History

“Sticks of Fire” sounds like a fun slogan for the Tampa Bay Lightning, but the phrase and the team’s name are actually related to the Tampa Bay area in a different way.

The city of Tampa may be turning 134 years old, but it never looked so good. Tampa celebrates its birthday on July 15, the date it incorporated in 1887.  

July is Park and Recreation Month, so park and recreation agencies and their communities are encouraged to share experiences from local parks all month-long.

Did you know the U.S.

“Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s 1861 poem about Paul Revere’s ride got some facts wrong, according to the History Channel.

A century ago, the Tampa Bay Hurricane of 1921 made landfall in Tarpon Springs as a Category 3.

The 4th of July could have been the 2nd of July.

The Valspar Championship has a long history of supporting Tampa Bay area charities, generating more than $45 million in contributions throughout its 40-year history.

For more than 250 years during the Age of Sail, European explorers set out for Florida searching for land, wealth and new opportunities.

Happy Women’s History Month! March is a great month for lots of reasons — the sun starts shining more, we can enjoy patio dining again, but most importantly, we get to celebrate women and their contributions.

Cuban cigars … made in Tampa? In the early 1880s Vicente Martinez-Ybor, a successful Cuban cigar maker in Havana, started looking for another place to open cigar factories.

It’s hard to believe there was ever a time when the Bay wasn’t connected to the rest of Florida and the world, with planes, trains and cars.

Imagine a world where it took five-hours by train, or a slow steamboat trip, to get from Tampa to St. Petersburg. Before 1914, that was reality.

The oldest restaurant in the entire state of Florida has another title to their name!

With Tom Brady’s first season as a Buccaneer around the corner, what shoes will he fill?

While American football can trace its roots back to the mid-1800s, the tradition of the tight, circular huddle began in 1892 to serve a very niche purpose.

Nestled outside of downtown St. Petersburg is a neighborhood that holds a lot of African American history. So much history, in fact, that 19 markers were designated to tell the neighborhood’s story on a fascinating walking tour called the African American Heritage Trail.

It’s difficult to imagine the Oxford Exchange was once anything other than marble floors and a limestone fountain, but the space is full of history.

Apalachicola resident Dr. John Gorrie was an early pioneer in the invention of the artificial manufacture of ice, refrigeration and air conditioning. He was granted the first United States patent for mechanical refrigeration in 1851. Dr. Gorrie’s basic principle is the one most often used in refrigeration today: cooling caused by the rapid expansion of gases.

The City of Dunedin may have a small town feel but it carries big history, like its military manufacturing days in the 1940s.

Did you know Florida has both a state song and a state anthem?

If you like local lore or are a fan of Jim Morrison and The Doors, check out Bird Stevens’ book “Jim Morrison’s Clearwater Then and Now.”

At the height of their influence, Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall and Bill Clinton have all spoken at the pulpit of downtown Tampa’s St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church. Built in 1914, the church served as Tampa’s mecca for civil rights and faith.

Arcadia fruit picker James Richardson was convicted of poisoning his seven children in 1968 after the local sheriff and prosecutor conspired against him. He served 21 years in prison until hidden evidence came to light and he was released. Richardson then spent 25 years attempting to obtain compensation from the state of Florida for wrongful incarceration.

Historic tours, like the annual Buildings Alive! Ybor Architectural Hop, take visitors behind the scenes of Ybor City’s most storied buildings.

After sitting vacant for nine years, a historic hotel in Belleair is once again welcoming guests.

The movie “Green Book,” which earned three Golden Globes, depicts African American pianist Don Shirley following a guidebook to find motels that would admit him while traveling in the 1960s.

Fenway Hotel, Dunedin’s most historic building, is alive again.

Several historic home tours are coming to the Tampa Bay area, providing a fun afternoon seeing homes that tell a story.

Bill Graham’s life was anything but typical. The music promoter worked with everyone from the Rolling Stones and the Grateful Dead to Santana and Jefferson Airplane.