Location
418 East University Avenue, Gainesville, FL (across the street from the main museum building).
Located in the historic Gainesville Gospel Tabernacle building, which was built in 1933, it was renovated and restored by the museum in 2016.
Research Access
The Matheson History Museum is committed to providing access to our research collections while ensuring their long-term preservation.
Research visits are available by appointment only and must be scheduled in advance. This allows our staff to prepare materials, provide appropriate guidance, and ensure a safe and productive experience for all researchers.
For the protection of the collection and in accordance with institutional and insurance requirements, a trained staff member must be present during all research appointments.
As a small, independent nonprofit organization, staffing and availability are limited, and we are not able to accommodate walk-in or same-day access requests.
We welcome collaboration with community members, scholars, and organizations and encourage those interested in accessing our collections to contact us to arrange a visit.
To schedule a research appointment please contact our Curator of Collections Chloe Richardson at crichardson@mathesonmuseum.org or 352-378-2280.
Accessibility
The Library & Archives building has an ADA accessible ramp and bathrooms.
Online Catalog
You can now explore our collections online! What is currently available on the Public Access site is only a small part of our collection, so check back regularly for new additions.
Additional Resources
- Our library collection can be searched on the Alachua County Library District website.
- The Alachua County Library District has a wealth of information on Alachua County and Gainesville in the Genealogy and Local History section of their website, including a digital archive of the Gainesville Sun newspaper and historic images of Alachua County.
- The Alachua County Clerk of Courts office hosts Ancient Records on their website. This site provides information such as marriage records, a deed index, and the Alachua Virtual Cemetery, among many other resources.
- The University of Florida Digital Collections host more than 300 outstanding digital collections, containing over 12 million pages, covering over 78 thousand subjects in rare books, manuscripts, antique maps, children’s literature, newspapers, theses and dissertations, data sets, photographs, oral histories, and more for permanent access and preservation. Through UFDC, users have free and Open Access to full unique and rare materials held by the University of Florida and partner institutions.
- The mission of the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program at the University of Florida is to gather, preserve, and promote living histories of individuals from all walks of life. Since its founding in 1967, over 7,000 interviews have been conducted, and more than 150,000 pages of transcribed materials may be found in the SPOHP Archives.
- Gainesville Street name conversions
- Melanie Barr – Extensive knowledge of historic homes and buildings in Gainesville; mvbarr@bellsouth.net
- Fred Awbrey – Consultant on local sports history; awbreyf@gmail.com
- Florida Memory is the digital archives of the State Library and Archives of Florida
- Florida Historical Markers is an excellent resource provided by the State of Florida, searchable by county.
- Florida History by the Florida Department of State
- Chronicling America: Search America’s historic newspaper pages from 1789-1924 or use the U.S. Newspaper Directory to find information about American newspapers published between 1690-present. Chronicling America is a free resource sponsored jointly by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Library of Congress.