Saturday, December 5, noon –  2 p.m.

Author Rick Kilby, designer and managing editor of the History Center’s magazine, “Reflections from Central Florida,” will be on hand to sign his latest book, Florida’s Healing Waters: Gilded Age Mineral Springs, Seaside Resorts, and Health Spas, published this fall by the University Press of Florida.

Using a wealth of fascinating images, Kilby explores the Victorian practice of “taking the waters” in Florida, as the state’s natural wonders were developed and promoted as restorative destinations for America’s emerging upper class. The rapid growth in tourism infrastructure that began during the Gilded Age lasted well into the twentieth century, when these now-lost resorts helped shape the economy of modern Florida.

Rick Kilby’s first book, “Finding the Fountain of Youth,” was published in 2013 and won a Florida Book Award in the Visual Arts category.

Books will be available for sale at the History Center gift shop. Kilby will give a talk about “Florida’s Healing Waters” on December 1 at noon, via Zoom.