Spies, Traitors, Saboteurs: Fear and Freedom in America on WFLA's Daytime Show

Check out this segment from WFLA's Daytime host Cyndi Edwards and Riverbank Studios: 

Spies, Traitors, Saboteurs: Fear and Freedom in America

Anarchist Globe Bomb, c. 1886.

Black Tom. Haymarket. The Palmer Raids. These names may not evoke a strong response today, but each represents a decisive - and sometimes deadly - chapter in U.S. history. The Tampa Bay History Center invites you to revisit these sometimes-overlooked events during Spies, Traitors, Saboteurs: Fear and Freedom in America, on exhibit Sat., Feb. 4 through June 24.

How did the government respond after German saboteurs detonated a bomb in New York Harbor in 1916? How did the public feel about the internment of Japanese Americans during WWII? Was the FBI's monitoring of celebrities and writers such as Marilyn Monroe and John Steinbeck justified?

Spies presents more than 100 acts of terror, treason  and civil disobedience in American history, allowing viewers to consider how they might have responded, the motivations of the participants, and whether the government's response was adequate or a violation of our basic rights and liberties.

For more information about the exhibit, visit our website or, listen to an interview with History Center Curator Rodney Kite-Powell. To see more images from the exhibit, visit our facebook page.




















International Spy Museum’s Spies, Traitors & Saboteurs Opens at Tampa Bay History Center

A new traveling exhibition at the History Center explores the history of domestic terrorism and espionage from 1776 to Sept. 11, 2001.

Wall Street. Sept. 16, 1920. 12:01 p.m. A horse-drawn carriage loaded with dynamite detonates in front of the J.P. Morgan Bank, killing 38 people and shutting down New York’s Financial District.

The bombing of Wall Street more than 90 years ago is one of many episodes in America’s long history of domestic terrorism, espionage and civil disobedience uncovered in Spies Traitors and Saboteurs: Fear and Freedom in America, a new exhibition opening at the Tampa Bay History Center on Sat., Feb. 4.

On loan from the world-famous International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C., Spies, Traitors and Saboteurs revisits long-forgotten events in our nation’s history, from the capture of the White House in 1814, to the bombing of the U.S. Capitol building in 1971 to recent events such as the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing and the September 11 attacks of 2001.

The exhibition dramatically illustrates the challenges of securing our nation against internal threats without compromising the civil liberties upon which it was founded, and reflects on how responses to domestic attacks continue to affect our everyday lives.

Timeline of Events

• The City of Washington captured and the White House burned – August 24, 1814

• Manhattan hit by massive explosions in New York Harbor – July 30, 1916

• Anarchist bombings target American leaders – June 2, 1919

• 30,000 Ku Klux Klan members parade down Pennsylvania Avenue – August 8, 1925

• American helps Japanese pilot terrorize Hawaiian island after Pearl Harbor attack – December 7, 1941

• Kremlin launches one of the first Cold War attacks against the United States – April 1945


• Radical group detonates a bomb in the U.S. Capitol – March 1, 1971

• Massive bomb destroys the Federal Building in Oklahoma City – April 19, 1995

• Beyond September 11th – Terrorism Today


Artifacts include:

• More than 145 historic photographs and documents

• Timeline tracing more than 170 different events

• Anarchist Globe Bomb (replica, ca. 1886) presented as evidence in the trial of the men tried in connection with the Chicago Haymarket riot.

• APL Badge and ID Card (1917) carried by operatives of the American Protective League (APL) who spied on their fellow Americans on behalf of the U.S. Justice Department during World War I.

• Ritual Klan Red Robe (c. 1965) worn by the Klan “Kladd,” the elected Klan officer who presided over the secret rituals and ceremonies of the Ku Klux Klan.

• Fragments of the Planes that Hit the World Trade Center (2001), recovered after the attacks on September 11, 2001, and used as evidence by the FBI in their ensuing investigation.

• Visitor Polling Stations, unique computer interactive that allow visitors to express their opinions on questions raised in the exhibition about how the nation has responded to the historical events presented. Poll questions were developed in consultation with The Gallup Organization. Visitors also can see how Americans responded to similar questions posed by the Gallup Poll throughout history.

Spies, Traitors and Saboteurs: Fear and Freedom in America will make its only scheduled stop in Florida at the History Center Feb. 4 - June 24. The exhibition is recommended for ages 12 and up. For more information on related programming, visit our website or call (813) 228-0097.

Celebrate Lincoln's Birthday with $5 admission to the Tampa Bay History Center

Celebrate Abraham Lincoln's birthday with $5 dollar admission to the History Center from 10:00 a.m. 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 12th.

In addition to reduced admission, the Confederate militia of Fort Brooke will re-appear on the banks of Hillsborough Bay when local re-enactors set up camp in Cotanchobee Park, just steps away from the History Center entrance.

This family-friendly day of activities includes Confederate and Union drill demonstrations, children's activities and historical reenactors throughout the exhibit galleries.

Our latest exhibition, Blue and Gray in Tampa Bay: The Civil War on Florida's Gulf Coast, features Civil War-era maps, weaponry, photographs and reproduction uniforms, located in the Wayne Thomas Gallery. Learn how the War Between the States affected Secessionists, Unionists, slaves and women in the Tampa Bay area. In addition, the History Center is featuring the traveling exhibit Florida in the Civil War, on loan from the Orange County Regional History Center.

The $5.00 admission rate cannot be combined with other discounts or offers and is good for admission on February 12, 2011 only.

Cattle Exhibit Stampedes Into History Center

Don your best cowboy boots and join us on Saturday, September 19th for the opening of Florida Cattle Ranching: Five Centuries of Tradition, the first exhibit to open in the Tampa Bay History Center's new third-floor Gallery.

Florida Cattle Ranching chronicles the history and culture of one of Florida's oldest industries. Southern pioneers, Florida "Crackers" and Florida Seminoles all played a part in Florida's ranching legacy, which began when Spanish explorers brought cattle and horses to Florida in the 16th century. To date, cattle ranching remains an integral part of the state's economy.

This exhibit features oral histories, Florida folk music, cowboy art and documentary footage.
Saturday's opening will include whip-making demonstrations, children's activities, and a book signing with author Joe Ackerman.

Florida Cattle Ranching: Five Centuries of Tradition was produced by the Florida Folklife Program, Department of State, and Florida Cultural Resources, Inc. Funding was provided by the National Endowment for the Arts/Folk & Traditional Arts, Florida Humanities Council, Florida Cattlemen's Association, Florida Cattlemen's Foundation, Florida Division of Cultural Affairs, Florida Cracker Cattle Association, Lalla Rook Tompkins, Iris Wall, and Susanne and Pete Clemons. The traveling exhibit was made possible by the Museum of Florida History.