About BGHS
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The Boca Grande Historical Society & History Center is committed to enhancing our understanding of the history of Gasparilla Island and its surrounding area. Our goal is to provide personally rewarding opportunities to learn about the remarkable people and events that shaped our past.
Through our various educational activities, the Society seeks to put the present into better perspective by improving our sense of identity and continuity with history’s unfolding panorama. Dedicated to the collection and preservation of memorabilia, BGHS offers its members and the public numerous ways to become involved in researching our local history. Using the resources of grants from the Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice, the Society has obtained oral histories from long time Boca Grande residents to add to our permanent archival collection. A collectible reference volume dedicated to historical vignettes of the past seven editions of our scholarly journal Connections is now available for sale in our History Center, titled Boca Grande: Lives of an Island.
The purposes of the BGHS are:
- To bring together for mutual benefit and enjoyment people who are interested in Boca Grande’s and the region’s history;
- To collect and preserve memorabilia and other items related to Gasparilla Island’s and the region’s past;
- To sponsor activities designed to promote an enhanced interest in and knowledge of local, regional and state history;
- To provide stimulating educational programs that meet professional standards of scholarship and historical accuracy;
- To promote a better understanding of the relationship of our past to the present and to the projected future.
Our Location
We are located in the Lee County historic Teacherage House on the corner of Park Avenue and Banyan Street on beautiful Gasparilla Island. Open Monday through Friday, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm (during season—for Saturday hours view event listings). During the Summer (June 1st – August 31st), we are open Tuesday through Friday 10:00 am – 4:00 pm (closed Saturday, Sunday and Monday). We are closed for the month of September 2023.
Visit the History Center and Book Store
Mission Statement
The Society is dedicated to collecting and preserving all forms of information about the island’s and the region’s past, and sponsors activities designed to educate, promote and enhance interest in and knowledge of that history and related unique island character for the mutual benefit of all.
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Annual membership benefits from January to December.
10% off all items in our store
Priority notification of events, dates and topic