On the eve of Pearl Harbor, Florida was the smallest state in the South (smaller than Arkansas or South Carolina). Today, Florida is the third largest state in the nation.Gary R. Mormino, Ph.D. | Historian | Author | Professor Emeritus | Florida Humanities Scholar
Dr. Gary R. Mormino is one of Florida’s most respected historians and a leading voice on the state’s social and cultural evolution. He is the Frank E. Duckwall Professor of History Emeritus and former director of the Florida Studies Program at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg, where he taught from 1977 until his retirement. He currently continues to educate the public as a frequent columnist for the Tampa Bay Times and through numerous public talks and writings.
A graduate of Millikin University (B.A.) and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Ph.D.), Dr. Mormino has dedicated his academic career to exploring the intersections of immigration, urban development, and Florida history. His acclaimed books include Land of Sunshine, State of Dreams: A Social History of Modern Florida (2005), widely regarded as a definitive work on the state’s postwar transformation. Michael Gannon, the noted “dean of Florida studies,” praised the book as “the standard against which all future such efforts in Florida will be measured.”
Dr. Mormino's early scholarly contributions include Immigrants on the Hill: Italian-Americans in St. Louis, 1882–1982, winner of the Howard R. Marraro Prize for outstanding writing in Italian history, and The Immigrant World of Ybor City (co-authored with George Pozzetta), which received the Theodore Saloutos Prize for excellence in ethnic and immigration history.
In addition to his historical scholarship, Dr. Mormino has written and co-authored works exploring Florida’s environment and conservation legacy, including The Everglades: An Environmental History, Waters Less Traveled, and Death in the Everglades: The Murder of Guy Bradley.
A prolific writer and public historian, Dr. Mormino contributes regularly to Florida newspapers, including The Tampa Tribune, Orlando Sentinel, and Miami Herald, and was named the first Humanist of the Year by the Florida Humanities Council in 2003. In 2014, he received the Florida Lifetime Achievement Award for Writing, honoring a career devoted to chronicling the complex, diverse, and ever-changing story of the Sunshine State.
Dr. Mormino is currently completing a long-anticipated book on Florida during World War II, continuing his lifelong mission to deepen our understanding of the state’s place in American history.
Join Len Ferman, The Sports Time Traveler™, for a fascinating look at professional sports during World War II. Many famous athletes were drafted, including baseball legend Hank Greenberg, who served four years and saw combat. Others, with medical deferments, continued to compete—encouraged by President Roosevelt to help lift national morale. This engaging presentation tells the powerful stories of these athletes as they served and played during the pivotal 1945 season. Through vivid storytelling and historical insight, Len reveals how sports became a source of hope and resilience during one of America’s darkest times.
