2 Best Sights in The Lower Gulf Coast, Florida

To get a feel for local history, stroll the vignettes and temporary exhibits inside this museum, as well as the parklike displays outside it. A Seminole chickee village, native plant garden, swamp buggy, reconstructed 19th-century fort, steam logging locomotive, and more capture important Naples-area developments from prehistoric times to the World War II era. You can even pack a lunch and picnic in the shady backyard.

Marco Island was once part of the ancient Calusa kingdom. The Key Marco Cat, a statue found in 1896 excavations, has become symbolic of the island's prehistoric significance. The original is part of the Smithsonian Institution's collection, but a replica is one of the items on display that illuminate the ancient past at this museum. Three rooms examine the island's history with dioramas, artifacts, and signage: the Calusa Room, Pioneer Room, and Modern Marco Room. A fourth hosts changing exhibits focusing on the settlement history of the island. Outside, the yard was built to look like a Calusa village set atop a shell mound with a water feature and chickee structure.