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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
My Miami story began the day my KLM flight touched down from Cuba at Miami International Airport. I was traveling alone in 1961 at the age of 11. I was going to some unknown destination, which turned out to be an orphanage in Colorado, arranged by Operation Pedro Pan. I… Read More
My grandfather and other family members were Miami pioneers, having arrived in 1895 from Crescent City, Florida. My grandfather, T. N. Gautier, was one of 500 signatures needed for Miami to incorporate as a city. He was also the first school superintendent for Miami. His grocery store, Miami Groceries, was… Read More
In the 1940s, my father Joseph Lanteigne Sr., worked at the Grain Federation League grain elevators on the docks in Albany, N.Y. My mother, Elizabeth Lanteigne, was a nurse at Albany Hospital. Each morning, after returning home from working the night shift, Mom would turn on our black-and-white television set… Read More
I was born at Coral Gables Hospital in 1948. My mother was from Brooklyn, my father from Morriston. He was a CPA, in the Giller Building on the Beach, at the exit off the Julia Tuttle Causeway onto Arthur Godfrey Road. He said that every day when he drove across… Read More
My mother hanging on to the top of a telephone pole is one of my earliest memories of South Florida. It lingers in my mind some sixty years later. Soon after we moved here from up north, a hurricane blew through. My father was away on business, so it was… Read More