Kids & Teens

Library Online Resources

Student Edition K-12 »

Students can use this fun and easy database to search Florida history topics. Search articles about Henry Flagler, Kennedy Space Center, Florida hurricanes, and much more.

Library Materials

Fabulous Florida Fiction for Youth »

Grab a great Florida read. You are sure to find a favorite.

Florida History for Kids »

Read about Florida's fascinating past. Learn about the discovery of Florida, it's first pioneers, industries, tourism, and modern advancements.

Websites

Exploring Florida: A Social Studies Resource for Students and Teachers »

Take a look at Florida Then & Now to learn about the Timucua, the Seminole Wars, and the growth of Florida's railroads with reproducible passages, FCAT style questions, and activity sheets. Search Floripedia for articles about Florida arranged alphabetically, encyclopedia style.

Florida Senate Kids »

Learn about the Florida Legislature, how a bill becomes a law, and much more at this informative site for kids. You will find interesting facts about our state as well as fun puzzles and games.

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Websites

Florida Association of Museums »

Search the database for museums in Florida. Search by region to find local history museums that you can visit for a field trip or a weekend afternoon, such as the Fort Christmas Historical Park and Museum and the Central Florida Railroad Museum.

Florida Department of State's Division of Historical Resources »

Read about the contributions to Florida history by African Americans, Cubans, French, Jewish, Native Americans, Spanish and Women throughout the ages with the online and printable Heritage Trails Series. Find Florida Historical markers for the areas you are traveling to or passing through.

Florida Memory Project »

Search for Florida photographs, history highlights, and digital collections from the State Library and Archives of Florida.

Florida Scenic Highways »

Discover new places to go with this online guide to scenic highways and byways in Florida. Take the Green Mountain Byway and see rolling hills and historic houses 20 miles west of Orlando. Check out this and more at the Florida Department of Transportation website.

Museum of Florida History »

The Museum of Florida History explores Florida's people and events through artifacts, permanent exhibits, visiting exhibits, Florida home grown traveling exhibits, and interpretation of evidence of past and present Floridian cultures.

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Library Online Resources

Biography in Context »

Use this database to search for concise biographies of notable people in Florida history.

Great Events From History »

Explore this database to learn more about notable people, places, and events in Florida history.

HeritageQuest Online »

Explore your own Florida heritage in this genealogy database. There are also thousands of full-text history books that you can search by keyword.

Meet the Author Videos

Get a unique perspective on Florida by viewing our Meet the Author interviews with these Central Florida Reads authors:

• Patrick Smith, A Land Remembered
• Connie May Fowler, Before Women Had Wings
• Bill Belleville, River of Lakes
• Les Standiford, Last Train to Paradise

Native Americans: History and Culture of Florida Tribes Virtual Gallery »

Resources for students and educators on Florida's first residents.

South East Regional Newspapers »

Newspapers often have special retrospective articles on local history and culture. Pick which Florida newspapers you want to search and get full-text articles. Or you can get a local overview by searching the Orlando Sentinel back to 1985.

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Library Materials

The Florida Collection »

On the Fourth Floor of the Main Library in downtown Orlando we have a special section called the Florida Collection. This is a reference collection that focuses solely on Florida. There are many older books about different communities and cultures of Florida. We also have the Orlando Sentinel on microfilm from 1911 to present!

Florida Food »

Eat like you live here with this collection of cookbooks.

Florida Historic Buildings »

Learn about Florida's traditional and historic buildings. Some of them are right here in Orange County.

Florida History and Culture Series »

Read the Florida History and Culture Series published by the University Press of Florida and get a new perspective on Florida history.

Florida Life and Customs »

Discover the customs of the Calusa Indians, journey back to the time of Florida Crackers, or read about Florida's modern curiosities.

Florida Remembered »

Read anecdotes and tales from the lives of Floridians that lived them.

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Florida Cracker House

Get to know the parts and history of Florida Cracker houses, a symbol of Old Florida.

• Tropic of Cracker by Al Burt
• Tellable Cracker Tales by Annette J. Bruce
• Cracker Florida: Some Lives and Times by Ray Washington
• Cracker Times and Pioneer Lives: the Florida Reminiscences of George Gillett and Sarah Pamela Williams by George Gillett Keen
• Cracker: the Cracker Culture in Florida History by Dana Ste. Claire
• Cracker Florida's Enduring Cowboys, a Photographic Tribute by Jon Kral
• Florida's Antebellum Homes by Lewis N. Wynne and John T. Parks.
• Crackers in the Glade: Life and Times in the Old Everglades by Rob Sorter
• Classic Cracker: Florida's Classic Wood-Frame Vernacular Architecture by Ronald W. Haase

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Social

Central Florida Memory »

Enjoy digital collections, Florida stories, and a section for teachers about Central Florida history. The project is made possible though the cooperative efforts of the Orange County Library System, the Orange County Regional History Center, University of Central Florida, Rollins College, and the Museum of Seminole County History.

Orlando Memory Project »

Participate in this local history project by uploading your own pictures and stories about life in Orlando. Everyone has a story to tell and this is a unique opportunity to share your memories about Orlando.

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