Patricia Zeiler
Trustee Member
Executive Director, Fort Lauderdale Historical Society
I am the executive director of the Fort
Lauderdale Historical Society, which operates three museums and a research library along the Riverwalk. Our History Museum, Pioneer House Museum,
and Schoolhouse Museum are open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Hoch Research Library houses extensive collections of historic photographs, maps, architectural
blueprints, books, periodicals, and local history files. The banks of the New River were once a prized possession of Mary Brickell, who owned four square miles along the river by 1890. In 1926, planner John Schermerhorn envisioned a linear park in the city’s first master plan. Yet those early dreams did not become reality until the Riverwalk Trust was established in 1990. Supporting Riverwalk Fort Lauderdale
honors the vision of forward-thinking planners and civic leaders while helping preserve this natural waterfront space for future generations.