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The Matheson History Museum is a history museum in Gainesville, Florida. It includes a local history museum, the historic Matheson House, and the Tison Tool Barn.
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Matheson History Museum
The Matheson History Museum building, formerly an American Legion Hall and officially opened as a museum in 1994, houses the bulk of the museum complex's historical records, collections and displays. The front of the building has a gift shop and a recreation of the Matheson Dry Goods Store that used to exist on Alachua Avenue (now University Avenue). The main gallery consists of a permanent display of local and Florida history along the east wall, with the remainder of the space devoted to temporary exhibitions that change approximately every three months. The back of the building contains the Helen C. Ellerby Library, where visitors can conduct research into the history of Alachua County with a wide collection of books, periodicals, photographs and oral histories.
Matheson House
Originally owned and built by the Matheson family, from which the museum takes its name, this house was built in 1867 and is one of the three oldest houses in Gainesville. It was home to Christopher Matheson, Gainesville's longest serving mayor. It was deeded to the museum in 1996 upon the death Christopher's widow, Sarah Hamilton Matheson, who was also one of the original board members and founders of the museum. Sarah Matheson was also an early president of the Alachua County Historical Society, which originated in 1967 and merged with the museum in 1994 under the new name of Alachua County Historic Trust: Matheson Museum, Inc. In 2014 the museum changed its name to the Matheson History Museum. The Matheson House contains original furniture, artwork and artifacts from antebellum and Victorian era Florida.
Tison Tool Barn
Donated to the museum in 1993, the Tison Tool barn houses the extensive tool collection of John Mason Tison Jr. Originally located on Tison's property, it was entirely deconstructed and rebuilt on the museum grounds. It displays historic tools from various industries ranging from lumber to electrical engineering.
Sweetwater Park
Located directly behind the museum and maintained jointly by the Matheson History Museum and the City of Gainesville, Sweetwater Park is a botanical garden with an alphabetized display of native plant life. The park is free and open to the public.
Matheson Library and Archives
Purchased by the museum in the summer of 2014, this building was originally a tabernacle church built in 1933. From 1976 to 1980 retired cardiologist and Matheson co-founder Dr. Mark Barrow and his wife, Mary, operated an antique store in the building. In 1982 they sold the building to Orlando investors, and from 1982 to 2009 it was a Melting Pot fondue restaurant. The Matheson History Museum received a $300,000 historic preservation grant from the Florida Department of State, Division of Historical Resources, along with contributions from private donors, to transform the building into a library and archive for the museum's local history collections.