Nell Ward Lecture: Making Sense of the Wild Frontier
Wednesday, October 28, 2026 · 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM EDT
Tampa Bay History Center, 801 Water Street, Tampa · Tampa, FL
About this event
Making Sense of the Wild Frontier: Early Survey Work in Florida, 1821-1880 Featuring historian Joe Knetsch, Ph.D. Join us this year in October for our annual Nell Ward Lecture. Historian Joe Knetsch will take the audience back to 19th-century Florida, a wild place where the absence of details and facts was replaced by mystery and legends. A small but dedicated corps of surveyors brought order to the land of alligators and swamps, tasked with the almost impossible job of evenly partitioning the land. Those early surveys survive to this day and are the basis of all land transactions in the state. Time: Doors open at 6:00 p.m.; Program at 6:30 p.m. Location: TECO Hall (2nd floor) at the History Center Parking: Free valet parking will be provided. GET TICKETS JOIN ON ZOOM Stay for a book signing following the talk. The Nell Ward Lecture is an annual special lecture, free and open to the public, offering a fascinating journey through cartography, exploration and history. About the lecturer: Joe Knetsch served as historian for the Division of State Lands at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for 28 years. He earned a Ph.D. in history from Florida State University. He has authored and edited 16 books, mostly on Florida history, and more than 200 published articles on history. He has also written more than 40 book reviews for national magazines. Knetsch has served on the editorial boards of several magazines, including Tampa Bay History and El Escribano. He has also served on the boards of the St. Augustine Historical Society, the Broward Historical Commission, the Tallahassee Historical Society and the Florida Historical Society. He lives in Tallahassee with his wife of 50 years, Linda, and their four cats.
Event details
- Date and time
- Wednesday, October 28, 2026 · 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM EDT
- Venue
- Tampa Bay History Center, 801 Water Street, Tampa · Tampa, FL
- Category
- Outdoors
- Cost
- Cost not stated
- Age guidance
- Age guidance not specified
- Format
- In person
- Last verified
- October 3, 2026
Accessibility
Wheelchair: Not stated
Assistive Listening: Not stated
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