Biography

A “history geek” since elementary school, Bob Beatty is Director of Programs for the American Association for State and Local History, a national history organization based in Nashville, Tennessee. Through his work at AASLH, Bob leads a variety of national committees serving the American historical community.  From 1999-2007, Bob worked as Curator of Education at the Orange County Regional History Center a $35 million history museum in Orlando, Florida.

Bob has a Bachelor’s degree in Liberal Studies and a Master’s in History, both from the University of Central Florida and he has served as an adjunct history professor at UCF and Valencia Community College.  In addition to his book on the Florida Highwaymen, Bob is editor of History News magazine and has published articles on Florida and the Underground Railroad and the history of the American museum movement.

A Florida native, Bob grew up in Stuart where he often heard people share tales of buying paintings from the then-unnamed Highwaymen.