couldn’t be repeated.”
The story of the city began in 1957 when two brothers from Maryland, Leonard and Jack Rosen, purchased land within the cit’ys boundaries for $678,000 from the owner of the company that put out Alka Seltzer. Residents first moved in in June 1958 and the following 50 years, the population has ballooned to approximately 165,000 people.
Years before the Rosen brothers developed Cape Coral, formerly known as Redfish Point, Cull said there were 12 homesteads on the land. The museum features a display showing the names of the people who took a homestead in the area, and the cracker house shows an old frontier-style home.
“We did a lot of research on the homesteads that were here prior to Cape Coral,” she said. “There were 12 and we have done research on eight of them. They were mostly cattle ranchers and farmers.”
Cape Coral’s historical museum is split into three buildings — the Gulf American Building, the Rosen Building and the newly dedicated Clint and Sue Kelly Building. It also has a gift shop and book store that offers books on local history.
Cull added that she is proud that the reference library at the museum, that keeps a record of all the organizations, clubs and city books since incorporation, is frequently visited by university students doing research.
Other exhibits showcase the famous Nautilus Inn where early residents of Cape Coral met and socialized. Today, it is the site of the Quality Inn, she said. The old inn had a restaurant called the Surf Side which she described as a great meeting place. They also show an office replica of the salesman who worked with the Rosen brothers on purchasing Cape Coral.
Many celebrities have visited Cape Coral, explained Cull, including Bob Hope. Also, the 1966 film “Fat Spy,” starring Phyllis Diller and Jack Leonard had many scenes filmed in the city.
“It has a lot of early footage of Cape Coral,” said Cull. “The old rose garden, they filmed quite a bit of that.”
The new Clint and Sue Kelly Building displays the history of the city including the police, fire department, the library, a story of the canals and even local newspapers such as the Cape Coral Daily Breeze. The new building also showcases the Kellys’ collection of Native American artifacts, tools, arrowheads and other items.
“His collection is not local but they are conducive to all Native Americans,” said Cull.
A mural near the artifacts shows a timeline of all the local Native American tribes and information on the Calusa and Seminole tribes. And nearby is a burrowing owl exhibit that introduces the community to the city’s official bird which continues to nest locally today.
“We had an opening (Thursday),” said Cull. “Everyone is so down by their finances, here we have a success and we are so happy to report it.”