Bradenton and the surrounding Manatee River area has a rich history starting with large Indian settlements to the arrival in 1539 of Spanish explorer Hernando DeSoto.

The town was named after the first settler in the area Joseph Braden, but the secretary at the meeting in which the town was named misspelled Braden, adding an ‘i’. In 1888, Braidentown became the county seat. The name was corrected in 1905, when the town was renamed Bradentown.

By the turn of the twentieth century, Bradentown had developed a thriving Main Street, which included a shopping and hotel district complete with an Opera House. The Fuller building, erected in the early 1900s, remains from this era, and now houses businesses and shops along Old Main Street. Bradenton’s first public library, dedicated in 1918, is still in use as the Manatee County Historical Records Library.

A wooden bridge connecting Bradentown and Palmetto, the Victory Bridge, was constructed in 1919. As a sign of the growing significance of the town, Bradentown was renamed Bradenton in 1924.

South Florida Museum

The South Florida Museum traces the state's geologic and cultural history, ranging from prehistoric fossils to the recreated dwellings of Florida's earliest Spanish settlers. The complex also boasts the Bishop Planetarium, where shows are given daily, and the Parker Manatee Aquarium.

Last updated:   January 31, 2012 21:51