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75-605: For centuries the Alafia was home to various native tribes, including the Tocobaga . From their settlement at the mouth of the river to their hunting camps upstream, the Indians left traces of their lives and activities. The Mocoso occupied the area around the mouth of the Alafia in the 16th century and were believed to speak Timucuan . In the sixteenth century, the expeditions of Pánfilo de Narváez and Hernando de Soto explored

150-524: A captive of the Calusa and traveled through much of peninsular Florida. He described Tanpa as an important Calusa town to the north of the Calusa domain, possibly under another chief. Archaeologist Jerald Milanich places the town of Tanpa at the mouth of Charlotte Harbor . The entrances to Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor are obscured by barrier islands , and their locations, and the names applied to them, were

225-623: A century. The Tampa Bay area was visited by Spanish explorers during Florida's early Spanish period . In 1528, an expedition led by Pánfilo de Narváez landed near Tampa Bay and soon skirmished with the indigenous population, probably at the principal town of the Tocobaga at the Safety Harbor site . Several years later, the Hernando de Soto Expedition likely landed on the southern shore of Tampa Bay in 1539, and passed through

300-478: A few Eastern European Jewish immigrants arrived starting in the late 1880s, opening businesses and shops that catered to cigar workers. By 1900, over 10,000 immigrants had moved to the neighborhood. Several thousand more Cuban immigrants built West Tampa , another cigar-centric suburb founded a few years later by Hugh MacFarlane. Between them, two "Latin" communities combined to exponentially expand Tampa's population, economic base, and tax revenues, as Tampa became

375-464: A few deaths, but the many more deaths were caused by infectious diseases brought from Europe, which devastated the population of Native Americans across Florida and the entire Western Hemisphere. The indigenous cultures of the Tampa Bay area collapsed by around 1600, leaving the west coast of Spanish Florida largely depopulated and ignored for more than 200 years. In the mid-18th century, events in

450-541: A priority. Several residential and mixed-development high-rises have been constructed. Another of Mayor Iorio's initiatives was the Tampa Riverwalk , a mixed-use path along the Hillsborough River in downtown. Channelside was approved to undergo major renovations by Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik along with Bill Gates and other investors. Several museums have opened, including new homes for

525-689: A punitive expedition down the Suwannee River and along the Gulf coast, attacking Tocobaga and Pohoy, and killing many of their people, including both chiefs. The Tocobaga were weakened by the Spanish attack, and the Pohoy became the dominant power in Tampa Bay for a while. In 1677 a Spanish official inspecting the missions in Apalachee Province visited a village of Tocobaga people living on

600-492: A river in Florida is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Tocobaga Tocobaga (occasionally Tocopaca ) was the name of a chiefdom of Native Americans, its chief, and its principal town during the 16th century. The chiefdom was centered around the northern end of Old Tampa Bay , the arm of Tampa Bay that extends between the present-day city of Tampa and northern Pinellas County . The exact location of

675-551: A source of confusion to explorers, surveyors and map-makers from the 16th century to the 18th century. Bahía Tampa and Bahía de Espíritu Santo were each used, at one time or another, for the modern Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor. Tampa Bay was labeled Bahía de Espíritu Santo (Bay of the Holy Spirit) in the earliest Spanish maps of Florida. It became known as B. Tampa ( Bahía Tampa or Tampa Bay) as early as 1576. In 1601, "B. Tampa", corresponding to Tampa Bay, appeared for

750-502: Is driven by tourism, health care, finance, insurance, technology, construction, and the maritime industry. The bay's port is the largest in the state, responsible for over $ 15 billion in economic impact. Tampa is part of the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area , which is a four-county area composed of roughly 3.1 million residents, making it the second-largest metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in

825-475: Is only 48 ft (15 m) above sea level. Tampa is bordered by two bodies of water, Old Tampa Bay and Hillsborough Bay , which flow together to form Tampa Bay , which flows into the Gulf of Mexico . The Hillsborough River flows into Hillsborough Bay, passing directly in front of Downtown Tampa and supplying Tampa's main source of fresh water. The Palm River is a smaller river, flowing from just east of

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900-475: Is the 49th-most populous city in the country and the third-most populous city in Florida after Jacksonville and Miami . Tampa was founded as a military center in the 19th century, with the establishment of Fort Brooke . The cigar industry was brought to Tampa by Vincente Martinez Ybor , after whom Ybor City is named. Tampa was reincorporated as a city in 1887 following the Civil War . Tampa's economy

975-483: The Battle of Fort Brooke on October 16 and the Battle of Ballast Point on October 18, 1863, Union forces inflicted serious damage to Tampa's economy when, under the cover of another bombardment of the fort, troops landed and destroyed two blockade running ships that had been hidden upstream along the Hillsborough River. In May 1864, Union troops landed again and took Fort Brooke largely unopposed. They destroyed much of

1050-735: The Civil War , Florida seceded along with most of the southern states to form the Confederate States of America , and Fort Brooke was defended by Confederate troops. Martial law was declared in Tampa in January 1862, and Tampa's city government ceased to operate for the duration of the war. In 1861, the Union Navy set up a blockade around many southern ports to cut off the Confederacy. Several US Navy ships were stationed near

1125-777: The Tampa Bay History Center , the Glazer Children's Museum , and the Tampa Museum of Art . The breakdown of development for the rest of the plan is as follows: 39% residential units, 29% office space, 15% hotels, 8% retail, 7% other, and 2% cultural uses. Mayor Bob Buckhorn continued these developments, which are bearing fruit during the term of Mayor Jane Castor . Tampa is the site of several skyscrapers . Overall, there are 30 completed buildings that rise over 250 ft (76 m) high. Tampa also has 147 high-rises, second only to Miami in

1200-614: The Wacissa River one league from the mission of San Lorenzo de Ivitachuco. There is no record of when the Tocobaga settled on the Wacissa River, but they appear to have been there for a while. When the Spanish official criticized the Tocobaga for having lived in a Christian province "for many years" without having converted, they replied that no one had come to teach them about Christianity, but that some twenty of their people had converted on their death beds and been buried at

1275-468: The Weeden Island culture developed in the area by about 2,000 years ago. Archeological evidence suggests that these residents relied on the sea for most of their resources, as a vast majority of inhabited sites have been found on or near the shoreline, with little evidence of farming. At the time of European contact in the early 16th century, several chiefdoms of the Safety Harbor culture dominated

1350-589: The Westshore Business District . Tampa displays a wide variety of architectural designs and styles. Most of Tampa's high rises demonstrate post-modern architecture . The design for the renovated Tampa Museum of Art displays post-modern architecture, while the city hall and the Tampa Theatre belong to Art Deco architecture. The Tampa mayor Pam Iorio made the redevelopment of Tampa's downtown , especially residential development,

1425-590: The "Cigar Capital of the World". During the first few decades of the 20th century, the cigar-making industry was the backbone of Tampa's economy. The factories in Ybor City and West Tampa made an enormous number of cigars—in the peak year of 1929, over 500 million cigars were hand rolled in Tampa. In 1904, a civic association of local businessmen dubbed themselves Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla , named after local mythical pirate José Gaspar, and staged an "invasion" of

1500-537: The 17th century. Remnants of the Calusa, who lived to the south of the Tocobaga, were forced into extreme southern Florida. As Florida transitioned to British rule in 1763 following its defeat of France in the Seven Years' War, the Calusa emigrated with the evacuating Spanish, resettling with them in Cuba , possibly along with the remnants of the Tocobaga. In any case, the Tocobaga disappeared from historical records in

1575-400: The 1950s and 1960s, Tampa had record-setting population growth that has not been seen since. This growth spurred expansion of Tampa's highways and bridges, bringing thousands into the city and creating opportunities for Tampa business owners, who welcomed the influx of tourists and new residents. It was during this time period in Tampa's history that two of the most popular tourist attractions in

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1650-529: The 1950s. After his death in 1954 from cancer, control passed to his son, Santo Trafficante Jr. , who established alliances with families in New York City and extended his power throughout Florida and into Batista -era Cuba . The era of rampant and open corruption ended in the 1950s, when Estes Kefauver 's traveling organized crime hearings came to town and were followed by the sensational misconduct trials of several local officials. Although many of

1725-710: The Alafia Scrub Nature Preserve and the Riverview Civic Center. Williams Park and Mosaic Park are on the river near its mouth. The Alafia River Reserve is in Polk County near Mulberry. In 1997 a dam atop a gypsum stack at a Mulberry Phosphates fertilizer plant broke, spilling 56 million gallons of acidic wastewater into the North Fork of the Alafia. Virtually everything in the 42 miles between Mulberry and Hillsborough Bay

1800-589: The American colonies and the early United States drove the Seminole people into northern Florida. They did not move into central Florida until after the United States gained control of Florida in 1821. Before the American period, the Tampa Bay area had a handful of residents: Cuban and Native American fishermen who established small seasonal camps called "ranchos" on the shores of Tampa Bay. The largest

1875-497: The Florida Department of Environmental Protection. After closure, Mosaic will be responsible for maintaining the stacks for the next 50 years. In 2016 an additional 215 million gallons entered the aquifer through the stack through a sinkhole. Mosaic publicly stated that no additional water would be released into the Alafia, but soon thereafter started diluting and releasing additional water contaminated with phosphates into

1950-570: The Northwest arm, what is now Old Tampa Bay, and the northeast arm named "Hillsborough Bay". The name may have come from the Calusa language or possibly, the Timucua language . Some scholars have compared "Tampa" to "itimpi", which means "close to" or "nearby" in the Creek language , but its meaning is not known. In 1849, when the pioneer community living near the U.S. Army outpost of Fort Brooke

2025-511: The Safety Harbor people made little or no use of maize, and instead gathered most of their food and resources from the bountiful coastal waters.) The name "Tocobaga" first appears in Spanish documents in 1567, when Pedro Menéndez de Avilés visited what was almost certainly the Safety Harbor site. Menéndez had contacted the Calusa and reached an accommodation with Carlos , the Calusa king. Menéndez married Carlos's sister. As Carlos

2100-504: The South side of the river around what is now US Highway 301 at the site that later became known as Peru . Shortly thereafter the Barnes family took up residence around Bell Shoals. These early settlers were able to claim land under the "Armed Occupation Act of Florida" which was passed in 1842 and granted 160 acres of land to any head of family or any single man who would bear arms and live on

2175-459: The Spanish returned to San Marcos de Apalachee in 1718, they found a few Tocobaga living along the Wacissa River. The Spanish commander persuaded the Tocobaga to move to the mouth of the St. Marks River under the protection of a battery . In August that year 25 to 30 Pohoy attacked the Tocobaga settlement, killing eight and taking three away as captives. A small number of Tocobaga continued to live in

2250-440: The Tampa Bay area and surrounding counties. At the end of the war, MacDill remained as an active military installation, while the auxiliary fields reverted to civilian control. Two of these auxiliary fields later became the present-day Tampa International Airport and St. Petersburg–Clearwater International Airport . With the establishment of an independent U.S. Air Force in 1947, MacDill Field became MacDill Air Force Base . In

2325-588: The Tampa Bay area. Phosphate and commercial fishing exports could be sent north by rail, and many new products were brought into the Tampa market, along with the first tourists. The new railroad link enabled another important industry to come to Tampa. In 1885, the Tampa Board of Trade enticed Vicente Martinez Ybor to move his cigar manufacturing operations to Tampa from Key West . Proximity to Cuba made importation of "clear Havana tobacco" easy by sea, and Plant's railroad made shipment of finished cigars to

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2400-553: The area during the Second Seminole War from 1835 to 1842, after which the Seminoles were forced out and many settlers returned. Florida became the 27th state on March 3, 1845. On January 18, 1849, Tampa was officially incorporated as the "Village of Tampa." It was home to 185 civilians, or 974 total residents including military personnel, in 1850. Tampa was reincorporated as a town on December 15, 1855. During

2475-409: The area in the 1500s. The Tocobaga and their neighbors disappeared from the historical record by the early 1700s, as endemic diseases carried by European explorers decimated the local population. They had no medical acquired immunity to these new diseases. Survivors were displaced by the raids and incursions of other indigenous groups from the north. The Tampa Bay area was virtually uninhabited for over

2550-534: The area were developed – Busch Gardens and Lowry Park . Many of the well-known institutions that play an important role in the economic development of Tampa were established during this time period. The University of South Florida was established in North Tampa in 1956 and opened for students in September 1960. The school spurred the construction of several residential and commercial developments in

2625-584: The area. Early Spanish explorers interacted most extensively with the Tocobaga , whose principal town was at the northern end of Old Tampa Bay near today's Safety Harbor in Pinellas County . While there is a substantial historical record of the Tocobaga, and the Calusa , who lived to the south, there is less surviving documentation describing the Pohoy , who lived near the mouth of the Hillsborough River near today's downtown Tampa. Evidence suggests that

2700-753: The city annexed a mostly rural area of 24 sq mi (62 km ) between I-275 and I-75 . East Tampa , historically a mostly black community, was the scene of several race riots during and for some time after the period of racial segregation, mainly due to problems between residents and the Tampa Police Department . According to the United States Census Bureau , Tampa has a total area of 175.3 sq mi (453.9 km ), including 113.4 sq mi (293.7 km ) of land and 61.8 sq mi (160.1 km ) (35.3%) of water. The highest point in Tampa

2775-493: The city followed by a parade. With a few exceptions, the Gasparilla Pirate Festival has been held every year since. Beginning in the late 19th century, illegal bolita lotteries were very popular among the Tampa working classes, especially in Ybor City. In the early 1920s, this small-time operation was taken over by Charlie Wall , the rebellious son of a prominent Tampa family, and went big-time. Bolita

2850-875: The city into McKay Bay , which is a smaller inlet, sited at the northeast end of Hillsborough Bay. Tampa's geography is marked by the Interbay Peninsula, which divides Hillsborough Bay in the east, from Old Tampa Bay in the west. Tampa is divided into many neighborhoods, many of which were towns and unincorporated communities annexed by the growing city. Generally, Tampa is divided into the following areas: Downtown Tampa , New Tampa , West Tampa , East Tampa , North Tampa , and South Tampa . Well-known neighborhoods include Ybor City , Forest Hills , Ballast Point , Sulphur Springs , Seminole Heights , Tampa Heights , Palma Ceia , Hyde Park , Davis Islands , Harbour Island , Tampa Palms , College Hill , Water Street , Channelside and non-residential areas of Gary and

2925-675: The coastal areas of Tampa Bay and visited the Indians, making the first written account and charting the first maps of the Alafia River. On an early map the name 'Alafia' does not appear, but rather the translation, Hunting River . The 'Alafia' is a native word meaning "River of Fire", likely due to the river glowing at night due to high phosphoric content. After the end of the Second Seminole War, white settlers began to arrive, starting with Benjamin Moody in 1843. They settled on

3000-638: The culture, traditions and heritage of the Italian Community and to maintain the historical facility as a functioning memorial to the working class immigrants." Babe Zaharias Golf Course in the Forest Hills area of Tampa has been designated a Historical Landmark by the National Register of Historic Places. It was bought in 1949 by the famous "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias , who had a residence nearby, and closed upon her death. In 1974,

3075-547: The early 18th century. Tampa, Florida Tampa ( US : / ˈ t æ m p ə / TAM -pə ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida . Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the county seat of Hillsborough County . With an estimated population of 403,364 in 2023, Tampa

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3150-485: The eastern and southern shores of Tampa Bay were likely affiliated with other chiefdoms, such as the Pohoy , Uzita , and Mocoso . Study of archaeological artifacts has provided insight into the everyday life of the Safety Harbor culture. Little is known about the political organization of the early peoples of the Tampa Bay area. The scant historical records come exclusively from the journals and other documents made by members of several Spanish expeditions that traversed

3225-422: The eastern part of Safety Harbor territory after occupying the village of Uzita . Garcilaso de la Vega (known as el Inca ), in his history of de Soto's expedition, relates that Narváez had ordered that the nose of the chief of Uzita be cut off, indicating that the two explorers had passed through the same area. Another town near Uzita encountered by de Soto was Mocoso , but evidence suggests that, while Mocoso

3300-658: The first time on a printed map in Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas's Description del Destricto del Audiencia de la Espanola, from his book Descripcion de las Indias Ocidentales, printed in Madrid. A 1705 British map also shows B. Tampa, with "Carlos Bay" for Charlotte Harbor to the south. A 1748 British map had "B. del Spirito Santo" for Tampa Bay and "Carlos Bay" to the south. A Spanish map of 1757 renamed Tampa Bay as "San Fernando". As late as 1774, Bernard Romans called Tampa Bay "Bay of Espiritu Santo", with "Tampa Bay" restricted to

3375-453: The fort's facilities and confiscated the remaining military supplies other than the cannons, which they tossed into the Hillsborough River, then left the "desolate" town after two days. The Civil War ended in April 1865 with a Confederate defeat. In May 1865, federal troops arrived in Tampa to occupy the fort and the town as part of Reconstruction . They remained until August 1869. During

3450-465: The garrison at Tocobaga found the town deserted, and all the Spanish soldiers dead. In 1608 an alliance of Pohoy and Tocobaga may have threatened Potano people who had converted to Christianity. In 1611 a raiding party from the two chiefdoms killed several Christianized Natives carrying supplies to the Spanish mission (Cofa) at the mouth of the Suwannee River . In 1612, the Spanish launched

3525-433: The immediate post-war period, Tampa was a poor, isolated fishing village with about 1,000 residents and little industry. Yellow fever , borne by mosquitoes from nearby swamps, broke out several times during the 1860s and 1870s, causing more residents to leave. In 1869, residents voted to abolish the city of Tampa government. In 1870, the population of "Tampa Town" was about 800, and dropped to about 700 by 1880. Fort Brooke

3600-492: The land in a house for five years. By 1867, a ferry was operated by a Methodist preacher Reverend LeRoy Lesley. A second ferry near Lithia Springs was operated by John Carney. Due to the river's tendency to undergo moderate to high-level flooding approximately twice a year, numerous residences in the vicinity have been constructed on stilts. Parks on the river with Hillsborough County include Alafia River State Park , Alderman's Ford Regional Park , Lithia Springs Regional Park ,

3675-446: The language and culture of the Pohoy and other lesser-known groups around the bay were very similar to that of the Tocobaga. Expeditions led by Pánfilo de Narváez and Hernando de Soto landed near Tampa, but neither conquistador stayed long. There is no natural gold or silver in Florida, and the native inhabitants repulsed Spanish attempts to establish a permanent settlement or convert them to Catholicism . The fighting resulted in

3750-425: The largest cities in Florida by 1900. In late 1883, Henry B. Plant 's narrow-gauge South Florida Railroad reached Tampa and its port, connecting the small town to the nation's railroad system after years of efforts by local leaders. Previously, Tampa's overland transportation links had consisted of sandy roads stretching across the Florida countryside. Plant's railroad made it much easier to get goods in and out of

3825-435: The late 1800s to found and work in the new communities of Ybor City and West Tampa . By about 1900, these newcomers came to be known as "Tampeños", or "Tampeñas" for females, a term that is still sometimes used to refer to their descendants living in the area, and potentially, to all residents of Tampa regardless of their ethnic background. The shores of Tampa Bay have been inhabited for thousands of years. A variant of

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3900-526: The locals to Christianity. He intended to build a relationship between the Spanish and indigenous Floridians in the aftermath of earlier visits by aggressive conquistadors. Despite being cautioned to avoid the Gulf Coast, Father Cancer's expedition came ashore just south of the mouth of Bahia Espiritu Santo (Tampa Bay) in May 1549. There they encountered apparently peaceful and receptive Natives who told them of

3975-465: The many populous villages around Tampa Bay. Father Cancer decided to continue north to visit these towns and was met with violent resistance. Most members of the expedition were killed or captured, and Father Cancer was clubbed to death soon after reaching modern day Pinellas County. Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda , a shipwreck survivor who lived with the Natives of southern Florida from 1549–1566 and

4050-599: The mission in Ivitachuco. The Tocobaga were engaged in transporting produce from Apalachee Province to St. Augustine , carrying it in canoes along the coast and up the Suwannee River and, probably, the Santa Fe River . Other people carried it overland the rest of the way to St. Augustine. The village was listed again in 1683, but it is not clear what happened when Apalachee Province was overrun by English Carolinian colonists and their Native allies in 1704. When

4125-460: The mouth of Tampa Bay , but small blockade running ships were often able to slip by the blockade to deliver cattle to Spanish Cuba, earning gold for the Confederate cause. On June 30, 1862, the gunboat USS Sagamore sailed into Tampa Bay and opened fire on Fort Brooke, which returned fire. The Sagamore withdrew after a few hours, and the Battle of Tampa caused little damage. During

4200-418: The municipal government of the city of Tampa with the county government of Hillsborough County, in 1967, 1970, 1971, and 1972, all of which failed at the ballot box. The greatest loss was the most recent attempt in 1972, with the final tally being 33,160 (31%) in favor and 73,568 (69%) against the proposed charter. The biggest recent growth of Tampa was the development of New Tampa , which started in 1988 when

4275-526: The previously agriculture-dominated area around the new campus. Overall, Tampa continued to expand away from the city center during the 1960s as new hospitals, schools, churches and subdivisions all began appearing to accommodate the growth. Many business offices began moving away from the traditional downtown office building into more convenient neighborhood office plazas. In 1970, the U.S. Census Bureau reported Tampa's population as being 80.0% white and 19.7% black. Four attempts have been made to consolidate

4350-402: The principal town is believed to be the archeological Safety Harbor site . This is the namesake for the Safety Harbor culture , of which the Tocobaga are the most well-known group. The name "Tocobaga" is often applied to all of the native peoples of the immediate Tampa Bay area during the first Spanish colonial period (1513–1763). While they were culturally very similar, most of the villages on

4425-483: The production of fertilizers and other products, was soon being shipped from the Port of Tampa in great volume. Tampa is still a major phosphate exporter. The discovery of phosphate, the arrival of Plant's railroad, and the founding of Ybor City and West Tampa—all in the mid-1880s—were crucial to Tampa's development. The once-struggling village of Tampa became a bustling boomtown almost overnight and had grown into one of

4500-473: The rest of the US market easy by land. Since Tampa was still a small town at the time, with a population less than 5,000, Ybor built hundreds of small houses around his factory to accommodate the immediate influx of mainly Cuban and Spanish cigar workers. Ybor City 's factories rolled their first cigars in 1886, and many different cigar manufacturers moved their operations to town in ensuing years. Many Italian and

4575-519: The river. Jules Verne used the Alafia as the site of the fictional moon launch in his 1865 novel From the Earth to the Moon . He described the moon shot taking place from 1,800-foot bluffs overlooking the Alafia, around what is now today's Bell Shoals Nature Preserve. This Hillsborough County, Florida location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article related to

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4650-497: The state and the sixth largest in the Southeastern United States , behind Dallas-Fort Worth , Houston , Washington D.C. , Atlanta , and Miami . The Greater Tampa Bay area has over 4 million residents, and generally includes the Tampa and Sarasota metro areas. The earliest instance of the name "Tampa", in the form "Tanpa", appears in the memoirs of Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda , who spent 17 years as

4725-610: The state of Florida. The tallest building in the city is 100 North Tampa , formerly the AmSouth Building, which rises 42 floors and 579 ft (176 m) in Downtown Tampa. The structure was completed in 1992, and is the tallest building in Florida outside of Miami and Jacksonville . The Sulphur Springs Water Tower , a landmark in the Sulphur Springs section of the city, stands 214 feet tall and

4800-458: The vicinity of San Marcos through the 1720s and 1730s. The population of Tocobaga declined severely in the 17th century, due mostly to the spread of infectious diseases brought by the Europeans, to which the native people had little resistance, as they had no acquired immunity. In addition, all of the Florida tribes lost population due to the raids by the Creek and Yamasee around the end of

4875-570: The world. The Ybor City District is home to several buildings on the National Register of Historic Places and has been declared a National Historic Landmark . Notable structures include El Centro Español de Tampa , Centro Asturiano de Tampa and other social clubs built in the early 1900s . Including L'Unione Italiana or the Italian Club, at 1731 East 7th Avenue in Ybor City. The Italian Club mission "is to preserve and honor

4950-475: The worst offenders in government and the mob were not charged, the trials helped to end the sense of lawlessness which had prevailed in Tampa for decades. Tampa grew considerably as a result of World War II . Prior to the United States' involvement in the conflict, construction began on MacDill Field , which served as a main base for Army Air Corps and later Army Air Forces operations just before and during World War II, with multiple auxiliary airfields around

5025-463: Was able to openly thrive only because of kick-backs and bribes to key local politicians and law enforcement officials, and many were on the take. Profits from the bolita lotteries and Prohibition -era bootlegging led to the development of several organized crime factions in Tampa. Charlie Wall was the first major boss, but various power struggles culminated in consolidation of control by Sicilian mafioso Santo Trafficante Sr. and his faction in

5100-473: Was anxious to gain an advantage over his enemy Tocobaga, Menéndez took Carlos and 20 of his warriors to Tocobaga by ship. Menéndez persuaded Tocobaga and Carlos to make peace. He recovered several Europeans and a dozen Calusa being held as slaves by Tocobaga. Leaving a garrison of 30 men at Tocobaga ( to encourage the people of the town to convert to Christianity), he returned Carlos and the other Calusa to their town. In January 1568, Spanish boats taking supplies to

5175-513: Was at the mouth of Spanishtown Creek in today's Hyde Park neighborhood along Bayshore Boulevard . After purchasing Florida from Spain in 1821, the United States built forts and trading posts in the new territory. Fort Brooke was established in January 1824 at the mouth of the Hillsborough River on Tampa Bay, in Downtown Tampa . Tampa was initially an isolated frontier outpost. The sparse civilian population practically abandoned

5250-459: Was built by Grover Poole in the late 1920s. This 1920s boom period for Florida also saw the construction of an ornate movie palace , the Tampa Theatre , a Mediterranean revival on Davis Islands , and Bayshore Boulevard , which borders Hillsborough Bay from downtown Tampa to areas in South Tampa. The road has a 6 mi (10 km) continuous sidewalk on the eastern end, the longest in

5325-537: Was decommissioned in 1883, further impacting the local economy in the short run, but opening up the waterfront for development. Except for two cannons displayed on the University of Tampa campus, all traces of the fort are gone. In the mid-1880s, Tampa's fortunes took several sudden turns for the better. In 1883, phosphate was discovered in the Bone Valley region southeast of Tampa. The mineral, vital for

5400-492: Was in the Safety Harbor culture area together with Uzita and Tocobaga, the Mocoso people spoke a different language, possibly Timucua . Neither Narvaez nor de Soto remained in the area for long, as they each traveled north in search of gold after several violent encounters with the Tocobaga and their neighbors. The missionary expedition of Father Luis de Cancer visited the Tampa Bay area in 1549 to attempt to peacefully convert

5475-538: Was incorporated, it was called "Tampa Town". In 1855, the name was shortened to simply "Tampa". People from Tampa are generally known as "Tampans", "Tampanians", or "Tampeños". In 2014, local authorities consulted by Michael Kruse of the Tampa Bay Times suggest that "Tampan" was historically more common, while "Tampanian" became popular when the former term came to be seen as a potential insult. A mix of Cuban, Italian, and Spanish immigrants began arriving in

5550-454: Was killed. In addition to killing millions of fish and hundreds of acres of vegetation, the spill dumped 350 tons of nitrogen into Tampa Bay. Rather than pay fines, Mulberry Phosphates declared bankruptcy. Five years later, only $ 3.7 million was recovered from the company's insurance company. In 2002, Mosaic took over maintenance of the stack. In 2007, the cost of closing both stacks was estimated to be $ 48 million, which will be paid to Mosaic by

5625-447: Was rescued from the Calusa by Pedro Menéndez de Avilés , described Tocobaga, Abalachi ( Apalachee ) and Mogoso (Mocoço) as "separate kingdoms" from the Calusa. Ucita and Mocoço at the time of de Soto's visit were subject to a chief named Urriparacoxi or Paracoxi (also given as Urribarracuxi). De Soto marched to the town of Paracoxi, which appears to have been inland from Tampa Bay, where he found maize being cultivated. (By contrast,

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