Flagler College's main building originally opened as Henry Flagler's Hotel Ponce de Leon on Jan. 10, 1888.
Published on September 29, 2025 at 3:16 pm
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St. Augustine’s private college is enhancing its historical museum with new interactive displays.
Flagler College invested $500,000 in funding from the state to pay for the new additions to the private college’s courtyard and rotunda areas.
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The exhibits include portraits of historic figures coming to life to talk about the history of Flagler College’s centerpiece building, the ability to design your own stained glass window panes and a guest room — complete with original furnishings and reproductions — designed to evoke the hotel in its heyday.
“These new exhibits offer our visitors, students and the St. Augustine community fresh ways to experience the remarkable history of the Ponce,” Flagler College President John Delaney said. “They bring Henry Flagler’s vision to life and deepen appreciation for the cultural and architectural legacy that continues to inspire us today.”
The exhibits are a part of the historic Hotel Ponce de Leon that sits at the heart of Flagler College’s downtown St. Augustine campus. The new exhibits are among the projects paid for with the $70 million the state awarded to the private college to renovate the historic hotel building.
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Built by Henry Flagler in 1888, the Hotel Ponce de Leon operated for 79 years until it closed its doors. The hotel became Flagler College in 1968.
The private college’s rotunda and courtyard are open to the public 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Admission — including to see the new exhibits — is free.
