Florida Tourism - ADVERTISEMENT - 1968:  By 1960 Florida was the tenth most populated state in the country. Earnings from tourism soared eighty percent higher than the previous decade, and earnings in transportation, trade, and services were eight percent higher than the national average. Many Americans aged 65 or older flocked to Florida, and thousands of Cubans came to Miami during the “Cuban Invasion”. All across the state new structures were built to house both new residents and tourists.  Millions of people come to Florida each year to enjoy the 663 miles of ocean coastlines. During the 1960s Fort Lauderdale became the country’s first hot spot for college students’ spring break and Cocoa Beach became famous partially due to the television show I Dream of Jeannie (Screen Gems). During the early part of the decade beach access was segregated, and “wade-in” civil rights protests took place on St. Augustine beach, awaiting the abolition of segregation laws at the end of the decade. Throughout the 1960s small roadside attractions flourished across the state. Several popular attractions were themed to play into the “exotic” nature of our state. Weeki Wachee Springs featured live "mermaid" shows, Cypress Gardens offered a tropical botanical garden and water-skiing shows, and Silver Springs provided glass-bottom boat tours. The construction of Walt Disney World in the early 1970s competed with the smaller attractions, hastening their demise.  Florida’s tourism increased after 1965 partially due to the construction of NASA’s command centers across Cape Canaveral, Titusville, and Merritt Island in 1961. In 1964 tourists were able to drive around Merritt Island on Sundays, and by 1966 tours of the facilities were offered. Approximately one million people traveled to the area in July 1969 to witness the space launch that took Neil Armstrong to the moon.  This Photochromatic postcard, mailed in 1968, shows a sun-tanned man relaxing at the beach reading his Wall Street Journal as he served drinks and a snack by a bikini-clad waitress.  He asks as he reads "So… What's up North?"  This Photochromatic postcard, mailed in 1968, is in good condition.  Florida Natural Color. Miami, Fla.  NO. FG 134.  No. 79096.