Tampa is the largest city in Hillsborough County and the third most populous city in Florida. Located on the west coast of Florida, Tampa is 20 miles northeast of St. Petersburg. The city’s diverse economy is made up of tourism, agriculture, construction, finance, health care, government, technology, and the port of Tampa. Tampa prides itself on being home to the seventh largest port in the nation, as well as U.S. Central Command and U.S. Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base. To find out more about the wonders of Tampa, please visit them on the web at: http://www.tampagov.net/about_us.
Ponce de Leon first arrived in the Tampa Bay area in 1513 – but not settled until later
1824, only two months after the arrival of the first American settler, four companies of the U.S. Army established Fort Brooke to protect the strategic harbor at Tampa Bay.
territory became part of the United States in 1845
1884 railroad extension to the Hillsborough River provided access to new areas and continued settlement of area
Phosphates were discovered nearby in the late 1880s, the resulting mining and shipping industries prompted a boom of growth and wealth that lasted through the 1890s.
1886 Vicente Martinez Ybor established a cigar factory in Tampa
The military has also had an ongoing role in Tampa's development. The city was the primary outfitting and embarkation port for U.S. troops bound for Cuba during the Spanish-American War.
1914 Percival Ellicott Fansler introduced the world's first scheduled commercial airline service with the St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line.
The advent of the automobile soon clipped Jannus' wings but was responsible for a large settlement wave that occurred 1923-26. Many subdivisions were built during this era; one of the most notable was Davis Island, a man-made island created by D.P. Davis.
main Tampa downtown business district has grown phenomenally since the 1960s
http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/Falls/3939/tampa.html
16400 Morris Bridge Rd, Tampa, FL 33637, (813) 987-6211
Trails are a mix of paved, single track, and double track trails near the Hillsborough River. Avoid area if it has rained in the past 24 hours for off road adventures. Water and restrooms are available periodically on the 10+ miles of paved sections and off-road trails are marked. Head East on paved sections to reach Morris Bridge. Head South to a wide, unshaded double track trail along a dike, leading to Trout Creek. Just North of the dam on the West there is access to the Tampa Palms paved and unpaved trail network. Bike down the hill next to the river and pass under I-75. Tampa Palms trails meander around neighborhoods and are mostly paved. These unpaved trails are very short, and are for residents and their guests only.
Lettuce Lake Park
6920 Fletcher Avenue, Tampa, FL 33637, (813) 987-6204
Activities center around the nature center and boardwalk leading to an observation tower on the Hillsborough River. Bicycle and exercise trails meander through the 240-acre park. Hours: Daily (Sunrise - Sunset)
Gasparilla Pirate Fest http://www.gasparillapiratefest.com/
Every year, plunderers take over the city in honor of the mythical legendary pirate Jose Gaspar. The Gasparilla Pirate Fest is one of the country's largest and most unique outdoor celebrations.
Outback Bowl http://www.outbackbowl.com/
The Outback Bowl is a New Year's Day college football game matching teams from the SEC and Big Ten Conference.
Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival http://www.tampablackheritage.org/
The Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival is an 8-day cultural fest in which speakers, musicians, artists, poets, and craftspeople welcome many visitors each year.
Fiesta Day (Ybor City) http://www.cc-events.org/fiestaday/
Fiesta Day honors the Cuban, German, Italian, African-Cuban, Jewish and Spanish immigrants who first settled in Ybor in 1886.
Gasparilla Distance Classic http://www.tampabayrun.com/
The Gasparilla Distance Classic attracts world-class runners who compete on foot in 5K and 15K events.
The Florida Strawberry Festival http://www.flstrawberryfestival.com/
Begins The Last Thursday of February
Festival Grounds, 2202 W Reynolds St, Plant City, FL 33563, 813-754-1996
Acelebration of strawberries that dates back to 1930. It began when members of the Plant City Lions Club decided to celebrate the area's bountiful harvest of strawberries. The 11 day festival, attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors from around the world.
For a complete list of Tampa’s annual events, please visit the following sites:
Busch Gardenshttp://www.buschgardens.com/BGT2/
Busch Gardens has been making memories for guests of all ages since 1959, when the park debuted as a bird gardens and hospitality center open free of charge to guests who toured Tampa's Anheuser-Busch Brewery.
Half a century later, Busch Gardens is the bay area s No. 1 tourist destination, where wildlife and wild rides come together in an unparalleled combination of Broadway-style shows, a world-class zoo with more than 2,500 exotic and endangered animals and more record-breaking roller coasters than any destination in Florida.
Adventure Islandhttp://www.adventureisland.com/
Adventure Island (next to Busch Gardens) features 36 acres of 17 water play areas with a beach volleyball complex.
Florida Aquariumhttp://www.flaquarium.org/ The Florida Aquarium is a three-story, glass domed aquarium featuring exhibits related to Florida's ecosystem and aquatic habitats. Highlights include: the Florida Wetlands Gallery, which displays a cypress swamp, mangrove roots, and a river with otters; the Florida Bays and beaches Gallery, which contains freshwater and saltwater displays; the Coral Reefs Gallery, which showcases many fish and colorful reefs; and plants and animals native to Florida (including alligators). Sharks, rays, and other sea creatures from the Gulf of Mexico can also be viewed at the aquarium.
Henry B. Plant Museumhttp://www.plantmuseum.com/
The Henry B. Plant Museum is housed in the south wing of Plant Hall, the former Tampa Bay Hotel. The museum displays furnishings and gilded art original to the hotel. Exhibits trace the history of the hotel and the Tampa area.
The University of Tampa was established in 1931 as a private institution. The university occupies the former Tampa Bay Hotel, a Victorian-style building complete with Moorish revival architecture and minarets. The hotel was built in 1891 by Henry B. Plant, a transportation magnate who was instrumental in the reconstruction of the south. The administration building, Plant Hall, served as Theodore Roosevelt's headquarters in the Spanish-American War.
Lowry Park Zoohttp://www.lowryparkzoo.com/
Recognized as the #1 family-friendly Zoo in the United States by Child magazine, Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo features more than 2,000 animals on 56 acres of lush, natural habitats in seven main exhibit areas: Asian Gardens, Primate World, Manatee and Aquatic Center, Native Florida Wildlife Center, Free-Flight Aviary, Wallaroo Station children’s zoo, and Safari Africa."
For the young and young at heart, Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo offers many interactive experiences to help teach the value of the living world firsthand. Visitors can feed giraffe, stingrays and lorikeets, and take a ride on a Dromedary camel or pony. In Safari Africa, zoogoers can soar across the zoo on the Skyfari sky ride or hop aboard the Safari Ride for a guided tour. Also at the zoo: two water play areas, educational shows, rides and restaurants.
Museum of Science & Industryhttp://www.mosi.org/
The Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) is a science and technology center containing more than 210,00 square feet of exhibits and hands-on displays. Features include a hurricane simulator, a planetarium, and an IMAX Dome theater.
Tampa Museum of Arthttp://www.tampamuseum.org/
The Tampa Museum of Art's administrative offices are currently located in an interim facility at 2306 N. Howard Avenue in Tampa, while construction of the new museum is completed in downtown Tampa. The museum's exhibition schedule will resume in the new facility when it opens on February 6, 2010. Select programs will continue to be offered through 2009 at the interim facility and offsite locations throughout Tampa. TMA's collection of Greek and Roman antiquities, and collection of contemporary art is in secure storage until the new facility opens.
The Dali Museum is the flagship of cultural tourism on the West Coast of Florida and welcomes over 200,000 visitors each year from around the world. Serving the Florida community, 10,000 students are admitted without charge annually. Our education programs produce study guides and web information for students and teachers. Two film series, lectures and concerts supplement the themes of the exhibitions. The Museum Store - one of the most dynamic in the museum world, with books and educational material as top sellers, reflects and extends the exhibition experience. A new series of small format exhibition catalogs is published to accompany the four new exhibitions mounted each year. The Dali maintains strong partnerships with the community of St. Petersburg, the State of Florida as well as museums and educational institutions globally. As a partner with locally based corporations, the Museum is an engine for economic development in Florida.
(The following information on Tampa’s history has been directly sourced from: 
Clearwater Beaches:
Tampa Museum of Art 
