Shop, dine and explore the city’s colorful Greek community and history of sponge diving
The most magical small towns are those that successfully retain their original character and culture. Just an hour’s drive northeast from downtown Tampa is one of central Florida’s most colorful examples of this magic, Tarpon Springs.
With its rich Greek heritage, unique Greek Village and Sponge Docks, historic attractions and a plethora of specialty shops and eateries, this small coastal town is well worth a day trip.
Local sponge boat getting ready for its next journey — Photo courtesy of Skye Rodgers
How Tarpon Springs became Greek
First established in 1887 as a winter resort town, the focus soon shifted to harvesting the plentiful sponges that could be found in the Gulf of Mexico. The industry grew quickly after entrepreneur John King Cheyney established the Anclote and Rock Island Springs Sponge Company.
Encouraged by a Greek sponge buyer named, John Cocoris, Cheyney started to introduce the cutting-edge equipment and harvesting methods used by expert sponge divers in the Dodecanese Islands of Greece.
Word spread overseas quickly, and by 1905, the immigration of over 500 experienced Greek sponge divers and their families had…
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