Reviving Heritage in a Historic Gem City: Examining the Management of History at the Colonial Quarter in St. Augustine, Florida

<p>The Colonial Quarter is a living history venue of Spanish and British colonial heritage in St. Augustine, Florida. Since 1966, the site has housed interpretive structures and programming related to St. Augustine’s colonial history. Over time, management of the site has fallen under the purview of the state of Florida, the city of St. Augustine, and the University of Florida Historic St. Augustine (UFHSA) Direct Support Organization, which functions as a managing agency for the state. In 2013, the UFHSA Board entered into a public-private partnership with the Colonial Quarter, LLC. This marks the first instance of private sector involvement at the site. Through a critical heritage studies lens, this thesis investigates the effect of partial privatization at the site as well as the functionality of the public-private partnership model for mitigating funding issues faced by heritage sites across the nation. It considers how different actors in the site’s public-private partnership influence the presentation of history at the Colonial Quarter as well as the benefits and challenges of this model. This research found that elements of the site demonstrated both change and continuity following partial privatization. Additionally, there are notable benefits and challenges of the Colonial Quarter’s management model. Ultimately, I argue that the public-private partnership formed between the University of Florida Historic St. Augustine Board and the Colonial Quarter LLC. is a viable management model for mitigating the challenges faced by heritages sites struggling to rely solely on public funding in the United States.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

M.A.

Level thesis:degree_level

Masters Thesis

Year

2023

Author dc:creator

• Bonner, Madeline

Contributors dc:contributor

• Christina Kreps
• Bonnie Clark
• Aaron Schneider

• Heritage management
• Living history
• Public-private partnership
• St. Augustine Florida
• Arts and Humanities
• History
• Museum Studies

Statement dc:rights

• <p>Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.</p>

Language dc:language

English (eng)

Repository record dc:identifier

https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/2262

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:digitalcommons.du.edu:etd-3255