Florida Memory is administered by the Florida Department of State, Division of Library and Information Services, Bureau of Archives and Records Management. The digitized records on Florida Memory come from the collections of the State Archives of Florida and the special collections of the State Library of Florida.
State Archives of Florida
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Listen: The Latin ProgramPhoto Exhibits
Photo exhibits spotlight various topics in Florida history, and are accompanied by brief text intended to place selected materials in historical context.
Gridiron Culture in the Sunshine State
The Game and its Rivalries
In the first half of the 20th century several college football teams emerged in Florida. The football program at the University of Florida dates to 1906 when FAC moved to Gainesville. The University of Miami (UM) played its first game shortly after the college was founded in 1926. Florida Agricultural and Mechanical College (later Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, FAMU) opened up play in 1933. Florida State University fielded its first team since 1906 in 1947, the year the school became coeducational. By the early 1950s, FSU, UM, FAMU and UF became the top football programs in the state. The emergence of the big four teams in Florida laid the foundation for rivalries that continue to the present day.
University of Miami player: Miami, Florida (ca. 1920s)
Image Number: PHF008
University of Miami football game: Miami, Florida (ca. 1920s)
Image Number: PHF007
University of Miami football game: Miami, Florida (ca. 1920s)
Image Number: PHF013
Cuban football team arrives to play the University of Miami: Miami, Florida (1928)
Image Number: RC04696
General Note: This is the first Cuban football team to ever make an aerial junket to a game. Picture was taken in 1928, when the team flew one of Pan American World Airways' early tri-motored Clippers to Miami.
University of Miami football player shaking opponent's hand: Miami, Florida (ca. 1920s)
Image Number: PHF005
Game at Florida A&M: Tallahassee, Florida (ca. 1940s)
Image Number: RC14099
FSU versus Stetson: Tallahassee, Florida (1947)
Image Number: C007748
General Note: Referee is standing between the two captains. Jack Tully is the FSU captain at right.
Florida A&M vs. Morris Brown football game: Tallahassee, Florida (1947)
Image Number: C007749
General Note: Florida A&M won the game against Morris Brown 6-0.
Close up view of the Orange Bowl: Miami, Florida (1950)
Image Number: c012647
Florida Seminole Harry Jumper paints a canoe to be awarded to the winner of the Florida – Miami football game: Hollywood Seminole Indian Reservation, Dania, Florida (1955)
Image Number: C022480
General Note: The photograph was taken at the Dania Seminole Indian Reservation. The canoe was made as a trophy to the winner of the Florida-Miami football game.
Football game in Florida Field, University of Florida: Gainesville, Florida (1961)
Image Number: C037435
General Note: University of Florida is playing against Florida State University.
Lane Fenner catching football in FSU-Florida game: Tallahassee, Florida (1966)
Image Number: RC01467
Accompanying Note: "Lane Fenner catching what would have been the winning touchdown in the FSU-Florida game, but the umpire called him out."
Quarterbeck Shaun Shehan takes on University of Florida's defensive line: Gainesville, Florida (1988)
Image Number: MF0055
Accompanying Note: "Montana State quarterback Shaun Shehan (6) falls to the ground as he looks at the University of Florida defensive wall facing him. Florida defensemen L-R: Pat Morrer (45) Joey Nicoletto (49) and Rhondy Weston (68) in the first period of play as the two teams met Saturday."
Defensive back Richard Fain heads to the endzone to the delight of the fans: Gainesville, Florida (1988)
Image Number: MF0289
Accompanying Note: "University of Florida defensive back Richard Fain intercepts a Louisiana State University pass in the first quarter and heads for the endzone to score Florida's first touchdown Saturday as the two teams met in Gainesville."
Florida State versus the University of Miami football game at Doak Campbell Stadium: Tallahassee, Florida (1997)
Image Number: PR12816
General Note: Second home game of the season for Florida State University versus the University of Miami; FSU 47, Miami 0. Two FSU players are shown sacking Ryan Clement, the University of Miami's quarterback. Number 91 is Char-ron Dorsey, number 56 is Roland Seymour, number 53 is Corey Simon, and number 16 being sacked is Ryan Clement.
Related Resources
Features
Territorial Legislative Council Records, 1822-1845
Documenting Florida's legislature prior to statehood
State and County Officer Directories, 1868-1969
Lists of Florida's state and county officials either elected or appointed between 1868 and 1969.
Guide to Military Records and the Wartime Experience
A guide to government records and manuscript collections relating to service members and the wartime experience.
Dust Tracks
21 tracks from Hurston's time documenting African American culture for the WPA in 1930s Florida.
History Day 2025
Resources for Florida History Day from the State Library and Archives of Florida.