Things to do / Travel Guide
Address:1 Whitehall Way
Palm Beach, Florida
Tel:
(561) 655-2833
The Flagler Museum (also known as Whitehall), is a magnificent mansion furnished with period pieces, in Palm Beach, Florida. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The mansion, built in 1900, was originally the summer retreat for Henry Flagler, the railroad tycoon and founder of Standard oil. Surrounding the mansion is a large open-air courtyard modeled after places in Spain and Italy.
The three storey, air-conditioned mansion is a masterpiece filled with history and antiques. It contains fifty-five, extravagant, palatial size rooms, with marble floors, walls and columns, murals on the ceilings, and heavy gilding. At the Flagler Museum, you'll learn about Florida from its beginnings. You'll discover Florida's Gilded Age, one of the most fascinating periods in American history.
Visitors have a choice of three tour options: a narrated audio tour (audio devices are distributed at the entrance to the museum), a self-guide brochure, or a docent-led tour (available three times daily). Permanent exhibits on Flagler's life and career, includes an extensive lace collection. The Pavilion is designed in a 19th century Beaux Arts railway palace and houses Flagler's private railcar No. 91, open to visitors year round. In addition to the permanent exhibits, visitors are invited to explore the museum's changing exhibit gallery which features temporary exhibits on topics related to Florida history and America's Gilded Age.
You may want to think twice before taking the very young and older grandparents to the museum as no strollers or bags are allowed through the entrance, and there are not many places to rest weary legs.
The Pavilion Café offers a Gilded Age Style Lunch including sandwiches, scones, and desserts. The Flagler Museum Store offers a variety of specialty products which evoke the romance and grandeur of the Gilded Age. You'll find many exclusive items here.
Get to the Flagler Museum by taking I-95 and exiting east onto Lakeview Ave. Make a left north onto South County Road/State Hwy. A1A. Make a left onto Pendleton and a quick right onto Cocoanut Row. A quick final left and you'll find yourself on Whitehall Way.
Start here to learn about Florida from the beginning, when Henry Flagler's railroads and luxury hotels established tourism and agriculture as the mainstays of Florida's economy. Start Here, to discover the Gilded Age, the most fascinating period in American history.