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The Miami Stories initiative collects stories about Miami’s past, present, and future. Through this oral history project, HistoryMiami Museum documents life in the Magic City through written stories, video submissions, and audio recordings, which are preserved in the museum’s archive, and shared online and through local media outlets.
HistoryMiami Museum accepts written stories and video submissions on a rolling basis. We welcome written stories between 500-1,000 words and video stories under 5 minutes about life in Miami. We encourage storytellers to submit a photo with their written story. To submit a written story, complete the Miami Stories Submission Form. To submit a video story, click on the video story link.
How did you or your family get to Miami?
When do you feel like a Miamian?
What would you miss if you left Miami?
What makes Miami, Miami?
What do you see for Miami’s future?
In collaboration with the Cuban Heritage Collection at the University of Miami Libraries and as a part of the program El efecto Mariel: Before, During, and After, HistoryMiami Museum is collecting stories related to the Mariel boatlift of 1980. Members of the community are encouraged to share their personal memories, stories, and reflections related to Mariel. Stories will be collected virtually on a rolling basis and a series of prompts give participants ideas from where they can begin their story. Submitted stories will become part of the permanent collections of the HistoryMiami Museum and Cuban Heritage Collection and featured on both online platforms.
The Miami Stories Recording Booth allows the museum to capture audio stories at local events.
For more information about booking the Miami Stories Recording Booth, see the Recording Booth Information Sheet or contact us at miamistories@historymiami.org.
As part of the 2020 10 Days of Connection, HistoryMiami Museum invited South Florida residents to share a story about an item that reflects an aspect of their cultural identity and build a community exhibit. We continue to collect these stories and invite you to share yours. Either by yourself or accompanied by your loved ones, submit a video explaining how this object represents your cultural identity. Feel free to submit your story in the language of your choice.
Click here to access the Miami Stories Audio Archive
I arrived in Miami on a bright August day in 1993. I was 8. I was born in Dallas, and had moved with my parents to Caracas, Venezuela, and Santiago, Chile, by the third grade, and then we ended up in Miami. I started at Bay Harbor Elementary that… Read More
It was January 1926 when we moved to Miami. Daddy, Dr. George D. Conger, had graduated from the University of Tennessee Medical School and brought mother, Annie Laurie Thomas Conger, and my sister and me to the promise of Miami. I had just turned 4 and my sister,… Read More
In May 1946, at age 7, my mother and father brought me from Toronto, Canada, to Miami to save my life. I had a chronic lung condition (from birth). I was so sickly I weighed only 35 pounds. The wonderful weather in Miami made me healthy in no time. Read More
My Miami story began on March 24, 1944, when my father’s B-24 Flying Liberator, the “Thunder Bay Babe,” was shot down while on a mission to bomb the railroad marshaling yards at Steyr, Austria. Flak hit one of the bombs over Mostar and the plane exploded. Out of a crew… Read More
It was a cold, snowy, winter day in 1967 when, while sitting in my junior high geography class in South Philadelphia, I first read about this tropical paradise called Florida. The book told of beaches, palm trees, alligators, the Fountain of Youth and Bunny Yeager. I knew then that… Read More