Seminole Wars, lawless cattle frontier, free blacks, citrus groves, the "boom" years and Disney. It's easy to get a feel for this cross-section of the Florida fantasy by visiting some of the regions outstanding historical museums.

The Orange County Regional History Center in the restored 1927 Courthouse (65 E. Central Blvd.; 407-836-8500) in the heart of downtown Orlando is Central Florida's premier history museum fronted by sculptures and a historic marker in Heritage Park. Inside are banners by Orlando folk artist Linda Schapper depicting the history of Orange County. Four floors of exhibits show how this part of the state developed from the Seminole Wars to the emergence of Orlando as a major urban area.

Nearby, the Wells' Built Museum of African American History and Culture (511 W. South St.; 407-297-9174) tells a different side of Orlando's past. In nearby Maitland, the Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center (851 N. Maitland Ave.; 407-628-0555) speaks to everyone in honoring the memory of the six million Jews killed during the Holocaust. Visitors learn about the tragic events through films, photographs and other exhibits.

Surrounding Orlando are numerous local history museums. Maitland grew up around a fort constructed in the Seminole Wars of the 1830s, and Winter Park began as a winter residence for wealthy Victorians. The Winter Park Historical Museum (200 W. New England Ave.; 407-647-8180) and Maitland Historical Society and Museum (221 W. Packwood Ave.; 407-644-2451) tell the stories of these communities. The Waterhouse Residence and Carpentry Shop Museums in Maitland (820 Lake Lily Dr.; 407-644-2451) illustrates woodworking and family life in late Victorian Florida. William Waterhouse was a Union Army veteran and skilled carpenter, who built many of the early houses in Maitland. His carpentry shop behind the house has been restored; guides demonstrate the use of hand tools.

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