The DBHS Heritage Lecture Series is honored to welcome Historian and Adventure Guide, Charles Kropke
Since the European discovery of the new world, Florida’s waters and shorelines have seen an ever accumulating list of storm-tossed wrecks, pirated treasures and fateful encounters with native Indians. Thus, vast fortunes were deposited on Florida’s shores and in her waters. Listen as our guest speaker; historian and adventure guide, Charles J. Kropke brings some of these events back to life and learn why the riches of Florida have often extended beyond her climate and physical beauty.
Charles will trace the history of Spanish treasure discovery in Florida starting with Kip Wagner’s discoveries of the Plate Fleet of 1715, Art McKee’s discoveries of the 1733 Fleet; then leading to the crescendo of Mel Fisher’s finding of the Nuestra Senora de Atocha in the Marquesas Islands of the Florida Keys on July 20th, 1985.
THURSDAY, MARCH 16th; 6:00pm Social; Lecture 6:30pm
Cost: $20; DBHS Members Free.
Location: Old School Square Historic Field House, 51 North Swinton Avenue, Delray Beach
About Charles J. Kropke Overseeing a family of eight companies in sense-of place tourism, Charles J. Kropke is a leader in educational, ecological, historic, and cultural tours in Florida and the Caribbean basin. As Managing Partner for Dragonfly Expeditions, the oldest of the companies, Charles has created over 150 distinctive tours in Florida. These tours have been featured by The Travel Channel, The Weather Channel, National Geographic, Condé Nast Traveler and many other media outlets around the globe.
Charles’s love of Florida history has led him to many of the State’s remote corners and in the process allowed him to collect a broad array of Florida stories, anecdotes and facts. From the kingdom of the powerful Calusa people to the early Spanish conquistadores, the narrative of Florida has many spellbinding entries. Therefore, expect Charles to regale you with tales of lost and found Spanish treasure, privateers and pioneers and all the other ingredients that go into Florida’s rich history.
Mr. Kropke, a Board Member of the Baptist Health Foundation, recently received the Outstanding Individual Award from Dade Heritage Trust, Miami’s largest nonprofit historic preservation organization. He is also a driving force in the ecological recreation of an extinct ecosystem, the Pond Apple forests of Lake Okeechobee; a project of the Arthur K. Marshall Foundation for the Everglades and frequently donates time, resources and expertise to advance fundraising efforts for environmental projects in Florida.
