History and Description of the Metropolitan Tampa Regional Area

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Ideally located on Florida's West Coast, Tampa features miles of sparkling waterways and sandy shorelines. Its central location allows residents easy access to the nearby Gulf beaches and surrounding areas. The area is surrounded by a breathtaking waterfront that includes the beautiful Hillsborough and Alafia rivers and several area lakes.

A wide network of major interstates and highways are conveniently spread throughout the city. Clearwater and St. Petersburg are less than a thirty-minute drive from Tampa, while Sarasota and Orlando are just over an hour away.

Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon first arrived in the Tampa Bay area in 1513, but the Spaniards focused their attention on settling eastern Florida and left the western areas alone. In 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. Since then, the military has 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. Today, the U.S. Operations Command is headquartered nearby at MacDill Air Force Base.

Commercial development of the Tampa Bay region really took off after the territory became part of the United States in 1845. Henry B. Plant's 1884 railroad extension to the Hillsborough River provided access to new areas, but Tampa owes its commercial success to the surrounding Bay and the Hillsborough River. When phosphates were discovered in the area in the late 1880s, the resulting mining and shipping industries prompted a boom of growth and wealth that lasted through the 1890s. Tampa's port is now the seventh largest in the nation.

The main Tampa downtown business district has grown phenomenally since the 1960s. Major banks and an increasing number of other corporations occupy large glass, steel and concrete buildings that tower high above the bay. The Tampa Convention Center, overlooking the Hillsborough River, offers meeting facilities and features an erupting fire and water sculpture.

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Tampa residents enjoy a beautiful warm climate year round. The winter is characterized by bright sunny days tempered by gentle bay breezes, warm days and cool evening breezes grace the spring and fall, summer in Tampa offers even warmer temperatures and quick afternoon showers.

Originally the name of a body of water on the west coast of Florida, Tampa Bay has now come to represent the region made up of the many distinct communities connected by the Bay waters. Not only is it the most populated and affluent metropolitan area in Florida, Tampa Bay is also the largest television market in the state.

From its historic Latin roots and the thrills of Busch Gardens to the culture of its many museums and a myriad of waterways to explore, there's always plenty to do and see in Tampa. And with its multi-cultural, diverse business center with sustainable communities for its citizens, Tampa is also a great place to live and do business.