Tarpons Springs City Marina, 100 Dodecanese Boulevard, Tarpon Springs, Pinellas County, Florida, USA

Tarpon Springs is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The population was 23,484 at the 2010 census. Tarpon Springs has the highest percentage of Greek Americans of any city in the US. Downtown Tarpon Springs has long been a focal point and is currently undergoing beautification.

The region, with a series of bayous feeding into the Gulf of Mexico, was first settled by white and black farmers and fishermen around 1876. Some of the newly arrived visitors spotted tarpon jumping out of the waters and so named the location Tarpon Springs. The name is said to have originated with a remark of Mrs. Ormond Boyer, an early settler from South Carolina, and who, while standing on the shore of the Bayou and seeing fish leaping exclaimed, "See the tarpon spring!' However, for the most part, the fish seen splashing here were mullets rather than tarpon. In 1882, Hamilton Disston, who in the previous year had purchased the land where the city of Tarpon Springs now stands, ordered the creation of a town plan for the future city.

On February 12, 1887, Tarpon Springs became the first incorporated city in what is now Pinellas County. Less than a year later on January 13, 1888, the Orange Belt Railway, the first railroad line to be built in what is now Pinellas County, arrived in the city. During this time the area was developed as a wintering spot for wealthy northerners.

In the 1880s, John K. Cheyney founded the first local sponge business. The industry continued to grow in the 1890s. Many people from Key West and the Bahamas settled in Tarpon Springs to hook sponges and then process them. A few Greek immigrants also arrived in this city during the 1890s to work in the sponge industry.

In 1905, John Cocoris introduced the technique of sponge diving to Tarpon Springs by recruiting divers and crew members from Greece. The first divers came from the Saronic Gulf islands of Aegina and Hydra, but they were soon outnumbered by those from the Dodecanese islands of Kalymnos, Symi, and Halki. The sponge industry soon became one of the leading maritime industries in Florida and the most important business in Tarpon Springs, generating millions of dollars a year. The 1953 film Beneath the 12-Mile Reef, depicting the sponge industry, takes place and was filmed in Tarpon Springs.

In 1947, red tide algae bloom wiped out the sponge fields in the Gulf of Mexico, causing many of the sponge boats and divers to switch to shrimping for their livelihood, while others left the business. Eventually, the sponges recovered, allowing for a smaller but consistent sponge industry today. In the 1980s, the sponge business experienced a boom due to a sponge disease that killed the Mediterranean sponges. Today there is still a small active sponge industry. Visitors can often view sponge fishermen working at the Sponge Docks on Dodecanese Boulevard. In addition, visitors can enjoy shops, restaurants, and museum exhibits that detail Tarpon Springs' Greek heritage.

In 2007 and 2008, the City of Tarpon Springs established Sister City relationships with Kalymnos, Halki, Symi, and Larnaca, Cyprus, honoring the close historical link with these Greek-speaking islands.

There are several districts or properties in Tarpon Springs that have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places:

Tarpon Springs Greektown Historic District
Tarpon Springs Historic District
Arcade Hotel
Old Tarpon Springs City Hall
Old Tarpon Springs High School
Safford House
Rose Hill Cemetery
Tarpon Springs Depot

Many sites related to the sponge industry within the Greektown District also have been recognized. They include but are not limited to two sponge packing houses:

E.R. Meres Sponge Packing House
N.G. Arfaras Sponge Packing House
And several boats:

N.K. Symi (Sponge Diving Boat)
St. Nicholas III (Sponge Diving Boat)
St. Nicholas VI (Sponge Diving Boat)

Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarpon_Springs,_Florida
www.pcpao.org/?pg=https://www.pcpao.org/general.php?strap...

© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.

Taken in: United States / Florida / Tarpon Springs (show map)

Taken on: August 24, 2021

Tags:

City of Tarpon Springs

Pinellas County

USA

highest percentage of Greek Americans of any city in the US

Sunshine State

urban

downtown

urban Florida

historic Florida

old Florida

street photography

real estate

architecture

building

vacation destination

commercial property

series of bayous feeding into the Gulf of Mexico

Mrs. Ormond Boyer

Hamilton Disston

first incorporated city in what is now Pinellas County

John Cocoris

The 1953 film Beneath the 12-Mile Reef takes place and was filmed in Tarpon Springs

Sponge Docks on Dodecanese Boulevard

shops

restaurants

museum exhibits that detail Tarpon Springs' Greek heritage

sponge docks

City Marina

Tarpon Springs City Marina « less

Sets appears in: • City of Tarpon Springs, Pinellas County, Florida, USA • Urban Florida II

Groups appears in: • Florida • Downtown more » • Urban Americana • Central Florida • URBAN • Central Florida Recreation • ! * Urban LIFE in Metropolis //// • Florida, USA • Central Florida Flickrs • Old Florida • Central Florida Photographers • Dramatic URBAN Vistas! (Urban Landscape Photography) • MY FLORIDA • Pinellas County, Florida • Florida Vaction • Florida Holiday Photos • Florida Sun • Urban City Love • Tarpon Springs Florida • Historic Florida • Urban Exposure • The Florida Photographer • Photography in Florida • City Urban Style • Cityscape and urban scenery • urban // lights // night • Urban Gallery • Urban - Photography • Skylines of Florida • Downtown Living • Urban Excellence • Urban Beauty • Florida - HDR • Urban Photography • Florida Explorers • archiCentral - Architecture & Urban Design • Around Central Florida • Urban Architecture/Urban Landscape • Architecture & Urban • North American URBANity (Post 1, Comment 1) • Geotagged: Florida • Urban Catalogue • Florida Travels • Urban Form • Hipstamatic - Florida • Urban trees • Only urban photos • Urban Views • Real Estate In Florida • FloridaPast • Florida Photo Adventures • Florida - The Sunshine State • FLORIDA • My Florida Page • Florida Landscapes • PLANET EARTH URBAN LANDSCAPES • Our cities, our photos Urban • Urban Cityscapes • Florida Architecture • Florida Days & Nights • Florida's Cityscapes & Rural Areas • Downtown in Towns of all Sizes • The Sunshine State • City, Urban & Engineering Images • !* THE NEW SOUTH ✧ Please, ONLY QUALITY IMAGES!✧ • USA - United States (No 30/60 limit) • USA - Pictures (No 30/60 limit) « less

Stats: 3,958 views

Link to this photo view:
Link to this photo large view: