Celebrate Gainesville’s history at the Family FunDay at the Matheson Museum on Sunday, September 21, 2014 from 1-4 pm. This event commemorates the birthdays of Christopher and Sarah Matheson as well as the 20th anniversary of the Matheson Museum. The celebration will take place at the Matheson Museum and in the adjoining Sweetwater Park. This event will feature a “Paint Out” by members of the Gainesville Fine Arts Association, storytelling by Turbado Marabou, a presentation by the Mad Science Club of the University of Florida, an exhibition by the Gainesville Area Bee Club as well as a lesson and performances by the Gainesville Old-Time Dance Society. You can also browse the Matheson Museum’s new exhibition entitled The Matheson Museum Family Tree, which highlights the impact of Christopher and Sarah Matheson on the Gainesville community. Visitors will also have the opportunity to browse Matheson House and the Tison Tool Barn. The Matheson House is the second oldest house in Gainesville and the Tison Tool Barn is a collection of over 500 tools that tell the story of the industries that invented, and in many cases reinvented Gainesville. For more information call 352-378-2280 or email info@mathesonmuseum.org.
About the 20th Anniversary:
Join us this fall in commemorating the twentieth anniversary of the Matheson Museum, and the over 140 years of family history that helped shape it. From the building of their now historic home by James Douglas Matheson in 1867 to the donation of that same home to the Museum complex in 1996 by Sarah Hamilton Matheson, the Matheson family has served tirelessly to forward the growth of the Gainesville community and preserve its rich cultural heritage. Now the board, staff, and volunteers of the Matheson Museum carry on in their place, preserving the name and the mission of the Matheson family for future generations.
About the Matheson House:
The Matheson House was built in 1867 under the supervision of James Douglas (J.D.) Matheson, who moved to Gainesville after serving in the Civil War. Soon after the move, J.D. Matheson married Augusta Florida Steele, daughter of Cedar Key founder Judge Augustus Steele. As a trade, J.D. and Augusta Matheson ran the Matheson and Company store, which dealt in dry goods. The Mathesons’ only child to survive into adulthood was Christopher.
Christopher Matheson was born in Gainesville in 1874. Christopher attended East Florida Seminary and The Citadel, where he was the valedictorian of his class. After graduating, Christopher moved back to Gainesville and took up law. Christopher was a successful lawyer in town and eventually got into politics. Christopher served eight terms as mayor from 1910 through 1917 and three years in the Florida Legislature from 1917 through 1919. In 1919, Christopher became a Presbyterian minister and moved to Shawnee, Oklahoma where he met his soon-to-be wife.Sarah moved to Shawnee to teach Native American girls at Oklahoma Presbyterian College. Sarah and Christopher married in 1933 and lived in Shawnee until 1946 when they moved back to Gainesville. Christopher died of Parkinson’s disease in 1952. Sarah lived in the Matheson house until she died in 1996 and gave the museum the Matheson house for use as a historic home.
About The Tison Tool Barn:
The over 500 tools collected by Mr. Tison are a rare glimpse into history. Tools tell us about the society that made them. The more advanced a society, the more it produces, and the more tools it uses. Specialist crafts and tools were developed to harvest and turn wood into useful things. Farmers, sawyers, carpenters, joiners, carvers, wagon builders, shipwrights, millwrights and musical instrument makers have all used the properties of different types of wood to make goods. Every stage of a process had its special tool, from saws and axes to gouges and chisels. Mr. Tison’s collection is a sampling of those specialized tools used years ago.
Article by Brad McClenny of the Gainesville Sun
Family FunDay Commercial by Bob White Production
Educator. Artist. Explorer. 