Tampa Historic Hike
Tampa, FL
- Distance: 6.1 miles (9.8 km)
- Time: 6 h 30 min
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Loop
- Free
- 26 stops
A hike through the historic parts of the city of Tampa, covering the history of Tampa from its native inhabitants, Spanish exploration, the era of the immigrants and into modern times. The route begins at the Tampa History Museum, passes modern skyscrapers and century old buildings, visits the historic Tampa Bay Hotel, follows Bayshore Boulevard to the Gasparilla pirate ship and rides the streetcar to historic Ybor City, ending at the hike's highlight - the S.S. American Victory Ship.
Trail start
Parking — Tampa Bay History Center. Parking available. $10 per car. Park by the Tampa Bay History Center. Additional parking at the South Regional Parking Garage by the Tampa Bay Times Forum, Channelside and the Aquarium.
Stops
A Day at the Museum (Tampa Bay History Center)
The Tampa Bay History Center is a state of the art museum built in 2009. It houses many exhibits that highlight the history of the Tampa Bay Area. Features include: Native American artifacts, sports memorabilia, cigars, immigrant history, war history, cattle drive stories, local pioneer stories and…
Harbor Island
Across the water you will see Harbor Island. Harbor Island was originally a small natural island that was built up to become a port facility in the 1900s. It had a rail yard with a large swinging drawbridge and phosphate elevators. In 1979, the land was purchased from the Seaboard Coast Line and…
Lightning Strike (Tampa Bay Times Forum)
This venue opened in 1996 and has since been used for basketball, arena football, concerts, civic events and of course, hockey. Many people are surprised that Florida has a hockey franchise. In the late 1980s the NHL announced an expansion into the South. Tampa got its team in 1992, followed by the…
MacDill Park Riverfront
This park has many signs that cover the founding and history of MacDill Air Force Base and its contributions to Tampa. During the early days of Tampa this area was used as a wharf for small boats and businesses. An early business of note was the Oyster Saloon. In 1837, the saloon was the location…
City Hall
Just before City Hall is the Tampa City Hall Plaza. It has two markers - you should read the Rough Riders one. This location provides a nice view of City Hall. Built in 1915, City Hall itself is one of a few examples of Art Deco architecture popular in the Tampa area. It is closed on weekends and…
Park and Courthouse (Joe Chillura Courthouse Square)
Joe Chillura Courthouse Square opened in 2000. It has many historical signs incorporated into its history walk. The signs are informative; but, are not that interesting and can be skipped. Walk along the Kennedy side and then see the sign in the ESE corner. It includes information about the dome in…
Train Station (Tampa Union Station)
Tampa's Union Station was how most people arrived to Tampa before the interstate highway system. This building was built in 1912 in the Italian Renaissance revival style. The station combined the operations of three separate lines that operated in Tampa. As train travel declined, the building began…
Places of Worship (St. Andrew's Episcopal and Sacred Heart)
The church with the orange colored steeple is Saint Andrews Episcopal Church. This church was built in 1904 in historic Spanish Mission style architecture. If the church is open, walk in and look around. The wood rail around the front is from the original 1871 wooden church that once stood on the…
Florida Ave
North of the Catholic Church on Florida Ave is the old neoclassical granite Post Office and US Federal Courthouse, built in 1902. Just past the Courthouse and to the right (a block away) you can see the First Presbyterian Church, built in 1924 and expanded in 1949. The congregation dates back to…
Optional Spur: Harlem Academy and St. Paul A.M.E. Church
The red brick building is the St. Paul A.M.E. Church. The congregation was started in 1870 and is the oldest African American congregation in Tampa. After experiencing dwindling membership it closed its doors in 2010. The church was built in 1914 and has been visited by many dignitaries including…
Optional Spur: Oaklawn Cemetery
Oaklawn Cemetery was Tampa's first public burial ground. It is the final resting place for most of Tampa's early inhabitants including Vicente Ybor, mayors, slaves, pirates, confederate soldiers and yellow fever victims. With about 1700 graves onsite, the cemetery is quite large; you could spend…
Tampa Theatre
The Tampa Theatre was built in 1926 as one of America's most elaborate movie palaces and was the first air conditioned building in Tampa. The inside of the theatre is a sight unto itself. It has the feel of a Mediterranean courtyard with stars, gargoyles and statues. From its opening until the late…
Museums and Curtis Hixon Park
Curtis Hixon Park was built on the grounds of the demolished old convention center. Restrooms are located on the south side of the park. The site now plays host to the Tampa Art Museum and the Children's Museum. As you walk towards the Hillsborough River, you will see the spires. The Tampa Bay…
Plant Park
Before you go into Plant Park, note the domed church on Kennedy. Built in 1923, this is the First Baptist Church of Tampa; its congregation dates from 1859. Read the sign about the The Tampa Bay Hotel. Then, head back 100 feet and enter the park. Head right on the path toward the central spire…
The Tampa Bay Hotel
Welcome to Tampa's most beautiful building. This building was originally built by Henry Plant in 1891 as the premier hotel out of the eight built for his rail line. Plant had a steamship line that took passengers to exotic Caribbean destinations from Tampa. The line was over a quarter mile long and…
Hyde Park
Hyde Park begins its history as a neighborhood in the 1880s after Henry Plant built the bridge across the Hillsborough River. Houses popped up quickly all the way to the site of Old Hyde Park Village and down Bayshore Blvd. Many of the multi-story houses you see were built in the 1890s-1920s. The…
Arrgh! (Gasparilla Pirate Ship)
At this dock you will see the pirate flagship used during the Gasparilla Festival (it is docked here almost all year long). Jose Gaspar was a pirate who raided the coast of west Florida between about 1890 and 1921. In 1821, the USS Enterprise (not Star Trek) lured his ship into a battle and he…
Fort Brooke and the Mouth of the Hillsborough River
Where the convention center now stands was once a large prehistorical Timuca temple mound. Fort Brooke was built in 1824 next to the mound. The purpose of the fort was to contain the Seminole Indians, control the river and curtail illegal activities in the newly acquired Florida territory. The wood…
StreetCar (TECO Line)
Time to take the streetcar! The streetcar you are about to ride opened in 2002 and was modeled after Tampa's electric street cars from 1892-1946. You are going to head to stop #1 in Ybor city. The street car will pass the Forum, the Tampa History Museum and the Florida Aquarium. On your left you…
Centennial Park Station
Disembark here and head west one block to the next stop.
Centennial Park
Ybor was founded in 1885 by cigar manufacturers. The city was highly populated with Cuban, Spanish, Italian and Jewish immigrants, making it one of the few multiethnic towns in the American South at the time. Centennial Park was built to commemorate Ybor City's rich cultural Latin heritage. Here…
7th Street
Although now an entertainment district, 7th Street was once the thriving main street for Ybor City. The buildings along the street are mostly from the golden age of Ybor (1902-1929). Here you can see the wrought iron balconies popular at the time. Many of the large solid buildings in the area were…
Cuban Connection (Cuban Club and Cherokee Club)
This was the social club for Tampa's Cuban immigrants. Tampa's Cuban community was a cornerstone of Ybor City and this building was its nucleus. As Cuba moved toward independence from Spain, the Cuban community was heavily involved in the struggle. On the second floor you can peek in the doors to…
Hitch a Ride (Streetcar back)
Take the Downtown/Channelside car (head South) and get off at Station 7. Give your feet a rest and take the trolley to the most exciting feature of the hike, the American Victory Ship! Around the corner to the south of the station is the Ybor City sign. If you have time before the next trolley, you…
Cumberland Avenue Station
Victory Ship (S.S. American Victory)
The American Victory Ship is a WWII era merchant ship that was converted into a floating museum. Victory ships were built to move the materials needed for the European and Pacific campaigns. During the Atlantic War, ships like these carried the critical supplies to Great Britain and our other…
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