Florida Museum is one of hope, courage and strength. Don't diminish the Holocaust's impact.
Written: Apr 16 '04 (Updated May 06 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Very well done; unusual exhibits such as the box car and wall of memories.
Cons: The 3rd floor incident will lower my rating. Other than that none.
The Bottom Line: A well done and not overwhelmingly large museum. It's worth the trip and $8.00
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| jo.com's Full Review: Florida Holocaust Museum in St. Petersburg |
During out December/January 3-week trip we visited the Florida Holocaust Museum. This review instills in me a need to editorialize a bit. I will put these thoughts at the end in case you would rather not read them.
Information:
The Florida Holocaust Museum is located at 55th Street South in St. Petersburg. They are open Monday-Friday 10:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M and Saturday and Sunday from 12:00 P.M. – 5:00 P.M. The last admission is at 4:00. We spend close to 3 hours here so you certainly want to give yourself more than 1 hour unless that is all you have and you are leaving the area.
It costs $8 for adults; $7 for seniors and college students; $3 for students under 18 and it is free if you are a member or under 6 years old. Tours are available by calling 727-820-0100. They have a toll free number, which is 1800-960-7448.
The museum is handicapped accessible. There are free wheelchairs and many of the exhibits are in large print.
Our bags went through an x-ray machine and you may have your bags checked.
What struck me before I even entered the building were the 11 flames burning outside. Although every Holocaust Museum in which I have been talks about the additional 5 million people killed during this time, I haven't been to one which emphasized this fact so much. 6 million people of course were Jews but 5 million other people who were not the right color, who were disabled, gay or just didn’t fit into the Nazi regime were put to death as well. The FHM emphasizes this within the Museum and does so by lighting 11 flames rather than 6. I was taken by the museum’s discussion of bigotry and genocide in general.
You will get a wand in which you can listen to a self-guided tour. This is free with admission. You may be surprised to know that this museum is the 4th largest Holocaust Museum in the country. Although it has 3 floors the displays are all on the first floor.
What you will see:
You will start at the theater where there is an audio/visual presentation as an introduction to the museum. The first floor has 12 areas. Each area shows an aspect of the Holocaust including early Anti-Semitism (Which they correlate in the audiotape to Black America- I thought that interesting and thought provoking.) and the rise of the Nazi Party.
Our second stop was dedicated to Jewish Life before the Holocaust. We were taken through pictures and voices through prewar Germany. From there we read and heard about the rising of the Nazi Party. We heard about the elections of Germany and of course the Germany that led to one created by Hitler.
Another section deals with the beginning of the Holocaust which I learned came from “The Pogrom of 1938, Kristallnacht. This was the beginning of destruction when synagogues, Jewish owned businesses and arrests of Jews took place.
We’ll once again despondently learn that much of the world including the United States didn’t care. It is in this section that you’ll see a real Boxcar (it has a number – it’s official) in the middle of this large room. It actually sits on tracks from Treblinka (a concentration camp). It is a heartwrenching memorial to this horrific time. I’ve seen shoes, and millions of personal items piled up particularly at the content_117654785668, but the boxcar was a new site.
On one side of the boxcar is a wall of photographs, which belong to survivors, or families of non-survivors. This is really a moving tribute. You’ll see a picture light up and then hear in your wand a voice explaining the picture you are seeing. You might hear, “This was my uncle and aunt sitting at dinner on a Friday night celebrating Shabbat (the Sabbath).” It is really a wonderful section because it talks of good times that families enjoyed rather than the horror witnessed.
On the other side of the boxcar you’ll find what the museum calls a meditation court where we sat and read the names of the heroes of the Holocaust, some unknown, some famous such as Oskar Schindler and Anne Frank.
We finished the first floor with the liberation by Allied Forces. We learn about the 21 high ranking Nazi officials brought to trial and those who are still being pursued and prosecuted.
The second floor is a beautiful art gallery. It is the largest art gallery in any Holocaust museum in the world. The exhibits change every 3-9 months so if you go a second time there is a good chance you would see new artwork. The artwork is an effort to teach the Holocaust through art and though I am not a lover of art museums, this gallery is quite unique.
The third floor is learning center, a library and research facility. It is open to the public and material can be checked out just like in a traditional library. School groups are often here as well as adult eduction. *
We ended in the Museum Store, which has beautiful items, great t-shirts and books. Proceeds from merchandise sold through the store benefit the Museum and its educational programs.
Most memorable:
There were two areas I didn’t mention above because they were so memorable and unique I wanted to save them for last. One was a model made up of several displays. I pressed a button and an area lit up such as the deportation area; another button lit up the gas chambers; the countries affected; the gate at Auschwitz, a model of Auschwitz and the ghettos. It was very well done and quite unusual.
The other is called the meditation room. I had never been in a museum that had such as room. I don’t think you have to be Jewish to feel what the impact of such a room has on people. Perhaps the impact is felt more if one is Jewish. You can let me know if you’ve been here. In this room we found candles we lit. We light what are called Yahrzeit candles. They are lit during the year on the anniversary of the death of a loved one and during certain holidays. Books were available if we wanted to say Kaddish (the Jewish mourner's prayer); yarmalkes were available (skullcaps) and you'll see a flame over a “screaming” statue which you may have seen in other museums. There are seats so you can sit and remember.
Jo’s final thoughts:
The word Holocaust comes from the Greek word meaning a sacrificial offering consumed by fire. The Holocaust was the state-sponsored persecution and methodical elimination of European Jewry by the Nazis between 1933 and 1945. **
April 19 is Yom HaShoah Holcaust Remembrance Day. We honor the memory of the six million lost Jews by learning about their heroism in the face of inhumanity, and exploring the roots of anti-Semitism. To help us remember please go to the following site:
Holocaust Remembrance Day
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. George Santayana
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* I did not see this and perhaps it was on display for a short time only. It seems that items do come and go which is just as well because it bothered me when I heard about it. The reason I am sharing the story is because when I heard it I thought. If I can get people to think, I’ve done well.
When I told my friend who lives in Fort Myers that we went to this museum she commented that it was a nice one. She was bothered by something she saw there. During one visit she went up to the third floor. It seemed a school group had been there learning and doing a project. I don’t know the essence of the project only the end result. The end result my friend said was a swatzstika and a Star of David next to each other. The writing under them said, "We are all the same."
No we are not all the same and it makes me sick to think someone is teaching our children, with good intentions, I understand, that the Nazis and my children are the same. The point I am sure that was being made was we shouldn’t hate each other. Some may say we come from the same G-d or we all have the same roots or whatever justification there was for this lesson. I say that this evil came from nothing I ever want to be associated with and don’t want be the same.
**Although you can tell me about all the other religions that have been persecuted, people who have been killed, there has never been so many people killed in this way in such a short time. Please don't diminish the impact and implication of the Holocaust by prefacing it with...but there were or are others...personally I don’t want to hear it. Nor do most Jews and hopefully most human beings.
Related reviews:
US Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, D.C.
Museum of Jewish Heritage
The New England Holocaust Memorial
The Rhode Island Holocaust Museum
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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