South Florida Museum and Bishop Planetarium

The South Florida Museum is the largest natural and cultural history museum on Florida´s Gulf Coast.  The Museum, located on 10^th Street in Bradenton, just north of Sarasota.  The Museum offers visitors the fascinating history of Florida, from the prehistoric to the present.

The South Florida Museum presents life-sized casts of Ice Age mammals native to Southwest Florida 12,000 years ago, realistic dioramas, and fossil exhibits that show how the state´s geography came to be.  Exhibits at the Museum also describe the first people to live in Florida and the variety of animal life that has inhabited the state through the centuries. 

The Mastodon exhibit features a cast of the largest Mastodon ever found in North America, which stands at over 19 feet high and has tusks over 9 feet long.  The Bison and Paleoindian diorama exhibits a bison modeled after those that inhabited Florida 10,000 years ago during the Pleistocene era, and Palieoindians, the first inhabitants of Florida.  Another exhibit shows the teeth of a Carcharodon megalodon, an ancestor of the great white shark, which grew to 50 feet in length and had teeth up to seven inches long.

An exhibit on Archaic Man features how humans lived between 9,500 years ago and 2,500 years ago, including Early, Middle, and Late Archaic people.  Visitors have the opportunity to see tools that were used in the Archaic Man´s daily life and to play a game of tool roulette.  The Tallant Collection at the Museum is the most comprehensive collection of artifacts gathered from Florida´s archeological sites.  Artifacts date back to the arrival of Spanish explorers in Florida, over 500 years ago.  The Museum´s Spanish Plaza features a recreation of Spain of the 16^th century, including a replica of a chapel from that time period.  The Museum´s East Gallery features changing exhibits, including presentations of the works of local and worldwide artists.

The Bishop Planetarium at the South Florida Museum is a digital full-dome planetarium and theater that features educational presentations on astronomy, engaging sound and light shows, and programming in a large, wide-screen format.  The Planetarium hosts live music and lectures, and can be reserved for private gatherings; more information about the Bishop Planetarium is available at http://www.southfloridamuseum.org/planetarium/default.html, or by calling (941) 746-4131.

Also on site is the Parker Manatee Aquarium, home of the world´s most recognized manatee, "Snooty," who has been in residence at the South Florida Museum since 1949.  Manatee viewing and educational programs at the Aquarium can be experienced by Museum visitors at 11:15 a.m., 12:45 p.m., 2:15 p.m., and 3:40 p.m. during regular Museum hours.

South Florida Museum and Bishop Planetarium are open daily from January through April and during July, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from noon to 5:00 p.m. Sunday.  From May through June and August through December, the facilities are closed on Mondays.  The Museum and Planetarium are also closed on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year´s Day, as well as the last two weeks of August for annual maintenance.

Admission rates for entry to the museum are $15.95 for adults, $11.95 for young people ages 4 through 12, and $13.95 for seniors age 60 or over.  Members of the Museum Friends Program and children younger than 4 years of age are admitted for free.  Discount rates for large groups also are available.