Henry Plant Museum

The Henry B. Plant Museum is housed in the former Tampa Bay Hotel, an opulent winter resort that operated from 1891 - 1932. Since 1933, the Tampa Bay Hotel has been home to the Henry B. Plant Museum and the University of Tampa. The building, renamed Plant Hall, is a National Historic Landmark, commemorating its role as the headquarters for army officers, newspaper correspondents, and the American Red Cross during the Spanish-American War. Unlike most museums dedicated to lifestyles of the past, it contains the actual furnishings enjoyed by the first guests to visit here. The Museum accurately reflects the extravagance of the Gilded Age's industrial elite and, in particular, shipping and railroad magnate Henry B. Plant.