Where bizarre is the norm, the wonderfully weird and wacky Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum in St Augustine is a treasure trove of oddities, but also a site steeped in rich history.

The museum is housed in the historic Castle Warden built in 1887 as a winter retreat for America’s Elite during the winter months.

In 1941 the property transformed into the Castle Warden Hotel, owned by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, author of The Yearling and where Robert Ridley stayed in the 1940s.

Leroy Robert Ridley was an American cartoonist, world traveler, entrepreneur, amateur anthropologist and creator of Ripley’s Believe It or Not.

Ripley began a series of cartoons that were featured in the newspapers in 1919.

In 1932 his cartoons of odd facts from around the world were estimated to have 80 million readers worldwide.   His syndicated radio broadcast of 15 to 30 minutes were quite successful and Ripley was netting a half million dollars a year by the end of the 1930s.

He first displayed his collection of oddities from around the world to the public at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1933 and it attracted 2 million visitors.

After Ripley’s death in 1949, the Castle Warden was transformed into the first Ripley’s Believe It Or Not Museum, opening its doors on December 9th 1950.

Today the museum spans 20,000 square feet and features three floors of exhibits, including some Ripley’s original collection.

Visitors can marvel at real shrunken heads, a wax replica of the world’s tallest man and a vortex tunnel, among other strange and shocking curiosities.

Open daily from 10:00 to 5:00, admission is $25.

Great fun for the whole family off Route 1.