East Central Florida
Although speeding race cars and soaring space shuttles take the spotlight among Central East Florida attractions, travelers will be pleasantly surprised to find a wealth of historical gems quietly awaiting discovery, just slightly off the beaten path.Not far from the roar of race car engines, Daytona Beach’s downtown historic district features a variety of museums, churches, galleries and other cultural finds, nestled along the banks of the scenic Halifax River. Housed in an old bank building on Beach Street, the Halifax Historical Museum features Indian and Spanish artifacts found on nearby plantations, memorabilia from the early days of beach automobile racing and newspapers dating back to 1883.
Wandering the sunny downtown streets, visitors are sure to notice the animated window displays of Dunn Toys & Hobbies, reputed to be the "South’s Largest Toy Store" and a Daytona Beach tradition since 1904. Inside the multicolored building, shoppers will find two floors of European toys, collector dolls and model trains to tickle their fancy. Downstairs, the charming 1904 Coffee Shop serves plenty of goodies. For more sweet treats, visit nearby Angell & Phelps Chocolate Factory, which offers free, guided tours into the history and how-to of chocolate making. Free candy samples make this stop even more delicious.
Several miles away, travelers will find the white-framed, two-story house of Mary McLeod Bethune on the campus of historic Bethune-Cookman College. At the site, visitors can learn about the renowned civil rights leader and her famous college through photographs and artifacts. Nearby, on the campus of another educational institution, visit the Southeast Museum of Photography. Housed on the campus of Daytona Beach Community College, the museum is one of only 12 photography museums in the country and features historical and contemporary photography exhibits.
Once the winter home of John D. Rockefeller, the Casements is now the city of Ormond Beach’s cultural center. Visitors will enjoy art exhibits, the Hungarian Historic Room, a Boy Scout exhibit and the historic Rockefeller period room.
At Lighthouse Point Park, visitors can stroll along a boardwalk stretching across a working jetty, or picnic under a waterfront pavilion with beautiful views of the ocean, river and lighthouse. Nearby, the 100-year-old Ponce Inlet Lighthouse offers a panoramic view of the surrounding Atlantic coast.
Within minutes of world-famous beaches, west Volusia County offers old-fashioned towns and oak-lined avenues, making it seem a world away from Daytona’s hustle and bustle. Tucked along DeLand’s shady streets, visitors will find more than 300 architectural gems, including Stetson University, Florida’s oldest private university. On self-guided tours of the area, be sure to stop at beautiful DeLand Hall and the President’s Home on the university’s campus, as well as the Henry A. DeLand House, Gillespie Museum of Minerals, and the DeLand Museum of Art located nearby. The historic downtown district offers an abundance of antique shops, art galleries and eccentric bistros, such as Caffe’ Da Vinci, an "artist’s coffee house."
Central East Florida visitors will also find pleasant historic districts in the midst of the Space Coast’s high-technology, space-age attractions. Originally settled in the 1860s, Historic Cocoa Village features a quaint collection of 50 shops and eateries along oak-shaded brick sidewalks and cobblestone streets. Numerous historical structures have been restored and are in use once again, including the Village Playhouse, a former vaudeville theater now used for community productions, and the Porcher House, the home of wealthy citrus grove owners, now open for public tours. Leisurely walking tours of the village are offered at Brevard Museum of History and Natural Science.
