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Souvenirs of this era often
featured Florida-made souvenirs.
Alligator products, cypress knee
furniture, shellcraft, jams and
jellies made from Florida
citrus, and orange blossom
perfume were staples of
Florida’s souvenir
industry. Most of
these souvenirs
were manufactured
by small “mom and
pop” companies in
Florida.
Among the earliest,
roadside gift shops were
associated with
Seminole Indian
villages that
sprouted up
along the new
Tamiami Trail
not long after it
was completed
in 1928. Florida
roadside
attractions
and gift shops
flourished
following
World War II
and throughout
the 1950s. Post
war prosperity
brought even more
vacationers to
Florida.
Chain roadside
gift shops
began to appear
throughout
Florida during
the 1950s and
1960s. Stuckey’s
and Hornes were
common sites
along major
Florida highways,
and later at
interstate highway interchanges.
Some roadside gift shops evolved
into attractions themselves. The
Shell Factory in Fort Myers and
Tiki Gardens at Indian Rocks
Beach originated primarily as
gift shops and expanded and
evolved into major roadside
attractions.
By the late 1950s, massproduced
souvenirs
such as pennants,
decals, glassware,
ashtrays, and other
Florida novelties
became the most
popular items.
Handcrafted,
Florida-produced
souvenirs were
the exception
as imported
kitsch replaced
traditional
Florida souvenirs
on the shelves.
Florida’s homegrown
vacation
memorabilia
industry rapidly
vanished. Just
as tourists tastes
in attractions
changed, so did
their souvenir
buying habits.
Very few of the
roadside souvenir
stands remained
after the 1970s,
and if they did,
they were stocked
primarily with
generic items
such as T-shirts,
magnets, beach
towels.
There are
numerous types