Pinecrest in Miami-Dade County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)
Miami Serpentarium
Founded by Bill Haast
Photographed by Tim Fillmon, November 4, 2019
1. Miami Serpentarium Marker
Inscription.
Miami Serpentarium. Founded by Bill Haast. The Miami Serpentarium, an early Florida roadside tourist attraction, was once located on this site. Operating from 1946 to 1984, the Serpentarium drew as many as 50,000 annual visitors. Founder Bill Haast put on five shows a day in a white lab coat, extracting venom to sell for scientific experiments. The self-described "poster boy for the benefits of venom" briefly operated a bona fide cancer research laboratory on the property and before invention of the Salk vaccine pursued a cobra venom treatment for polio. Having developed immunity from 172 poisonous snakebites, the "snake man" donated blood to many snakebite victims. Haast died at the age of 100 in 2011.
The Miami Serpentarium, an early Florida roadside tourist attraction, was once located on this site. Operating from 1946 to 1984, the Serpentarium drew as many as 50,000 annual visitors. Founder Bill Haast put on five shows a day in a white lab coat, extracting venom to sell for scientific experiments. The self-described "poster boy for the benefits of venom" briefly operated a bona fide cancer research laboratory on the property and before invention of the Salk vaccine pursued a cobra venom treatment for polio. Having developed immunity from 172 poisonous snakebites, the "snake man" donated blood to many snakebite victims. Haast died at the age of 100 in 2011.
Location. 25° 39.145′ N, 80° 19.797′ W. Marker is in Pinecrest, Florida, in Miami-Dade County. It is on South Dixie Highway (U.S. 1) 0.1 miles north of Southwest 128th Street, on the right when traveling north. Marker is located in the Pinecrest Town Center parking lot along US 1. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 12651 Dixie Highway, Miami FL 33156, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in South Florida, on the Gold Coast, and in Greater Miami. It is also in the American South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Credits. This page was last revised on March 10, 2020. It was originally submitted on March 7, 2020, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. This page has been viewed 2,814 times since then and 67 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on March 7, 2020, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
