Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks

A.W Ormond and his daughter Mary were the first settlers to show up in Tarpon Springs in 1876. They built a cabin on the bayou and after a year of living there, Mary named the place Tarpon Springs because of the giant tarpon that would jump out of the water. In 1880, Hamilton Disston bought 40 acres of land for 25 cents per acre and Tarpon Springs was part of the acreage that was bought. According to Tarpon Springs, the Chamber of Commerce, "In 1881, when Florida was on the edge of bankruptcy, a wealthy Philadelphian manufacturer named Hamilton Disston rescued the state with one of the biggest real estate deals ever" (para. 4). Four years later a post office was built along with the railroad and by 1887 Tarpon Springs became a resort for Northerners. Mostly everything was built surrounding this fresh water spring called the Spring Bayou. The residents living there were wealthy and the shape of the land was a crescent shaped so the area was called the Golden Crescent. But John Cheney, a friend of Disston, found that the sponges in the bay would be a great business. By 1890, Cheney Sponge Company was the start of the sponge industry in Tarpon Springs. In the next few years, many professional sponge divers were brought to Tarpon Springs and the business started booming.

Divers from Greece came over to Tarpon in the early 1900s specifically to dive for sponges and eventually there were about 500 Greek sponge divers in the area. The professional divers were able to harvest more sponges which increased the sponge business. With the increase of diving crew there was a need for more restaurants in the area especially on the water where they were working. This is why there are so many Greek restaurant's on the water because all the divers that were originally from Greece.

News of the new restaurants and the sponges grew and a lot more tourists came to check out the new area. According to Tarpon Springs History, "Sponge buyers created the Sponge Exchange in 1907. A building with a courtyard was erected in which each sponger could store his catch while awaiting the auctions that took place twice a week"(Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks para. 10). With the improvements of diving equipment and the ability to go deeper into the water for longer periods of time allowed for a price increase in the sponges. Before Florida was known for citrus and tourism it was known for its sponges. To this day, Tarpon Springs is still the sponge capital of the world but Florida did loose that title for a short period of time.

Even though the sponge business was booming for 30 years by the 1950s it stopped. This was because in the 1940s there was a plant disease called blight that was killing the sponges and slowing the growth of them. This became bad for business and caused a shortage of sponges in the area. Eventually new sponge beds were found and the sale of sponges were back to normal. Once the new sponges were found again Tarpon Springs went back to being known as "the national leader of the natural sponge market"(Tarpon Springs History). Many people can tour Tarpon Springs and see where the original settlers lived in the Spring Bayou, experience the harvesting of the sponges and eat at one of the many Greek influenced restaurants scattered across the water.

Florida history network - Tarpon springs halts Sponge Docks upgrades. (n.d.). Retrieved April 25, 2021, from http://www.floridahistorynetwork.com/florida-history-today---tarpon-springs-halts-sponge-docks-upgrades.html

• This page discussed the plans to upgrade the docks but most importantly it has a picture of what the docks used to look like as well as the large supply of sponges and the many boats that are docked.

History of tarpon springs. (n.d.). Retrieved March 28, 2021, from https://www.tarponspringschamber.org/history-of-tarpon-springs

• This site provides information on the history of Tarpon Springs. It discusses the earliest inhabitants of Florida and why Tarpon Springs was a hot spot for many of them. It also discuss why so many people from Greece migrated to Tarpon Springs for their sponges. Also, how the first resident of Tarpon Springs and how it gets its name from the tarpon jumping in the water. This website has information on how Florida almost went bankrupt and who saved them as well as the Spring Bayou which is where settlers lived and why. It also provides many pictures of the Spring Bayou and the house that settlers A.W Ormond and daughter Mary lived in. (pictures shown)

Renz, P. (n.d.). Tarpon springs Area Historical Society. Retrieved April 25, 2021, from http://www.tarponspringsareahistoricalsociety.org/History.html

• This site provides information about the history of tarpon but it also has quite a few pictures of what Tarpon Springs used to look like.

Sponge diver - Tarpon SPRINGS, Florida: Tarpon springs, tarpon SPRINGS FLORIDA, Old Florida. (n.d.). Retrieved February 27, 2021, from https://www.pinterest.com/pin/32862272253473277/

• This site provides a picture of a scuba diver in old scuba gear in front of a boat with sponges.

Tarpon springs FLORIDA: Sponge Docks: Greek RESTAURANTS: Epiphany. (2021, February 02). Retrieved February 28, 2021, from https://spongedocks.net/

• This site gives information on Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks also known as the sponge capitol of the world. It also explains how it has the finest Greek food and the best sponges. It gives ideas of the different things that are available to do in Tarpon Springs.

Tarpon springs History. (2019, December 25). Retrieved February 27, 2021, from https://spongedocks.net/tarpon-springs-history/

• This website is the same as the one above but a different section of the website. It gives information on the culture and history of Tarpon Springs. It talks about the first settlers in Tarpon Springs and how it got its name. As Tarpon started growing with residents, the sponge industry started rising as well. Many divers from Greece came and would scuba dive for sponges and sell them in the town. It goes on to explain how visitors can see different sponges that are harvested weekly as well as the Greek influence throughout the town of Tarpon Springs at the Sponge Docks.

Torrence, R. (2020, June 15). Tarpon springs rebrands with new campaign to ATTRACT locals, visitors. Retrieved February 27, 2021, from https://www.tampabay.com/news/pinellas/2020/06/15/tarpon-springs-rebrands-with-new-campaign-to-attract-locals-visitors/

• This site provides an image of all the sponges that they have in Tarpon Springs. It also gives details about how Tarpon Springs is rebranding and trying to remind people that they're still open and ready for guests. It explains all the new restaurants they have and what they're doing after Covid-19 to help the local businesses.

User, G. (2016, August 19). Day trip to tarpon springs. Retrieved March 28, 2021, from https://www.citrushills.com/blog/day-trip-to-tarpon-springs

• This website provides an image of a sign at Tarpon Springs stating "Tarpon Spring, Sponge Capital of the World". It also provides a personal experience at the Sponge Docks and the different things available to do there.