Table of Contents:
NOT SO ANCIENT
HENRY FLAGLER
SHOULD SEE DAYTONA
Daytona is only race cars and driving on the beach. If that’s your definition, you have so much to learn.
The Daytona area’s history goes far beyond “Birthplace of Speed” fame.
ANCIENT FLORIDA
Nomadic hunters called Paleo-Indians have been dated back to 12,000 years ago in northern Florida. The reason for them being in Northern Florida was the plentiful sources of fresh water and the animals and plants attracted to fresh water.
Circa 8000 B.C., the climate began its warming period, which we are still in today. Sea levels rose, and fresh water was more plentiful from glacial runoff into the river beds it created. After thousands of years of human presence in North Florida, the Mammoths and other animals were hunted into extinction. The people turned their eyes south to new hunting grounds.
The first Florida “land boom” would continue for the next 5,000 years as more human populations arrived, had babies, and spread out. By the late Archaic period (circa 3000-1000 B.C.), people were living along Florida’s east-central coast and settling the St. Johns River valley. By 500 B.C., distinct regional cultures began to emerge.
Surruque were indigenous peoples living along the Atlantic Coast of what would become Florida, from Turtle Mound to Cape Canaveral. Mosquito Lagoon was first named “Surruque Lagoon”.
The Mayaca were living along the St. Johns River, west of Daytona, at the same time. Both tribes were hunter-gatherers, living off fishing and the plentiful deer and alligators in the area. Additionally, they ate local berries and plants.
1500 A.D.
After living, for the most part, war and disease-free for 12,000 years, that all came to a disastrous end with the arrival of the first Europeans.
Over the next 200+ years, measles, smallpox, yellow fever, influenza, and hard labor (slavery) had decimated the local populations.
Less Ancient.
Juan Ponce de León, the Spanish explorer from Cuba, would be the first European to write about Florida circa 1513. Setting out from the Caribbean, they would name the verdant landscape “La Pascua Florida,” the Festival of Flowers.
Then he moves on.
South Florida remains the land of the local natives, according to them. According to Spanish maps, it is part of Spain. But Spain stays away, so the argument rarely comes up.
That is, until 1754. Great Britain attacks the French and their allies. The natives become targets of the English, who are attacking Spanish missions all along the South Georgia and Florida coast. Captives become the spoils of war, which the British sell to the plantations in the Carolinas and West Indies as free laborers.
By the end of the French and Indian War in 1763, Great Britain controlled the Spanish colony of La Florida. However, they had reduced the native population of central and South Florida to near extinction. The Creeks, being pushed out of northern Florida by the advancing white settlements, take up the abandoned camps of Central Florida. Over time, they will be called the unconquered people “yat’ siminoli.” This word will eventually morph into Seminole.
The Seminole Wars.
The War of 1812 (between the United States and its allies and the United Kingdom and Indian allies) ended. This battle for land leaves both England and Spain weak. U.S. troops following General Andrew Jackson wasted no time claiming West Florida and East Florida.
The First Seminole War ended in 1819, when Spain ceded Florida to the U.S. The Treaty of Moultrie Creek dictates that the Seminoles must live on a large reservation in the center of the Florida peninsula.
The Second Seminole War.
Not happy with the situation in Northern Florida, the U.S. began the Second Seminole War around 1835 to take the rest of the state.
The Third Seminole War.
This war takes place mostly on the Gulf Coast near present-day Fort Myers. However, skirmishes do take place between settlers in Volusia County and the few remaining Seminoles nearby.
In 1854, part of Orange County broke off to become Volusia County, named after the fortification on the St. Johns River. Enterprise, on Lake Monroe, is the first county seat.
Freemansville
In 1866, in the area that is today Ponce Inlet and Port Orange, Doctors John Milton Hawks and his wife, Dr. Esther Hill Hawks, established a large colony of freedmen (free slaves). Both of them spent the Civil War years caring for Black Union soldiers. Many of these soldiers and their families were the first to settle in Freemanville. When the railroad comes to Volusia County in the 1880s, Freemanville will grow.
A Town is Born.
In 1871, Matthias Day from Ohio, who sold sugar mill machinery and farm tools, arrived in the area of Ponce Inlet. He saw potential and purchased 2,145 acres of the former Samuel Williams Plantation for $8,000.
Day brought in a sawmill, hired some workers, and built a two-story hotel on what is today Palmetto Street. The street’s name is probably due to Day. He could not get shingles for his new hotel’s roof, so he temporarily covered the building with palmetto fronds and named it Palmetto House. The roof was a hit and remained for many years.
By 1873, Day had sold twenty home sites, and William Jackson built a general store on Beach Street, aptly named because it was a sand path. The settlement also had a post office. Unfortunately, Day’s land sales could not keep pace with his mortgage payments, and he defaulted on the loan and moved back to Ohio.
In July 1876, the 70 residents of the community met in front of Jackson’s store, and the 24 men present voted to draft the terms of incorporation. They named the new town after its founder, Day.
Two of the men who voted were Black men, Thaddeus Goodin and John Tolliver. Tolliver, a builder, was responsible for securing contracts to develop sections of Ridgewood Avenue (US 1), which became a vital early artery for the growing town.
It Grows in the Sand.
A year earlier, Laurence Thompson arrived with his wife, their small son, and his brother, Graham. He builds a two-story wooden building at 426 S. Beach St. and opens a general store. Next door, he builds a house for his family.
With the incorporation of Daytona, Laurence became the first city clerk. He would later dabble in citrus grove development and real estate sales. In 1891, Thompson sold the store to Lyman Robbins and used the money to form a partnership with Charles Bingham, which became a prominent real estate agency. Laurence and his son (also Laurence) would assume control in 1918, renaming it Thompson & Thompson.
Brother Graham opens a bicycle shop.
The real estate agency grew, and in 1918, Laurence and his son assumed control. They renamed it Thompson & Thompson.
Around 1881, a narrow-gauge railroad line opened running from Orange City to Blue Springs Landing. The track was just over a mile in length, and mules pulled cars.
By 1884, the Orange Ridge, DeLand & Atlantic, another narrow-gauge railroad, began service, connecting DeLand to the St. Johns River. It connects to the Jacksonville, Tampa, and Key West Railway.
Two years later, the St. Johns & Halifax Railroad reached from the St Johns River to Ormond and Daytona. The region is connected. However, these small railroads did not prepare the region for the express train barreling towards it from the North.
Henry Flagler and Daytona.
With the success of his hotels and the East Coast Railroad from Jacksonville to St Augustine, Flagler was considering expansion.
By 1889, Flagler had bought up most of the narrow-gauge railroads in Volusia County and transitioned them into standard-gauge track.
Next, he purchases the one-year-old 75-room Ormond Hotel and enlarges it to more than 400 rooms. He extends a spur from the main line to the hotel’s front lawn and incorporates the property into his series of grand hotels, including The Ponce de León Hotel (now Flagler College) and Alcazar in St. Augustine. In the next few years, he will add The Royal Poinciana Hotel and The Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach, and The Royal Palm Hotel in Miami to the collection.
His wealthy friends flock to Ormond Beach for the winter, and after four seasons at the hotel, one guest built a “cottage” across the street. His name was John D. Rockefeller.
Other names appearing on the guest register included The Prince of Wales, Vanderbilts, Astors, Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Harvey Firestone, Will Rogers, and many others.
Henry Flagler and his East Coast Railroad are so important to Volusia County that in 1917, they broke off the northern part of Volusia County to form Flagler County.
Daytona, “Birthplace of Speed”.
Ormand Hotel guest Henry Ford was a major influence in Ormand Beach’s history at this time. He invented something that had four wheels and was progressively getting faster from its original 28 miles per hour. The hard sand at Ormond and later Daytona Beaches was the perfect place to put the pedal to the metal.
Along with Ford, Louis Chevrolet, and Ransom E. Olds (of mobile fame) came to test their new machines on the shell-less beaches. This racing, in turn, attracted the likes of Harvey Firestone, who tested his new tires here as well.
By 1903, the Florida East Coast Automobile Association had built a clubhouse. The clubhouse became the starting line for runs. They then invited the American Automobile Association from Chicago to bring timing equipment, making the beach an official site for recording speed records. At this time, cars were topping 60 miles an hour.
Within a few years, they had broken the 100-mile-an-hour barrier.
1936 Daytona Beach Racing
The problem with Ormand Beach was that there was only enough sand to race in one direction. So, in 1936, the Daytona Beach South Road Course was created near Ponce Inlet, south of Daytona Beach. Starting at 4511 South Atlantic Avenue and the corner of North Turn Approach, the cars would race 2 miles south on the road, then turn east onto the beach and race back along the beach to the starting point.
The original lap was just over three miles. It would be lengthened to over four miles in the 1940s. By the late 1950s, the area was attracting homeowners, and space was running out. However, between 1905 and 1935, the track would host 15 world land-speed records.
Nice Car
William France, Sr, a transplant from Washington, D.C., now living in Daytona, was instrumental in keeping the track in use. By the mid-1940s, he also recognized that as the events got larger, they were attracting unscrupulous promoters and others who were tarnishing the sport.
In late 1947, France gathered several prominent people from Daytona racing at the rooftop bar of the Streamline Hotel on S Atlantic for three days of meetings on how to organize the sport. They returned to the bar in February of 1948 to sign papers creating the new organization, the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, or NASCAR.
Thankfully, the hotel did not get demolished during one of Daytona Beach’s less happy periods. After a multi-million dollar refurbishment, you can once again have a drink at the birthplace of NASCAR.
That same month, the Daytona Beach and Road Course hosted the premiere of NASCAR. Unfortunately, within two years, most NASCAR events moved to the brand-new Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina.
By 1958, the last race was held on the Beach and Road Course.
Birth of Daytona Superspeedway
Daytona Beach was down, but not out.
In 1959, Lee Petty won the first Daytona 500 on the new track of the Daytona International Speedway. Daytona Beach didn’t have the space for a track large enough to accommodate the ever-increasing speeds of the cars. So they built the new track in Daytona on the mainland, where, in the late 1950s, land was abundant. Over the next 20 years, the 2.5-mile track will become home to some of racing’s greatest events.
1959 also saw the first Firecracker 250, a NASCAR Grand National Series event. In 1963, they would extend it to 400 miles. As of 2026, it is known as the Coke Zero Sugar 400.
In 1962, the Daytona Continental Sports Car Race left the Road and Beach course for its new home on the mainland. In 1966, it expanded into the 24-hour Rolex 24 at Daytona.
By the 1980s, the track hosted NASCAR’s Goody’s 300 (now the Xfinity Series). It remains a major destination for race fans.
The NASCAR season begins in the middle of February with the Daytona 500.
After World War II, cars and driving trips became the rage. The Daytona area had car races, beach driving, sunshine, and warm weather. And at this time, more and more Florida hotels were installing Willis Carrier’s invention, the air conditioner.
Volusia County and Civil Rights.
All is not sunshine in the Sunshine State. Florida, like much of the South, was not a good loser after the Civil War.
During the Reconstruction era following the Civil War, moderate Republicans briefly took control of the Florida government. As soon as Federal Troops leave the state, Democrats engage in voter suppression and intimidation. They regain control of the state legislature.
Part of their success is due to the Ku Klux Klan, a white supremacist hate group started in 1865. Their goal is to overthrow Republican governments in the South. They use voter intimidation and violence to achieve this. The only (slight) good news is that they are not as large or violent as their brothers to the north, this time.
Their primary targets are African Americans, Jews, immigrants, homosexuals, and Catholics.
For more than sixty years, Democrats controlled a majority of the state’s seats in Congress. They base the number of positions on the total population, including the African Americans and women who cannot vote.
Now, Some Good News.
In 1867, Freemanville was established in what is now Port Orange. Formerly enslaved people founded it. Very little of it exists today outside the Mount Moriah Baptist Church on Orange Avenue, founded in 1911.
In 1904, Mary Bethune began the Daytona Educational and Industrial Training School for Negro Girls in the home of John Williams. The school grew quickly. By 1923, it merged with the Cookman Institute from Jacksonville, Florida, and became a co-ed high school.
Bethune-Cookman College is a result of the merger in 1923 of the Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute for Girls and the Cookman Institute for Boys from Jacksonville, Florida. They named it the Daytona Cookman Collegiate Institute, and by 1931, it had become a junior college and affiliated with the Methodist Church.
In 1941, the Florida Department of Education awarded it a four-year baccalaureate program in Liberal Arts and Teacher Education. They changed the name to Bethune–Cookman College.
Mary Jane McLeod Bethune
Who was this powerhouse, who, as a woman and a Black person, was able to startSouthhool in the early 1900s in the South?
She was the fifteenth of seventeen children born to Sam and Patsy McLeod near Mayesville, South Carolina. They lived in a log cabin on five acres that had once been part of the Wilson Plantation—a place where Sam and Patsy worked for “free” until the end of the war. Patsy still worked for the Wilsons, but now for pay. Sam and their sons worked their land.
Mary grew up hearing stories from her mother, Patsy, and Patsy’s mother, Sophie, about their lives as slaves. They also constantly told Mary that she was special, which sparked her work toward equality.
In 1886, Mary began walking five miles to Mayesville’s one-room Black schoolhouse, founded by Emma Wilson. Wilson was also the teacher and would later become a mentor to Mary. At night, Mary would teach her siblings what she had learned that day. A teacher is born.
Wilson secured a scholarship for Mary at her alma mater, Scotia Seminary (now Barber–Scotia College) in Concord, N.C.
In 1894, Mary began attending Dwight L. Moody’s Institute for Home and Foreign Missions in Chicago (forerunner of today’s Moody Bible Institute).
Upon graduation, she began teaching at Haines Institute in Augusta, Georgia. While in Augusta, she met and married Albertus Bethune in 1898.
In 1899, they moved to Palatka, Florida, 60 miles northwest of Daytona, where Mary ran the mission school.
Daytona is Calling
But her dream to start a school for girls was growing. In 1904, she moved the family to Daytona because it had more economic opportunities and a larger black community. Using discarded crates, she built desks and chairs and acquired other supplies through charity. In the Fall of that year, she welcomed her first class, 5 girls and her son, Albert.
Within 2 years of operation, 250 girls and 1 Albert were enrolled. Taking every cent she made from the 50-cent enrollment fee, she bought land near the dump.
She began baking and selling sweet potato pies to local workers, and she used the proceeds to buy additional land. She traded tuition for building skills, and by 1918, Faith Hall and two other buildings were complete.
In 1907, Albertus abandoned Mary and her 7-year-old son. Mary never looked back.
In 1911, she opened the first Black hospital in Daytona Beach.
Something she learned from Booker T. Washington when he visited in 1912 was the importance of White benefactors for funding; he had several other suggestions that she implemented.
She created a board for the school that included James Gamble (Mr. Procter’s partner), John D. Rockefeller, Ransom Olds, and Thomas White (of sewing machine fame) as trustees.
Next, she worked to make Daytona School’s library accessible to all people, making it the first free library open to Black Floridians in the state.
With all her free time, she hosted a weekly story hour and started a boys’ club.
Concerned about the lack of affordable housing for Black people, Bethune lobbied for better access to housing. She became the city’s housing board’s first Black member. Soon after, a public housing project was under construction near her school’s campus.
Florida is Calling
In 1917, the National Association of Colored Women named Mary as the Florida chapter president. For the next few years, she worked to improve the lives of Black Women in Florida.
She worked to get the vote for all women, regardless of skin color. She joined the Equal Suffrage League.
After the Nineteenth Amendment passed in 1920, still not busy enough, she added the presidency of the Southeastern Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs to her daily schedule.
Bethune turned her efforts to making the Black vote a little more “equal”. She raised money to pay poll taxes, created to keep poor black Americans from voting.
She set up free tutoring at her school for voter registration literacy tests, another discriminatory practice limiting Blacks from voting. And she held mass voter registration drives.
Washington is Calling
In 1924, Mary was elected president of the NACW. While in this role, Mary was instrumental in creating a National headquarters in Washington, D.C. with a paid executive secretary.
In 1928, Bethune was a guest at the Republican President Calvin Coolidge’s Child Welfare Conference.
Two years later, President Herbert Hoover appointed her to the White House Conference on Child Health.
In 1935, Mary founded the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW).
In 1938, at the Southern Conference for Human Welfare, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt requested a seat next to Mary despite the conference’s strict segregation policies. The two women hit it off, giving Mary the “ear” of the White House.
She formed the Federal Council of Negro Affairs, a coalition of Black organization leaders that served as an advisory group to the president. They would be referred to as the Black Cabinet.
Mary organized the first officer candidate schools for Black women.
Also, circa 1938, Mary was active in the integration of blacks into the Methodist Episcopal Church.
In 1944, Mary was one of three co-founders of the United Negro College Fund.
Is anyone unsure how she felt about the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1954 BU.S. v. Board of Education ruling?
Unfortunately, her celebration and new fight to uphold it were brief. She died in May of 1955. Her grave is next to her house on the campus of Bethune-Cookman University.
The house and grave site are on the African American Heritage Trail.
A World War.
The U.S.A. returned home from WWI as a victor in 1918. Over the next ten years, the American economy will grow by 42%. Mass production and mass consumption spread across the land.
But not everything is sunny in Florida.
After World War I, Florida saw a rise in racial violence against blacks in the state. Florida is not the only place, but it leads the nation in lynchings per capita from 1900 to 1930.
In Volusia County, there are five lynchings, well, that were recorded.
Black veterans are returning from a war where people have been treating them more like equals. All of a sudden, there are two classes. There is competition for jobs with so many service members looking all at once. And things are changing for everyone. Socially and economically, there is change, and most people do not adapt quickly. And there is lingering resentment resulting from the Reconstruction period, which is not too distant in the past.
The modern Klan flares up again after the World War, first in Georgia, but spreads to Florida quickly. Estimates are that there were three million members nationwide by 1925. As the Depression deepens, the Klan begins to fade, except in Florida, where they expand their list of targets.
A certain Black lady and her school for Black children are often targets.
To escape lynchings, segregation, and civil rights suppression, more than 40,000 African Americans left Florida for northern cities.
Then another World War breaks out, and attention turns elsewhere. Once again, African Americans are equals on the battlefield.
And once again, they return to a two-class Florida.
Daytona Post World War.
Almost a decade after the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education ruling, many Florida public schools still do not integrate.
African Americans were facing arrest while eating at public lunch counters, and the Ku Klux Klan was escalating violence.
Change in Volusia County.
By the late 1950s, high school students across the country began staging sit-ins at lunch counters reserved for white patrons, challenging the status quo and eventually leading to integrated service.
In February of 1960, a group of Black students from Deland High School marched into Woolworth’s at the corner of N. Woodland Boulevard and New York Avenue and attempted to order food at the lunch counter. Although they never got served, and police had to keep white patrons from attacking the students, they did it for a week.
By early summer, the DeLand Woolworth’s made the then-radical decision to allow anyone, regardless of race, to eat and drink at their lunch counter.
Black veterans killed in the Korean and later Vietnam War could only be buried in Mount Ararat Cemetery. Today, there are a few White people buried in Mount Ararat, and a few Black people buried in Daytona Memory Garden. The two cemeteries are right next to each other. There is still a fence between the two and separate entrances.
It wasn’t until 1963, when the Ku Klux Klan’s violent attacks against Martin Luther King Jr and other Black leaders in St Augustine were beamed into America’s living rooms, that Washington finally did something. In 1964, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act.
Things did not get better overnight, but some healing did begin. However, in Volusia and many other Florida counties, widespread school integration did not occur until the 1970-71 school year began. And only after a Supreme Court mandate.
Daytona for the last 50 years.
In the early 1960s, the Tamiami Airport near Miami announced it would be closing. What does this have to do with Daytona, more than 200 miles north?
Embry‑Riddle Aeronautical Institute, one of the oldest in the U.S., was situated thU.S.and about to lose its runways. A statewide search found something next to the Daytona airport: deserted World War II-era barracks and classrooms, from when the Army and Navy were training there. The institute moved there in 1965 and three years later achieved University status. Today, Embry‑Riddle Aeronautical University ranks among the best schools in aviation and aerospace education.
The 1960s also saw other college students heading to Daytona Beach. Every Spring Break, the beaches are overrun with college kids from just about every university east of the Mississippi.
When Ft Lauderdale starts cracking down on Spring Breakers in the early 1980s and moving towards a more family-friendly environment, Daytona moved into the top location for Spring Break.
When MTV (Music Television) began broadcasting live from the Coquina Bandshell on the beach boardwalk, Daytona Beach cemented the title “World Capital of Spring Break. By the early 1990s, Daytona Beach was attracting close to 500,000 partiers and the problems that went with them.
Public disorder, sanitation concerns, and broader public safety concerns led to many of the same restrictions that began in Ft Lauderdale a decade earlier. By the late 1990s, the spring break scene had shifted to Panama City and even Mexico.
Daytona / Daytona Beach Today.
Although “Daytona City” on the mainland and “Daytona Beach” on the barrier island were once two separate towns, they merged as one in 1926, becoming Daytona Beach. But some people do call it Daytona.
The county’s largest industry is manufacturing. More than 400 companies produce a variety of products, including boats, aviation parts, and medical devices.
Large distribution centers are near I-95, which runs north and south along the east coast, and I-4, which runs to Orlando, Tampa, and I-75 along the west coast.
As Florida’s population increases, so does the need for Health & Life Sciences. Volusia has a significant number of new clinics, urgent care and hospitals, and labs.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and the county’s proximity to Kennedy Space Center, 60 miles south, create strong demand for Aviation and Aerospace parts and personnel.
Professional Services, such as insurance, financing, banking, and education, are the next-largest money-makers for the county. Technology & Innovation from the numerous universities adds to this.
Then, there is tourism. What attracted tourists in the 1950s still attracts visitors today. Car Races, driving on the beach, and sunshine are still possible in Daytona Beach.
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What is in Daytona Beach for me?
See & Hear.
You can see, hear, and even feel the NASCAR vehicles as they soar past, or watch for a nearby jet soaring overhead. And there are numerous historic sights to explore.
Taste & Smell.
You can walk the beach promenade and take in the smell of fresh ocean air tinged with saltwater taffy—or savour fresh seafood.
Feel.
There are numerous energies about Daytona Beach, from the adrenaline rush of a car race to the soothing immersion in multiple museums and art galleries.
Take a walk or a drive on the beach. Come for the 10-day Daytona Bike Week when more than 500,000 bikes and bikers descend on Volusia County for concerts, parties, and more.
Have a tropical libation on one of the several over-water piers and contemplate life.
There may be better ways to end your afternoon, but this one doesn’t suck.
Should See in Daytona Beach
Old Daytona Beach literally disappeared beneath the waves as two massive hurricanes, Category 5 Ian followed by Category 1 Nicole, dealt it a one-two punch in September and November of 2022. The storms were not all to blame. Many structures from the 1930s-60s had not been maintained, and some had been left to rot before the storms.
Ian’s wrath caused almost $400 million in damage throughout Volusia County. When Nicole hit the already battered, soggy buildings and finished eroding the beach right from under hotels and homes, Volusia raised the white flag. Nicole would do an additional $400+ million in damage. Unfortunately, over 150 people would lose their lives in hurricane-related causes.
Volusia County was down, but not out for the count. What is “emerging from the ashes” is a new, maybe cleaner Daytona Beach. Unfortunately, many architectural diamonds, many still in the rough, were lost by 2022. Some say the storm did millions of dollars in improvements, as it forced the city to revisit a town whose glitter was turning to rust.
Fortunately, not all of the historic sites were washed away by storms. Volusia County still has several interesting historic and new sites to see.
Daytona Beach
Daytona Beach Sign
Located at E International Speedway Blvd @ Atlantic, this famous “World’s Most Famous Beach” sign dates back to the 1920s. It has received some TLC over the years.
Main Street Arch
Dating from 1936, this was the original historic entrance to Daytona Beach. Constructed of the plentiful coquina stone, it was a link between the beach and boardwalk, and pier. Suffering damage from the hurricanes, it underwent a significant restoration project beginning in 2024. It is one block east of Main Street @ Atlantic.
Main Street Pier
In the 1820s, Thomas Keating built a 600-foot-long wooden pier. In 1920, it suffered the same demise as most of Florida’s wooden structures when a fire broke out.
Jeter McMillan built the Ocean Pier & Casino in 1925. The new pier was 1,000 feet long and had a large ballroom featuring big bands. There was never gambling. At the peak of beach racing, pilings were removed, allowing cars to race underneath. Today, the pier is just over 700 feet long and features a seafood restaurant in the old casino building.
World’s Most Famous Beach, Daytona Beach
Dubbed “The World’s Most Famous Beach” in the 1920s, Daytona Beach was drawing visitors long before then. The hard-packed sand was perfect for racing, and that’s what first attracted people. Today, you can still drive on the beach (weather permitting), but racing disappeared in the 1950s.
Daytona Boardwalk
Starting with a saltwater pool in the 1920s, there have been numerous amusements on Daytona’s Broad, later renamed boardwalk, throughout the decades. Games of chance, tilt-a-whirls, and even a roller coaster once lined the area along the boardwalk. Today, there are only a few “amusements”: a candy store and a pizza shop. But it gives you a glimpse into its past.
Daytona Beach Bandshell 1936
Dating from 1936, this large open-air venue was part of a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project. The coquina rock amphitheater opened on July 4 of the following year, revitalizing the beach area.
Coquina Clock Tower (Hilton Hotel beach)
Part of the same WPA project to revitalize the beachfront during the Depression, the clock face features the city’s name in place of numerals. In 1989, they renamed it the “Campbell Clock Tower,” but not many people call it that. The 55-foot tower is between the Hilton Hotel and the boardwalk, just north of the pier.
Simon J. Peabody Auditorium
The first theater on this site dates from 1919 on land donated by businessman Simon J. Peabody. Like so many of Florida’s landmarks, it disappears in a fire in 1946. The current, more fireproof theater opened soon after. It has hosted Elvis and Sinatra and still presents shows today. It is on Auditorium Blvd, one block north, and one block west of Main Street @ Atlantic.
Historic Main Street
A part of the larger Daytona Beach Historic District, Main Street stretches from Main Street @ Atlantic, across the barrier island to the iconic Main Street Bridge, which dates from the 1950s. There is a mixture of architectural styles dating back to the 1930s. Fortunately, for now, there are no buildings over two stories, giving it that old Florida feel. Home to many fun drinking establishments, it becomes Ground Zero for Daytona’s Biker Week and Biketoberfest.
Daytona’s Biker Week
No discussion of Daytona would be complete without mentioning the motorcycle in the middle of the room. The present-day Biker Week began circa 1937 during the inaugural Daytona 200 motorcycle race, on the Beach and Road Course. It included the parties and celebrations associated with the bike race and was centered on Main Street.
The race would move to the International Speedway in 1961, but the party remained on Main Street. Concerts feature predominantly rock & country stars. In nearby Ormond Beach, Outlaw artist David Allan Coe performed at the Iron Horse Saloon during Biker Week for 30 years. Today, the event draws more than 500,000 bikers to the Daytona area around the first week in March.
Biketoberfest
Starting circa 1991, this four-day motorcycle rally is held annually around mid-October. It also features live music, racing at the Daytona International Speedway, vendors, and scenic bike routes for rides. Although not as big as spring’s Bikers Week, it still draws more than 100,000 enthusiasts.
Boot Hill Saloon
The original building, dating from the 1800s, housed a church on one side, a bar in the middle, and a barbershop on the other. By the 1900s, all three storefronts were combined into the Kit Kat Club, a popular watering hole for locals. However, the club’s owners in the 1960s were not fans of the growing biker presence in town and even closed down during major biking events. In 1973, they retired and sold it to one of their bartenders.
He immediately introduced the western theme and changed the name to “Boot Hill Saloon,” a nod to the cemetery across the street. Over the years, possibly inspired by a drink at the bar, several quotes and even slogans were created tying the saloon to the historic Pinewood Cemetery. Referring to “spirits” or “dying with your boots on,” its most famous motto became, “You’re better off here than across the street.”
The Pinewood Cemetery has more than 1,700 graves of Daytona’s early settlers. These include one of the “Real McCoys.” In addition to the good fun the saloon has at its neighbor, it has also raised thousands of dollars over the years for the cemetery’s restoration. This saloon is a must-stop for biker fans, during race week or any other time.
The Seabreeze Historic District
The beach town of Seabreeze existed only from 1901 to 1926. It became part of the bigger city when Daytona and Daytona Beach merged. But it left a memorable area worth visiting.
The Seabreeze Historic District is listed on the U.S. Historic Register. Here, you can find more than 850 buildings, many dating from between 1898 and 1947. Of these, many are in the Mediterranean Revival, Craftsman, or Bungalow styles.
It stretches from Auditorium Blvd to University Blvd, with Seabreeze Blvd pretty much in the middle.
Seabreeze United Church of Christ
Beginning as the First Congregational Church of Seabreeze in 1904, it was the first church on the Halifax peninsula. The wooden structure was replaced when the church built the current Mission Revival-style stone sanctuary in 1929 at its current Oak Ridge location. It was known as the “Tourist Church” because of its many seasonal parishioners.
Bartholomew J. Donnelly House
Lilian Place Heritage Center
Hotchkiss House
Dating from 1905, the Hotchkiss House is a Queen Anne Victorian mansion built by “The Stapler King,” E.H. Hotchkiss, as a seasonal home. He purchases a piece of Laurence Thompson’s Peninsula estate for the site. When he passed away in 1917, the house went to his daughter, Gertrude Heyn (a trustee of Bethune-Cookman College). Mary Bethune would speak at her funeral years later. Gertrude would donate the house to Halifax Hospital, which in turn sold it to Eliza Thompson Mather. Her grandfather was Laurence Thompson, the land’s original owner.
Today, the Heritage Preservation Trust manages both properties as event spaces and Lilian Place as a museum. Visits can be arranged in advance.
The Mainland
Crossing from the “Peninsula” (Silver Beach Ave on the island) to the mainland (E. Orange Avenue), you cross over the Veterans Memorial Bridge. The first site you come to is City Island Park.
Jackie Robinson Ballpark
Dating from 1914, it was named City Island Ballpark. Today, it is the oldest active stadium in Minor League baseball. That alone puts it in the history books. But what happened in 1946 inside the stadium is what it is best known for. When Jackie Robinson took the field in a spring training game for the Montreal Royals, he broke baseball’s color barrier.
Did you know that, until the American Civil War, Black players participated at all levels of “White” baseball? From the late 1800s until 1951, Blacks had to play in the Negro leagues, which had both minor and major teams.
The following year, Jackie was moved to the Dodgers and earned the first-ever Rookie of the Year award. The award now bears his name. The same year, Larry Doby signed with the Cleveland Indians, becoming the first Black player in the American League.
Brownie the Town Dog Memorial.
Continuing across the causeway towards the mainland, if you look quickly to your right, you may see a statue of a bronze dog just as you reach land. This dog is Brownie, who was the town’s dog from 1939 until he died in 1954. Did he save a sinking ship, a drowning child, or jump over buildings in a single bound? No. He was just a stray that caught the town’s heartstrings. By the time he passed, he had a custom dog house, an account at the local bank, and dined on steak regularly.
The Abbey House
Two blocks south (left) of the Brownie statue, on South Beach Street, is the next site. This 1875 structure is on the National Register of Historic Places. It began as Laurence Thompson’s general store when Beach Street was sand. Adelaide Robbins Rhodes bought it from her brother Lyman in 1904 and made it her home, adding several rooms in the process.
Her son, author Harrison G. Rhodes, would pull from his childhood in Daytona in many of his guides to Florida. He also wrote plays including “A Gentleman from Mississippi” and the “Ruggles of Red Gap”. Today, the house is a bed and breakfast that hosts many weddings. This block was the “downtown” of Daytona in 1876.
South Beach Street Historic District
Much of this area was part of Samuel William’s orange grove plantation and sugar mill dating back to the 1790s. It suffered the same wrath of the Seminoles in 1835 as the other plantations. The area’s rebirth came toward the end of the 1800s (post-Civil War) with the founding of the town of Daytona. Today, it is the city’s oldest residential area.
Embracing 10 blocks between Ridgewood Avenue and the west bank of the Halifax River, the area reflects Daytona from the 1870s through the 1930s.
From the Abbey House, the district stretches four more blocks to its southern border, South Street.
Many of the other houses on this block of S. Beach Street are private residences, so look, but do not trespass.
Peter Siem’s house at 440 South. Beach Street
This unique Queen Anne-style house and tower dates from circa 1905. Designed by Daytona Beach architect Sumner Hale Gove, it appears to have been a retirement/winter home for Peter Siems from St. Paul, MN. He made his fortune in trains, especially the Great Northern Railway. Today, it houses many county offices.
Riley Peck Property
The structures at 444 and 448 S Beach Street are two houses once owned by the Peck brothers and joined by a breezeway. The main house (#448) dates from around 1871, and the other structure in 1881. For the last 60+ years, both properties have served as accommodations in some form.
The home at 444 S Beach is today the main structure of the Golden Magnolia Marine Resort. This resort offers an on-site restaurant.
The house at 448 is now part of the Live Oaks Inn complex. This cozy bed and breakfast has more than 10 guest rooms in several buildings.
Matthias Day’s original Colony House Hotel (Palmetto House)
On the river side of the 400 block of South Beach Street (in the area of Loomis St.) is believed to be the site of Matthias Day’s original Colony House Hotel, built in 1874. Using palmetto fronds in place of shingles, the hotel became known as the Palmetto House.) The wooden structure faced the fate of most wooden hotels in Florida in 1922. Today, the land is the parking area for the Halifax Harbor Marina. It’s a shame there is no marker (I could find) to commemorate the structure.
After looking at the 400 block of South Beach Street and its 100+ years of history, the 500 block may bring you to tears. What I charmingly refer to as “Cement Bunker architecture” sits atop what had to have been stately residences at one time.
However, in the 600 block, there is the “Harbour House,” a European-style riverfront estate dating to 1893 or 1921, depending on which history you read. Either way, it is old and has stories to tell.
The white house next door dates from 1936. Every other structure in this block of S Beach Street is gone. Only majestic trees remain, showing where the residences might have been. Both homes on this block are private residences. Please behave like travelers, not tourists.
At the end of the 600 block is South Street. Turn right.
South Palmetto Avenue.
Turning right off of South Street, you are immediately in old Florida, on the left side. This block of South Palmetto is almost like a before-and-after picture. The structures and the Oak trees are all 90+ years old. On the right, ummm, not so old. All of the homes in the 600 block are private residences, so once again, look but don’t… The 500 block of S Palmetto is my favorite.
544 South Palmetto Avenue.
This 1912 structure, designed by Sumner Hale Gove (Peter Siem’s house), for Dr. Fredrick J. Walters, was the parsonage for the pastor of the first Methodist Church in the city of Daytona. It is built of local Coquina stone, which may have been partially responsible for its next name. In 1947, the doctor gave it to his daughter, who opened it as the Cochina Inn. The Inn would continue for many years, passing on to different owners.
By the 2000s, as Daytona was losing some of its draw, the Cochina Inn was also in need of some TLC. In 2020, Ms. Maggie bought the Cochina Inn, changed its name, and gave it the TLC it needed. Today, Miss Maggie’s South Country Inn is a unique bed & breakfast.
Three stone houses on the left in the 500 block seem to have once been property owned by Captain Simmonds Bennett. Captain Bennett was a shipbuilder and supplied goods from Jacksonville via his schooners. He also delivered Matthias Day in 1870. Histories list the larger structure as having been built circa 1895. Today, they are still private residences.
The wonderful Queen Ann on the corner of S Palmetto and Loomis Avenue dates from 1901, as do several structures in this area.
Do not miss the cross streets Cedar, Loomis, and Live Oak, as they also contain some architectural jewels.
Tourist Hotel (Second Palmetto House)
Captain Bennett built the structure and named it the Tourist Hotel around 1901. (There was already a Palmetto House.) For the next several decades, it was the winter retreat for tourists from up north. After 1922 and the demise of the original Palmetto House, locals started referring to this hotel as the Palmetto.
By the 1960s, the hotel faced the same fate as many hotels in the area, with occupancy rates dropping as newer, “better” hotels were built near the new interstates. The Palmetto House began taking long-term guests.
By the 1990s, not enough revenue was coming in to give it the necessary care, let alone TLC, it needed. Facing demolition, a nonprofit acquired the property and, after extensive renovation, opened a supportive transitional living center. Today, it offers low-income housing.
South Ridgewood Avenue (U.S.1)
While the structures on the east side are within the South Beach Street Historic District, I find several on the west side of the street to be even more interesting.
In 1924, the ever-increasing Daytona outgrew its Florida East Coast (Flagler) Railroad station near Orange and S Beach St. They built a larger station, with marble accents, west near Magnolia and Segrave, just west of Ridgewood Avenue. It would serve as a passenger station until the last passenger train pulled out in 1968. The small Orange Avenue station was moved to Jacksonville (St. Nicholas Train Station Park). The larger, more opulent station was demolished in 1984 without much notice and no fanfare. (I am not bitter).
But with the move west in 1924, Ridgewood Avenue became even more popular.
Arroyo Gardens Hotel.
At 340 S Ridgewood Ave, Julian Arroyo opened it in 1924. This Mediterranean Revival structure became an immediate hit with wintering Northerners and locals. Adjacent to the north side was a swimming pool and gardens.
In 1940, under new owners, it became the Daytona Terrace Hotel, but their time there was short-lived.
In 1942, Ransom Olds bought it and converted it into a retirement home for clergy, naming it Olds Hall.
Circa 1972, the clergy gave it to the Lutheran Good Samaritan Society. They would build a care center and a parking lot in what was once the gardens.
One bit of good news came in 1993, when it was added to the National Register of Historic Places, which slowed its demolition. But every time I drive by, she seems sadder.
Delos A. Blodgett House
Just south of Olds Hall is this residence built by Delos Blodgett. Blodgett was a wealthy lumber baron from Grand Rapids, Michigan, who wintered in Daytona. After meeting and marrying his second wife, Daisy, in 1893, he commissioned Sumner Hale Gove (Peter Siem’s house) to build the impressive Queen Ann. Moving in by 1896, they would host Susan B. Anthony, who was giving talks at a nearby Black high school. Any guesses which one?
An interesting fact is that at this time, the house sat at 340 S Ridgewood Ave. But isn’t Olds Hall at that address?
After Delos’ death, Daisy sold the house to Julian Arroyo in 1920. Arroyo moved the house from the northwest to the southwest corner of Live Oak Avenue, giving him the space to build his new hotel and gardens.
Today, the house is on the National Register of Historic Places and features 11 bedrooms and three full bathrooms. You can rent it for stays or small events.
Commercial South Beach Street.
Starting at the corner of S Beach and Orange Ave (near Brownie the Dog), let’s start in the 200 block and work our way north.
On your right is the Riverfront Esplanade. This pedestrian-friendly park stretches several blocks north along the river. In this block, you can visit Brownie. He sits along the Sweetheart Trail, a small section of the East Coast Greenway. There is also a rose garden.
On the west side of S. Beach is a wonderful mix of old Daytona architecture.
Halifax Historical Museum.
At #252 is this great little museum. Its facade looks very much like a bank because it opened in 1910 as the Merchants Bank. Unfortunately, Merchants did not weather the 1929 crash. In 1936, Florida Bank & Trust began a healthy run, finally closing that location in 1986 when Volusia County bought it for its museum. Check their website for hours. It is closed on Sundays and Mondays.
W.H. Gardiner building.
#208 was built around 1900 originally as the Gardiner’s Gift and Art Shop. In addition to retail, it served as the studio of renowned Victorian-era photographer William H. Gardiner. He spent the winter in Daytona, where he sold hand-tinted photos. In the summer, he and his wife, Louise, traveled to Mackinac Island in Michigan, where they did the same thing. Later, his shop expanded into the next building, and he began selling the latest Kodak Brownie camera, film, processing, and supplies. After he died in 1935, the property would have many owners. Today, it is still a retail location.
But the jewel of S Beach Street is a few more doors down.
S. H. Kress and Co. Building
At #140 is this Art Deco masterpiece. Built in 1932 for the S. H. Kress & Co. “five and dime” department store chain. Samuel Kress wanted the stores that bore his name to be works of public art. “The World’s Finest 5-10-25c Store” finally closed in this location in 1974. In 1983, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. In the 1980s, it was divided into office suites and is still used for that today.
At its peak, Kress operated more than 250 stores in 29 states. At last count, around 100 are still standing. Of these, 17 are on the National Register of Historic Places, and others are local landmarks or part of a historic district.
Angell & Phelps Chocolate Factory
#154 is not the oldest building in Daytona, although it dates to before 1924. It doesn’t rival the Kress building in design, but it is the sweetest location on the street.
Riddell Angell and Cora Phelps, two women in 1925, decided to open a summer business on Mackinac Island, Michigan. Making and selling chocolates. They were successful.
Someone, perhaps a photographer from Daytona, told them about the warm winters in Florida, and within a year, they were spending their winters there, making chocolate on S Beach Street. No one told them about the different climate, but the ladies were resourceful. Armed with fans and blocks of ice, they overcame Florida’s less-than-ideal temperatures for chocolate-making.
With the outbreak of WWII and the onset of rationing, they had to close one of the locations. With thoughts of retiring, it didn’t take long to decide on which one. And in 1953, they did retire, selling the business to the Resingers. They would run it as a family business until 1983, when they sold it to the Smith family. The second generation of Smiths runs it today using the same recipes and methods of Riddell & Cora, minus the blocks of ice.
You can see the chocolate being made through the glass walls, and it would be rude not to sample it.
Amos Kling House
Within the South Beach Street Historic District, but a block and a half west of S. Beach, is this 1907 house. It belonged to Amos Kling, and its age makes it interesting.
However, it is better known because Amos’ daughter, Florence, married an up-and-coming politician, Warren G. Harding, in 1891.
The young couple visited Amos several times during the winter before he passed away in 1913. The house stayed in the family, and the Hardings would visit up until his election in 1921. With the Secret Service, the house was not large enough for the party.
Today, the first floor is a restaurant.
Where South Meets North Beach Street.
At International Speedway Blvd (formerly Volusia Avenue), South Beach Street becomes North Beach Street.
It is the official northern boundary of the South Beach Street Historic District.
However, the Riverfront Shops of Daytona Beach somewhat blur that line along Beach Street as they include both North and South Beach St.
North Beach Street.
While the city has done an incredible job of cleaning up and attracting neat stores and tasty restaurants to N Beach Street, it just doesn’t have the architectural “pop” of S Beach Street.
I am more interested in the history of this area before it became commercial.
The Castle
Charles Grover Burgoyne was a commercial printing magnate in New York City. He arrived in Daytona in 1894, after taking the new Flagler railroad to St Augustine. His wife fell in love with the scenery, and he fell in love with the possibilities of lots of cheap land.
He purchased a parcel of land north of the toSoutht made up all of what is today the block between International Speedway on the south, and Bay Street on the north. It stretched from the river to today’s N Palmetto Avenue.
He called upon local architect Sumner Hale Gove to design the largest, grandest Queen Anne-style mansion in town. The finished structure featured numerous turrets and stained-glass windows. Around the property, he had a low stone wall built. This was due to his great fear of snakes. The locals began calling it “The Castle.”
Good Deed Doer.
In 1897, Burgoyne was elected mayor of Daytona. He did many great things for the city—much of it at his expense.
He paid for nighttime street lighting for most of the incorporated town. In 1914, he built the Burgoyne Esplanade. This 10-foot-wide paved walkway along the river also had lighting at night. It ran from his house on Bay Street at the north end of town to Orange Avenue near the end of the commercial district at the south end.
At the south end of the esplanade, he built the Casino Burgoyne, a music hall, not a gambling establishment.
He hosted concerts for the citizens, gave Christmas gifts to the city’s children, and also paid to ensure the young ones got milk daily.
In 1916, he suffered a fatal heart attack. The city went into mourning, and Mary remained in seclusion at the mansion until 1941. By then, the mansion was in a state of disrepair, and there were no funds to save it. The house, outer buildings, and even the walls were leveled. The entire estate was reimagined for commercial use.
That’s why the commercial buildings on N Beach Street are not as old as those on S Beach.
US Post Office
There is an exception. At 220 N. Beach Street is a historic building from 1932. The location would have been north of the Castle. Constructed as part of the WPA project, this Mediterranean Revival building contains stone from the Florida Keys. In 1988, it joined the National Register of Historic Places. It is still in use today as a post office.
West of Ridgewood Avenue.
Basilica of St. Paul
Actually, on N Ridgewood Avenue, this 1927 Mission Revival structure was the tallest building on the mainland at the time. It was also one of the first buildings in the area to have central heating and air conditioning. The massive front doors compete for your attention with the fresco of the conversion of St. Paul above the altar. The adjacent school dates from 1923.
Howard Thurman Historic Home
After meeting with Mahatma Gandhi, Howard’s theology of radical nonviolence was born. He would use it to influence a generation of civil rights activists, as well as many of their leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr.
Thurman was born in this house in 1899 and remained until 1914, when he left to attend the Florida Baptist Academy in Jacksonville, Florida—one of only three high schools for African Americans in Florida at that time. Click on the orange link to check opening hours. The house is on the Daytona Beach Black-Heritage-Trail.
Seybold Baking Company Factory
John Seybold, a German baker from Miami, expanded to Daytona in 1927. He commissioned a new factory in the Mediterranean Revival style at 800 Orange Avenue.
There was a bakery operating here for the next 42 years, first as Seybold, then as the Columbia Baking Company (1946 to 1958), and finally as the Southern Bakery, which closed in 1969.
Today, the building is on the National Register of Historic Places, making it worth a drive by. Currently, it is the home of a filtration company.
Bethune-Cookman University
If you didn’t read the section above on Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune, why not? This is her college that she started in 1904 with $1.50, some crates, vision, an entrepreneurial mindset, resilience, and a lot of prayers.
Mary McLeod Bethune House in Daytona Beach.
Originally built in 1905 by Black architect A. Raddick, the home was gifted to Mary in 1913 by James Gamble (of diapers, Downy, and Dawn fame) and Thomas White (of Sewing Machines), both of whom were also board members of the college. It has hosted Eleanor Roosevelt, Booker T. Washington, Jackie Robinson, Langston Hughes, and many others.
Today, the house is on the National Register of Historic Places and serves as a museum. Sitting on the university campus, it preserves Mary’s personal belongings, furnishings, and records, as they were when she lived here. The house and university are on the Daytona Beach Black Heritage Trail.
White Hall
White Hall bears the name of board member Thomas H. White, who funded its construction in 1915. Originally, it housed classrooms and offices. Today, White Hall serves solely as the administration building. It was the second building constructed on the new campus.
To the right (as you face the front of White Hall) is Grace Hall, another red brick building. It was the original dorms and dining hall for the school. Grace Hall is now The Center of Spiritual Life, offering support services for students and faculty.
It’s Elementary.
In 1884, Volusia County Schools opened the Daytona Colored School as a non-designated part of the school system. Non-designated meant, amongst other things, fewer funds and supplies. It was renamed Second Street Elementary (today’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard) in 1929. Two years later, it was named after White British car-racing legend Malcolm Campbell. Earlier that year, Campbell broke the world land speed record on Daytona Beach, topping 246 mph in his Blue Bird racecar. The school burned down in 1946.
Cypress Street Elementary School
Built in 1926 at 868 George W. Engram Blvd, the building was to alleviate overcrowding at the Daytona Colored School. But from the beginning, Cypress was like no other Daytona school for Colored. First, it was purpose-built, not a recycled aging structure. And it was in the Mediterranean Revival style, popular at the time. But most importantly, it was built to the same standards as all the other schools in Volusia County.
Mary Evelyn Bonner was the first principal, serving from 1927 until 1959. In 1954, they renamed it Bonner Elementary to honor her dedication, advocacy, and influential leadership. It served the Black community for decades until integration in the late 1960s. In 1996, it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today, it houses a charter school.
West Daytona Beach
For no better reason than to group sites in similar areas, let’s call everything west of Nova Road, West Daytona Beach. Here, you are not going to find century-old houses and endless listings from the National Register of Historic Places. Why? Because until the 1950s, Nova Road (State Road 5A) was a bypass west of Daytona Beach. (ie, country.)
Daytona Aquarium & Rainforest Adventure.
Florida has had some questionable animal attractions over the years, including Dogland, Dinosaur Jungle, and even mermaids. And if you told me they were putting one in an empty Burlington Coat Factory on Nova Road, I might expect very little, which is why Daytona Aquarium & Rainforest Adventure took me by surprise. Not the scope of Marineland or SeaWorld; you did see I said ‘inside a department store’? But I was not ready for how much they crammed inside the space.
There are 35+ separate exhibits in the aquarium section, including a 100,000-gallon shark tank. There are two touch pools, with the larger one home to stingrays. There are also frogs, lizards, and big lizards (alligators) on display. Full disclosure, I did not see the Rainforest section, which opened in 2025. If it is half as well done as the aquarium, it should be very entertaining. Here you can see sloths, otters, lemurs, and more.
Cici and Hyatt Brown Museum of Art
Just south on Nova Road is what I like to call Museum Park. (The actual name is Tuscawilla Park.) As the sign on the entrance wall says, it is home to the Museum of Arts & Sciences.
What it doesn’t tell you, although you can see it from Nova Rd, is that it is also home to the Cici and Hyatt Brown Museum of Art. The main halls, which have the feeling of a grand lodge, contain a portion of the more than 2,600 pieces in Mr. and Mrs. Brown’s collection of Florida art. That quantity makes this the world’s largest collection of Florida art.
The Florida-themed canvases, in both oil and watercolor, are rotated so you never see the same collection twice. In addition, the museum has temporary displays on loan, a gift shop, and a cafe.
Museum of Arts & Sciences
The name is very misleading, as it actually refers to several museums in one place.
The Root Family Museum: The Root Glass Co. invented the patented Coca-Cola bottle and became the first bottling plant. In 1951, they moved the company to Daytona Beach, where they ran it until they sold their majority stake (about 57%) in Associated Coca-Cola Bottlers back to the parent Coca-Cola Company in 1982 for a total of $417.5 million.
So, their museum includes one of the largest Coca-Cola memorabilia collections in the world. In addition, there are two of their private train cars, Indy race cars, and the largest teddy bear collection in Florida. To name a few.
Lowell and Nancy Lohman Planetarium is a state-of-the-art facility where science, art, and technology all come together.
Charles and Linda Williams Children’s Museum has numerous hands-on, interactive exhibits that demonstrate various scientific principles in a fun way.
The L. Gale Lemerand Wing – features the Cuban Foundation Museum, Prehistory of Florida Gallery, and traveling temporary exhibitions.
The North Wing is home to permanent collections, including the Kenneth Worcester Dow and Mary Mohan Dow Gallery of American Art.
And outside is Tuscawilla Preserve, a 62-acre virgin Florida coastal hydric hammock and habitat for numerous endangered species of flora and fauna. There are over half a mile of boardwalks and nature trails with interactive learning stations.
Daytona’s Tarragona Tower
Dating to the 1924 land boom, this Spanish Colonial Revival tower marked the entrance to the city’s residential development, originally named Cochina Highlands. It features local coquina rock in a design inspired by a tower and wall in Tarragona, Spain.
The sales office was on the ground floor, and an interior staircase led buyers upstairs where they could look over the “highlands.”
There were originally two arches, and the structure was at the corner of Volusia (now International Speedway Boulevard) and Taggagona Way, wiU.S. an arch over both streets. In 1942, the US Army tore down the arch over Volusia in case they needed to move equipment along this major street. (They never did.)
When the Florida State Department of Transportation announced plans to widen International Speedway Boulevard in 1994, public outcry was so great that they lifted and moved the tower and wall 75 feet south of their original location.
Southeast Museum of Photography
On the campus of Daytona State College, just off W International Speedway Blvd, it looks small from the outside. However, as you walk into the soaring light main lobby, you see there is space for many of their almost 6,000-piece collection.
The museum hosts traveling exhibits as well as the work of current students and alums. Find out why a photo is not just like every other photo as you explore the wide range of photographic styles, techniques, and genres. Check the orange link for opening hours.
Mori Hosseini Student Union, Embry-Riddle
Mori Hosseini, a very successful home builder and resident of Volusia County, is well known for his philanthropic contributions. The Southeast Museum of Photography is in the Mori Hosseini Center, which also houses the Mori Hosseini College of Hospitality Management.
However, it is on the campus of his alma mater where he has really outdone himself. The Mori Hosseini Student Union at Embry-Riddle is the centerpiece of the campus. Dating from 2018, it is a dramatic nod to where the university is going: the future.
Grab a nationally-known coffee or chicken sandwich from the food court, a hat or T-shirt from the bookstore, and maybe catch a practice of the award-winning ERAU Flight Team at the nearby runway.
Datona Racing Today.
Daytona International Speedway
Whether you fly in or drive, it is hard to miss this landmark of automobile racing that covers almost 500 acres. Sure, it is home to the iconic 2.5-mile superspeedway, and it can accommodate over 100,000 race fans, but it has so much more to offer.
The Daytona 500 is not the only famous race at this track. Check out the website for upcoming events.
Motorsports Hall of Fame of America
Located on the grounds of Daytona International Speedway, this is not just a car-racing museum. It is a hall of fame to all the men and women who have pushed the limits in car, boat, and even airplane racing. And yes, there are race cars in the vehicle corral. You can also learn about Daytona’s racing history on road and sand. Even if you are not a racecar fanatic, this museum really is interesting.
Daytona NASCAR Racing Experience and Richard Petty Driving Experience
Not happy with just having your photo in front of a racing machine? Why not go for a spin on the track? You can ride along, or (for quite a bit more) drive a racing car at the Daytona International Speedway. Check the webpage for dates available, as it is not available during professional events. (Please note: the price does not include champagne, a trophy, your photo on the cover of Sports Illustrated, or beautiful girls fawning over you.)
LPGA International
Racing cars a little too fast for you? Why not slow things down with a round of golf? Florida is famous for its golf and courses. Just west of the speedway is the home course of the LPGA Tour. It has two 18-hole courses, one designed by Arthur Hills and the other by Rees Jones. Golf Digest rates both courses 4-Star. And the great thing is, they are open to the public. Check the website to book a tee time.
Buc-ee’s Daytona Beach
Need jerky, Texas BBQ, Beaver Nuggets, or just a fill-up at one of the 104 fuel pumps, you’re covered. It’s “just a gas station,” “tourist trap,” call it what you will, it draws people like moths to a flame. And, the bathrooms have always been clean on my visits. Located almost between the LPGA and the speedway, expect lines and waiting to leave your money.
Daytona Summary.
Sure, there is the beach and racing.
I hope this shows you that there is much more to Daytona than just cars, motorcycles, and beaches.
Set aside at least a day to see the sights of this East Coast gem.
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