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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
They call Miami “the Magic City,” which is fitting, because it’s always able to reinvent itself. I was born in Hialeah Hospital in 1981. History is full of eras, but this specific moment was the beginning of change, an almost traceable line of demarcation. My mother fled Cuba in… Read More
I reached to pull the yellow lever that would release our glider’s tether to the noisy silver crop duster that was towing us to 3,000 feet over Homestead at the edge of Florida’s Everglades. This lever — and the towrope that connected us to the plane — was our only… Read More
My dad, Anthony Abraham, just turned 99 and lives in the same Coral Gables house he bought in 1952. I wasn’t even born yet, but my mom, dad and my three siblings — George (7), Marion (5) and Judy (3) left Chicago and arrived in Miami in 1950 along with… Read More
My father was a fisherman, as were his fathers, and since I followed in their footsteps, I am a fisherman, too. He fished the streams of Scotland as a boy and, when he came over to Orlando, he fished the freshwater lakes and Indian River, catching bass, trout and flounder. Read More
It was the summer of 2003; I was living in a very old and ugly apartment building between Biscayne Boulevard and Northeast 2nd Avenue, off of 33rd Street. I had a bitter, mentally unstable landlord that walked around with a concealed weapon. I had a part-time gig at the… Read More