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updated historical info
| date_of_death =[[July 16]], [[1989]]
| place_of_death =[[Ensley]]
| occupation =politicianPolitician, realtor, historian
| religion =
| spouse =
| parents =[[Theodore Thomas Wentworth, Sr.|T. T. Wentworth, Sr.]]<br/>[[Elisabeth Goodloe Wentworth]]
| children =
}}
'''Theodore Thomas "Tom" Wentworth, Jr.''' ([[1898]]-[[1989]]) was a Pensacola entrepreneur, politician and preservationist whose collection of artifacts and miscellanea was organized as the [[T. T. Wentworth Jr. Florida State Museum]] in [[1988]].T. T. Wentworth, Jr. is archived as having been the head of the KKK in Escambia County, holding the title of "Exalted Cyclops".<ref>"T.T. Wentworth and the KKK: Pensacola history revealed." ''Pensacola News Journal'', July 13, 2020. https://www.pnj.com/picture-gallery/opinion/2020/07/13/t-t-wentworth-and-kkk-pensacola-history-revealed/5428989002/</ref>
==Early life==
==Collection & museum==
[[Image:TTWentworthMuseumEnsley.jpg|thumb|right|The first Wentworth museum, built on his [[Ensley]] property]]
Throughout the 1920s, Wentworth began displaying his growing collection of historical items in his bicycle shop's display windows. As Pensacola grew, he became aware of the need for preservation efforts to sustain preserve the city's historic buildings in the face of rapid development. He was a charter member of the [[Pensacola Historical Society]] when it was founded in [[1933]]. In [[1935]] he used his political influence to advocate the preservation of old forts and the marking of historic sites. He salvaged 20 tons of "Fighting English" cannons, slated for junk in Mississippi, and returned them for display at [[Fort Pickens]].
In [[1938]], he purchased the [[Dorothy Walton House]] and donated it to the [[City of Pensacola]] to be used as a museum. During [[World War II]], the threat of submarine attacks and the lack of volunteers forced the museum to close its doors. Wentworth moved the collection to his newly-constructed home in [[Ensley]], and in [[1956]] he began work on a separate building next door to house the collection.
A year later, on [[July 16]], [[1989]], Wentworth died of cancer at his home. Florida Governor [[Wikipedia:Bob Martinez|Bob Martinez]] said of him, "T.T Wentworth gave Pensacola one of the greatest gifts an individual can give to his community — its past. By working to preserve the city's heritage, he made sure future residents will always know the importance of its past."<ref>"Theodore Wentworth, collected artifacts for museum." ''South Florida Sun-Sentinel'', July 18, 1989.</ref>
==Other images==
<gallery>
File:TTwentworth-30.PNG|From ''[[History of Escambia County, Florida]]''. Date of photograph unknown.
File:Ttwentworth-1959.jpg|Posing with collection, [[1959]]
File:Ttwentworth-1959-2.jpg|Posing with collection, [[1959]]
File:Ttwentworth3.jpg
File:Ttwentworth4.jpg
File:Ttwentworth5.jpg
</gallery>
==References==
