Ybor City, Florida

Ybor City 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.

The same complex at nighttime.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 was 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, Spanish and Italian immigrants, most of whom were brought there (or to West Tampa) to work in the area's many cigar factories.

Ybor cigar factory, c1902.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 became another victim of urban renewal.

In recent years, neighborhoods have improved and small businesses have been attracted to Ybor. Museums

Street festival in Ybor CityCigar Museum And Visitor Center Ybor City Museum State Park TECO Line Streetcar Museum

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. Tampa Cigar Heritage Festival, November 18, 2006