page_title: Weeki Wachee Springs
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Weeki Wachee Springs / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Underwater view of a woman, wearing a long gown, floating in water. Photograph by Toni Frissell at Weeki Wachee Springs, Florida, USA, 1947. (In 2012, a colorized version by Reddit user 'agnoiologist' was published.)&#91;1&#93;&#91;2&#93; Deutsch: Unterwasseraufnahme einer Frau mit langem weissen Kleid. Fotografie von Toni Frissell an der Quelle des Weeki Wachee, Florida, USA, 1947. Italiano: Vista subacquea di una donna, con indosso un vestito lungo, mentre nuota in prossimità della superficie del bacino di Weeki Wachee spring, in Florida, USA. Français&#160;: Toni Frissell, Weeki Wachee Spring, Florida (1947). Vue subaquatique d'une femme, interprète d'un spectacle aquatique local, nageant dans le bassin de Weeki Wachee spring, en Floride (États-Unis). Le négatif est conservé à la Bibliothèque du Congrès des États-Unis d'Amérique. Cette photo fut publiée pour la première fois dans la revue de mode Harper's Bazaar, dans le numéro de décembre 1947. Cette image a également illustré la couverture de l'album "Undercurrent" de Bill Evans et Jim Hall (1963). 日本語: フロリダのウィーキ・ワチーの泉で、長いガウンを着た女性が水に身をゆだねる。第二次世界大戦の戦争写真とファッション写真で知られるアメリカの女性写真家トニ・フリッセルの1947年の作品。
context_page_description: Weeki Wachee Springs is a natural tourist attraction located in Weeki Wachee, Florida, where underwater performances by "mermaids," women wearing fish tails as well as other fanciful outfits, can be viewed in an aquarium-like setting in the spring of the Weeki Wachee River. A waterpark, Buccaneer Bay, river boat rides, kayak and paddleboard rental are some of the other activities offered at Weeki Wachee Springs.
context_section_description: The spring was named "Weeki Wachee" by Seminole Indians, which means "Little Spring" or "Winding River" in their language. The attraction was created in 1947 by stunt swimmer and attraction promoter Newt Perry, who based the show on underwater air hose breathing techniques. First an 18-seat theater, then later a newer theater with a capacity of 50, were embedded in the lime rock of the spring with viewing windows below the surface of the water, to allow visitors to watch the mermaids perform in the spring. In 1982, Buccaneer Bay was opened with water slides, a lazy river, and a white sand beach for visitors to enjoy alongside the theater with the mermaid shows.
  Guests to the park have included Elvis Presley, Don Knotts, Esther Williams, Arthur Godfrey, Kevin Smith, and Larry the Cable Guy. Hollywood has occasionally used the attraction and its mermaids in the filming of movies such as Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid (1948), Neptune's Daughter (1949), and many television shows like Bobcat Goldthwait's Misfits & Monsters (2018). At one point, the attraction was owned by broadcast network ABC, and this led to an increase in publicity for the attraction. Currently, the park is owned by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and is a member of the Florida State Park System.  The park was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2020.
caption: A fashion photograph taken at Weeki Wachee spring, by Toni Frissell, first published in Harper's Bazaar, December 1947. )[1][2]
exif: {"Image ImageWidth": "3986", "Image ImageLength": "3934", "Image BitsPerSample": "8", "Image Compression": "Uncompressed", "Image PhotometricInterpretation": "1", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image SamplesPerPixel": "1", "Image XResolution": "1600", "Image YResolution": "1600", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop CS2 Windows", "Image DateTime": "2009:09:15 11:05:10", "Image ExifOffset": "236", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "374", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "3687", "EXIF ColorSpace": "Uncalibrated", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "3500", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "3500"}