Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Florida's snowbirds can be easy to mock, but not this pair. Thomas Edison built his winter
home in 1885 and lived in Florida seasonally until his death in 1931. Edison's friend Henry
Ford built his adjacent bungalow in 1916. Together, and sometimes side by side in
Edis-
on's lab
, these two inventors, businessmen and neighbors changed our world. The
mu-
seum
does an excellent job of presenting the overwhelming scope of their achievements.
Edison, Ford and Harvey Firestone were dedicated 'tin-can tourists' who enjoyed driving
and camping across America together, and exhibits chronicle their journeys and how these
fed their refinements of the automobile. Indeed, the main purpose of Edison's Fort Myers
lab was to develop a domestic source of rubber (primarily using goldenrod plants) for auto
manufacturing, although he then went on to file 1093 patents for things like the lightbulb,
the phonograph, wafflemakers and sprocketed celluloid film.
The rich botanical gardens and genteel homes very nearly glow, and are decked out with
historical goodies and period furniture. Don't forgo the self-guided audio tour of the estates
(guided tours cost $5 extra).
Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve
NATURE RESERVE
239-533-7550;
www.sloughpreserve.org
; 7791 Penzance Blvd; parking per hr/day
$1/5; dawn-dusk)
A 2000-acre slough (pronounced 'slew'), this park is a great place to experience southwest
Florida's flora and fauna. A 1.2-mile
boardwalk trail
is staffed by volunteers who help
explain the epiphytes, cypress knees, migrating birds and nesting alligators you'll find.
Wildlife-watchers should target the winter dry season. The wet summer season is also dra-
matic of course: at its peak, the entire slough becomes a forested stream up to 3ft deep.
The
nature center
(open from 10am to 4pm Tuesday to Sunday) has excellent displays
and offers free guided walks.
From Fort Myers, go south on Cleveland Ave/US 41, east on Colonial Blvd/Hwy 884,
then south for 3 miles on Ortiz Ave (which becomes Six Mile Cypress Pkwy).
Southwest Florida Museum of History
MUSEUM
239-321-7430;
www.swflmuseumofhistory.com
;
2031 Jackson St; adult/
child 3-18yr $9.50/5;
10am-5pm Tue-Sat;
)
