Ybor City, Tampa, Florida
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Image:YborCityTampaFL01.jpg Ybor City (pronounced "ee-bore") is a historic district in Tampa, Florida. Located near downtown Tampa, the district's many nightclubs and bars makes it a popular evening and weekend hotspot in the Tampa Bay area.
It is one of three National Historic Landmark Districts in Florida.
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History
Image:Yborcigarfactory.jpg The district is named for cigar factory owner Vincente M. Ybor, as it was built to house his factories and their workers. His factory was moved to the location of present-day Ybor City in 1886, when it moved there from Key West. Other manufacturers of hand-rolled cigars soon followed, and by the end of the 19th century Ybor City and Tampa is the largest such manufacturer in the world, and a major source of revenue for the federal government due to high import duties on tobacco and excise taxes on cigars. In the late 1800s and early 1900s Ybor City was home to many Cuban and Italian immigrants, most of whom were brought there (or to West Tampa) to work in the area's many cigar factories.
Illegal bolita lotteries, popular in the mid-20th century, were run by organized criminals in the area. Mafioso Santo Trafficante, Sr. consolidated control of area gangs in 1950, which passed to his son, Santo Trafficante, Jr. upon his death in 1954. The younger Trafficante was reputedly also powerful in pre-Castro Cuba. With the advent of mechanization, the cigar factories closed, and the area fell into disrepute.
In the early 1990s, the area attracted many artistic types and began serving as the locus for a thriving rave scene. Drug dealers showed up in greater numbers and attracted the attention of local politicians and law enforcement. Local ordinances were passed barring all-night dance parties, and some rave clubs had their liquor licenses revoked. Then, the land developers moved in, seeking to capitalize upon the perception of Ybor City as a cutting edge cultural area. Ybor rents increased significantly, and suddenly many artists could no longer afford to live in Ybor. Local developers installed many upscale bars and a trendy shopping complex called Centro Ybor.
Museums
Image:YborCityTampaFL02.jpg Image:YborCityTampaFL03.jpg Image:IMAG001515.JPG
Annual events
- Gasparilla Night Parade
- Guavaween - various daytime events and nighttime parade in October
- Rough Rider's St. Patrick's Night Parade - illuminated nighttime parade that takes place a Saturday night in March. The 2005 parade date was Saturday, March 12.
- Sant'Yago Knight Parade - illuminated nighttime parade that takes place a Saturday night in February. The 2005 parade date was Saturday, February 12.
Public transit
The TECO Line Streetcar System, which links Ybor City, the Channel District and downtown Tampa, began operating on Saturday, 19 October 2002. The Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority (HARTline) operates the streetcars as well as the bus system.