Lois Nevins is proud of her collection of swizzle sticks.
Nevins was one of about 80 collectors at the Florida Museum of Natural History’s 37th annual Collectors Day on Saturday. Items displayed ranged from chess sets to banjos to antique cars.
Tiffany Ireland, the museum educator, said Collectors Day allows museum visitors to show their personal exhibits. She said the event, which began in 1980, was expected to bring about 2,000 people.
Those who registered could show off their collections and the memories they represent, she said.
“How they decide to display their collections is up to them,” Ireland said.
Nevins sat behind a table covered in brightly colored swizzle sticks, which are used to stir or hold fruit in cocktails.
She said she has been to the event three or four times but has been collecting swizzle sticks since the 1940s.
“I use a good brand of formaldehyde to keep me preserved,” the 86-year-old said.
On her table, Nevins proudly displayed an article by the Miami Herald about her collection.
When she saw onlookers, Nevins stood, leaned close to them and asked if they were old enough to remember swizzle sticks.
“Swizzle sticks are a conversation piece,” she said. “It’s a piece of history. You know, it’s like our heritage.”
Of the 2,000 to 3,000 sticks in her collection, she said her favorites are the ones with a little character.
“People save them because every swizzle stick is a little remembrance,” Nevins said.
Tierra Bass, a UF statistics freshman, said she found it interesting to see the different collections.
“They find something that’s meaningful to them, and they want to express it by having a lot of it,” the 19-year-old said.
William Wu, a UF finance junior, used his lunch break from work to look at the collections.
“It’s pretty interesting and pretty unique,” the 20-year-old said. “It shows a lot of the Gainesville community.”
