Smithsonian traveling exhibit highlighting American Indian identity arrives in Florida
The Smithsonian Museum on Main Street program and the National Museum of the American Indian, in collaboration with Florida Humanities, will present its traveling exhibition, “Americans.” The exhibition explores how deeply intertwined American Indians are in the history, popular culture and identity of the United States. From August 2026 to June 2027, the exhibition will travel to Fernandina Beach, Okeechobee, Fort Myers, St. Petersburg and Panama city. “Americans” is on view at the Amelia Island Museum of History in Fernandina Beach Aug. 21 through Oct. 10, 2026.
Amelia Island Museum of History and the surrounding communities were chosen by Florida Humanities to host “Americans” as part of the Museum on Main Street program -a national/state/local partnership to bring exhibitions and programs to rural cultural organizations.
The exhibition will tour five communities in Florida from August 2026 through June 2027, including:
• Amelia Island Museum of History (Aug. 21 – Oct. 10, 2026)
• Okeechobee Historical Society (Oct. 17 – Dec. 4, 2026)
• Edison & Ford Winter Estates (Dec. 12, 2026 – Feb. 6, 2027)
• Sacred Lands Preservation and Education (Feb. 13 – Apr. 10, 2027)
• Historic St. Andrew Waterfront Partnership (Apr. 17 – June 5, 2027)
“This exhibition is not just an exploration of who the original inhabitants of these lands are, but how we as a nation have chosen to tell their stories, amid both promise and uncertainty,” said Nashid Madyun, Executive Director of Florida Humanities. “In a year in which we have been able to reflect on 250 years of American history, this exhibit asks visitors to look beyond those borders and understand that the history of the American Indian is part of our shared history.”
Based on a major exhibition at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C., “Americans” highlights the ways in which American Indians have been part of the nation’s identity since before the country began. Images of American Indians are everywhere, from imagery on commercial products and professional and high school sports mascots, to classic Westerns and episodes of Seinfeld and South Park. Indian names are everywhere too, from state, city and street names to the Tomahawk missile. Beyond these images and names are familiar historical events and stories-Thanksgiving, Pocahontas, the Trail of Tears and Battle of Little Bighorn-that have become part of everyday conversation.
Through photographs, hands-on interactives, objects and videos, the exhibition offers a new way of understanding a country forever fascinated, conflicted and shaped by its relationship with American Indians. The exhibition title is a play on words and nods to the name originally given to this country’s Indigenous inhabitants by Europeans. It is meant not only as a reminder of the primacy of American Indians in the territory known as the United States but also of the tangled relationship between Indians and the people now called Americans.
With grant funding from Florida Humanities, each location will develop complementary exhibits, host public programs and facilitate educational initiatives to further explore this complicated history and to share local stories about Native American identity and representation in American culture.
“Americans” was developed by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. The exhibition was adapted for travel by Smithsonian’s Museum on Main Street, to reach underserved and rural audiences nationwide. The statewide exhibition tour of “Americans” is made possible by Florida Humanities with funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the State of Florida through the Division of Arts and Culture and the National Endowment for the Arts. Programmatic support is provided in cooperation with Florida State University’s Native American and Indigenous Studies Center. Additional support is provided by the Jacarlene Foundation.
Support is provided by the Smithsonian’s Our Shared Future: 250, a Smithsonian-wide initiative commemorating the nation’s 250th. Signature support for Smithsonian’s Our Shared Future: 250 has been provided by Lilly Endowment Inc. Additional generous contributions have been made by Target.