Collections

West Florida Historic Preservation, Inc. actively collects, holds, and administers objects of historical and antiquarian interest to the City of Pensacola, Escambia County, and West Florida.  Our collections contain approximately 150,000 objects. The collection encompasses a wide variety of artifacts including kitchenware and other household items, military objects, tools, furniture, and decorative items. The collection also contains archival material, books, photographs, period clothing and other textiles, toys, automotive items, radios, machinery, medical and scientific apparatus, and more.

Chocolate Pot

Chocolate remained the domain of the wealthy until about the mid-nineteenth century. As production increased, chocolate became more widely available and prices decreased. Commonly, at that time, it was consumed in beverage form. This is a late Victorian era chocolate pot. It is similar to a teapot, but has a wide opening through which the chocolate can be poured. A teapot of the era had several small holes inside to hold back the tea leaves. The Victorians consumed  hot chocolate drinks served in vessels such as the one pictured above.

Objects offered by the community for addition to the Historic Pensacola collection are evaluated by museum curators based upon several criteria. This enables the museum to focus on preserving artifacts significant to the mission of the agency. For example,

  • Does the artifact have historical, architectural, archaeological, or folk culture value relating to the City of Pensacola, Escambia County, or Northwest Florida?
  • Does the artifact have potential for research or is it useful for exhibition or educational purposes?
  • Does the artifact have legitimate and clear provenance?
  • Does the current owner have clear title?
  • Can West Florida Historic Preservation, Inc. provide proper storage, protection, and preservation?

Gift evaluations are documented and sent to the Director who recommends to the Board of Trustees formal acceptance of artifacts to the permanent collection. 

The staff of West Florida Historic Preservation, Inc. is not allowed to make appraisals because we do not operate as a dealer or commerical auction site.  The IRS also considers museums to have a conflict of interest with regard to appraisals.  If you are interested in an appraisal, please contact a local dealer or antique appraiser. 

Marxophone

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, some musical instrument inventors were combining two or three musical instruments into one piece. For example, joining the ukulele and the violin produced the Ukelin, while merging the zither, guitar, and mandolin resulted in the instrument you see here. Manufacturers advertised the Marxophones as easy to play because both the strings and the sheet music were numerically coded. This allowed the player to identify when and in what order to play the strings without knowing how to read music. The Marx Mfg. Company manufactured this Marxophone.

RESEARCH POLICY

Research hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Due to staffing limitations and the advance preparation necessary to provide access to most of the museum's collections, we ask researchers to contact us to schedule an appointment. This allows us to determine what collections are needed, assure that they will be available, and explain any restrictions that may apply. Please contact Carolyn Prime, Curator of Collections, at (850)595-5958 x114.

If you are considering a donation of a historical object or collection of objects to West Florida Historic Preservation, Inc., feel free to contact our museum curator, Lynne Robertson, at (850) 595-5985 x115 or email her at lrobertson@historicpensacola.org.