Anna Maria Island, Longboat Key, Lakewood Ranch and Bradenton proudly portray their rich heritage in local Florida museums. For a real-life, working museum of the area's maritime history, wander around Cortez Historic Fishing Village. Learn about the Gulf Islands' archaeology and paleontology and meet SnootyTM, the oldest living manatee born in captivity, at the South Florida Museum. Smell the gunpowder and get lost in the past during a live Civil War reenactment at Gamble Plantation Historic State Park, a former antebellum sugar plantation in Ellenton.

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Museums & History