Henry B. Plant Museum, History museum in Tampa, United States
The Henry B. Plant Museum occupies the south wing of Plant Hall, the former Tampa Bay Hotel, a red brick building with light stone trim and three silver domed towers, the tallest with a pointed spire and balcony. Its rooms display hotel furniture and art in spaces arranged as the original suites, with a ground-floor veranda of white columns along the facade.
Henry B. Plant built the Tampa Bay Hotel between 1888 and 1891 as the flagship of the eight hotels anchoring his rail line into Tampa. It closed in 1930 during the Great Depression, and on August 2, 1933, the Tampa Bay Junior College moved into the empty building, later growing into the University of Tampa. The city created the Tampa Municipal Museum in the south wing, renamed the Henry B. Plant Museum in 1974.
The museum exhibits European and Oriental art collections gathered by Henry and Mary Plant, reflecting the luxury standards of nineteenth-century American society.
Most rooms are accessible on the ground floor and tours take about an hour. Audio guides help with self-directed exploration of the collections and rooms.
Some rooms still show the original plumbing and electrical fixtures from before 1900. Staff sometimes display replicas of historical menu cards in the dining hall.
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