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Mandarin Museum News
November 2025
Embrace the Mandarin Experience
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Dear Friends,
It's OFFICIAL! News4Jax has awarded us the distinction of Jacksonville's Best Hidden Gem in their 2025 JAXBEST competition! We are so, so grateful for all our loyal fans and supporters who voted for Mandarin Museum over the last couple of months.
Bruce Hamilton and his crew stopped in to deliver the good news a few weeks ago. And we had to keep it a secret until this week!
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If you haven't visited the Best Hidden Gem in Jacksonville lately, November is the perfect month to do so! We have a full slate of exciting programming. Dr. Quint White, Marine Biologist and Executive Director Emeritus of the Marine Science Research Institute at Jacksonville University, will deliver our November lecture. We will debut our newest art exhibition, When the Kiln is Opened: The Art of Charlie Moses Brown. Due to popular demand, we will host an encore of our October walking tour of the historic Mandarin Cemetery. And we're also gearing up for our annual Winter Celebration event to be held on the first Saturday in December! Scroll on for all details.
| | And as always, I'll see you at the Museum! | | |
Brittany Cohill
Executive Director
| | Throughout the entire month of November, stop in during our museum hours (Wednesday - Saturday, 10:00 am to 4:00 pm) to enter for your chance to win a Mandarin Frog! It is free to enter. One entry per visitor. The drawing will be held at the end of the month. | | |
Mandarin Museum House Band, "The Orange Pickers"
at Mandarin Garden Club's 80th Anniversary Celebration
Sunday, November 9
2:00 - 4:00 pm
Mandarin Garden Club, 2892 Loretto Rd.
Our friends over at Mandarin Garden Club are celebrating their 80th anniversary this Sunday, November 9th, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm. You can catch the Mandarin Museum House Band, "The Orange Pickers," playing in their gardens. The afternoon will also include historical displays, delicious goodies, guest speakers, and tours of their beautiful demonstration gardens.
The community is invited to join the celebration! For more information about Mandarin Garden Club, visit https://www.mandaringardenclub.org/.
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City of Jacksonville Veterans Day Parade
Tuesday, November 11
11:01 am
Downtown Jacksonville
Mandarin Museum is excited to be a participant in the City of Jacksonville's Veterans Day Parade on Tuesday, November 11th! The parade begins at 11:01 am. Look for our white convertible with Mandarin orange racing stripes as we participate in honor of Mandarin's veterans.
ROUTE: The 1.11-mile parade will begin on Water Street in front of the Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts, proceeding east along Water Street to Hogan Street. From there, the parade will turn left onto Hogan Street, then right onto Bay Street, continuing east until it concludes at the Shipyards Parking Lot S, just before Hogans Creek and Lafayette Street.
VIEWING: Parade spectators are encouraged to safely gather Downtown and show their support by wearing red, white and blue, and waving flags. The parade can be enjoyed from many locations along Bay Street, between Hogan Street and Lafayette Street. A popular central viewing spot is Ford on Bay, located at the intersection of South Liberty Street and East Bay Street. All public viewing areas along the parade route are open on a first-come, first-served basis.
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Walking Tour: Historic Mandarin Cemetery
Sunday, November 16
2:00 pm
Mandarin Cemetery, 12135 Mandarin Rd.
Our October Mandarin Cemetery Tour was so popular, we scheduled a second date! Join Mandarin Museum & Historical Society for a guided walking tour of the historic Mandarin Cemetery on Sunday, November 16th at 2:00 pm. Your tour guides Sandy Arpen, Karen Jones Roumillat, and Cemetery President and Caretaker Joe Walsh, will lead guests through the resting place of the many people whose lives and stories have shaped the Mandarin community over the last 200 years.
Reservations are required and can be made online. For ALL information, click HERE.
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November Lecture in the Fall 2025 Series
Thursday, November 20
6:00 to 8:00 pm
Mandarin Museum
"Fifty Years of Change and the St. Johns River,"
with Dr. Quint White.
Dr. Quinton White, Marine Biologist and Executive Director Emeritus of the Marine Science Research Institute at Jacksonville University, will reflect on his decades-long career conducting research on the St. Johns River. “Fifty Years of Change” will explore not only the changes Dr. White has seen in the river but also the evolving ways in which we study and understand it.
Refreshments will begin at 6:00 pm inside Mandarin Museum. The program will begin at 7:00 pm. Admission is free. For more information, click HERE.
| | Thank you to our friends at Endless Summer Roofing, Co. for sponsoring our Fall 2025 Lecture Series! | |
Exhibit Opening Reception - When the Kiln is Opened: The Art of Charlie Moses Brown
Friday, November 21
6:00 to 8:00 pm
Mandarin Museum
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Join Mandarin Museum for the opening of When the Kiln is Opened: The Art of Charlie Moses Brown, a special exhibition celebrating the life and legacy of one of Mandarin’s most beloved potters, on Friday, November 21st from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. Admission is free.
Charlie Brown (1908–1997) was known for transforming humble clay into works of enduring interest, with each creation reflecting his deep connection to craft, community, and place. This exhibition honors his artistry and the traditions he helped preserve, featuring a remarkable selection of his pottery alongside photographs, archival materials, and stories from those who knew him
Be among the first to experience this tribute to Brown’s talent and influence. Enjoy light refreshments and conversation with fellow art and history enthusiasts in the charming setting of Mandarin Museum.
When the Kiln is Opened: The Art of Charlie Moses Brown will run through March 21, 2026.
Special thanks to exhibit curators:
Dr. Elizabeth Heuer, Associate Professor of Art History, University of North Florida
Nofa Dixon, Assistant Professor Emerita of Art & Design, University of North Florida
Vina Schemer, Regional Director, American Crafts Council Southeast Region, 1979-2009
| | Our October lecture featuring Author Tim Gilmore as he presented "Remembering Stetson Kennedy: The Man Who Unmasked the Klan" is now available for viewing on Mandarin Museum's YouTube Channel! Thank you to all who attended! Images from the evening can be found in our online photo gallery of recent events. | | Available for purchase in the Mandarin Museum Shop later this month! Stay tuned. | |
Be a supporter of arts & culture in our community through the purchase of an annual membership! Every contribution made through the purchase of an annual membership enables us to fulfill our mission!
| | Mandarin Museum members at the Family Level and above automatically enjoy the benefits of NARM (North American Reciprocal Museum Association)! By supporting your favorite museum, you receive reciprocal member benefits at almost 1,500 museums, botanical gardens, aquariums, and more across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, and The Cayman Islands. Simply show your Mandarin Museum membership card at participating locations! | | |
Read 2025 issues of the Mandarin Newsline online now!
This free newspaper allows Mandarin Museum to share history, events, and programs with the public. The newspaper remains free to readers due to the robust local advertising. Please visit, shop, and eat at those businesses who support the community in this way.
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...don't forget to SMILE!
Congratulations to Andrew, one of our young museum patrons, for winning an October Mandarin Frog giveaway!
| | More smiling faces at Mandarin Museum as these sisters checked out Plein Air Painting Adventure Backpacks from the Museum front desk and created their very own masterpieces! | | Not pictured are the smiling faces of Mandarin Museum staff as they admire the handiwork of Museum volunteer, Gene Schecter. Gene has spent the last month making repairs to benches and trash enclosures throughout Walter Jones Historical Park. THANK YOU, Gene! | | More ways to stay up-to-date! | | | |
Thank you to all our community partners!
Mandarin Museum is supported, in part, through the Cultural Service Grant Program administered by the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville and funded by the City of Jacksonville.
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OUR MISSION: Mandarin Museum & Historical Society shares the stories of Mandarin's history, culture, and natural resources by providing engaging programs that educate, entertain, and inspire.
VISIT. JOIN. VOLUNTEER.
Mandarin Museum & Historical Society
904-268-0784
info@mandarinmuseum.org
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