Public Understanding of Native American History: Silver Springs State Park and the Glass Bottom Boats
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Authors
Moats, Bryan Cordell
Issue Date
2023-08
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
History , Indigenous peoples--Study and teaching , Academic theses , Glass bottom boats , Florida--Silver Springs , Tourism
Alternative Title
Abstract
Historical tourism is a major industry around the world. However, some locations that utilize history have not typically been considered part of this industry. Such places include Silver Springs State Park, located in Ocala, Florida. The purpose of this study is to explore how Silver Springs impacts public knowledge of Native American history. The first tourist activities began at the springhead of the Silver River in the post-Civil War era. By the 1930s, Silver Springs had become a fully developed amusement park. Most of the current boat fleet was built in the mid to late 1960s and named after historical Native American figures: for example, boats running today include the “Chief Neamathla,” “Chief Micanopy,” “Chief Emathla” and “Chief Charly Cypress.” Western cultural concepts have shaped Native American portrayals at Silver Springs, evidenced by the site’s limited expression of Indigenous facts despite their extensive use of namesakes and history. The Indigenous people of Florida have played a dynamic and important role in the history of the region around Silver Springs and deserve to be recognized properly at the tourist site. While Silver Springs has made an attempt at this recognition, the site has not done so with respect to Indigenous people and cultures. Further efforts to present Native American history need to avoid the tendencies to represent Native Americans with outdated tropes and stereotypes. A focus on historical tourism will increase the authenticity of Native representation at Silver Springs and similar tourist sites.
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This dissertation is protected by the Copyright Laws of the United States (Public Law 94-553, revised in 1976). Consistent with fair use as defined in the Copyright Laws, brief quotations from this material are allowed with proper acknowledgement. Use of the materials for financial gain with the author's expressed written permissions is not allowed.