Henry Flagler was a major driving force behind the Florida Keys development around the beginning of the 1900's. You see his name everywhere, from roads and street names to this history museum in Key West. He was a late 1800's oil tycoon who built hotels and railroads all over Florida around the turn of the century. In 1905 he proposed extending the Florida East Coast Railroad out to Key West, a 130-mile project that would take decades and tons of money. This museum is dedicated to Flagler's ambitious project, and you'll find video recreations of important moments in the building of the railroad, photos, museum guides dressed in historic costumes to bring the narrative alive, and a film about the railroad. There are also exhibits dedicated to the building of the Seven Mile Bridge, another feat of engineering and construction worth knowing about.

Flagler's railroad, which came to be known both as the Overseas Railroad and as the Key West Extension, was wiped out in 1935 by a deveastating hurricane, but this historeum keeps the memory alive in a carefully constructed historical, fascinating manner that is definitely worth the trip. It's open every day from 9am to 6pm and there is a low admission price.