In the first portion of the show we speak with Rodney Kite-Powell, the Saunders Foundation Curator of History at the Tampa Bay History Center. 9400 Little Gasparilla Is Unit E2 is a 946 square foot property with 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. "[3][31], Beater published several additional books about southwest Florida; some marketed as fiction, some as non-fiction, and some as guidebooks for tourists, all including tongue-in-cheek dramatic tales about Gaspar and other pirates. Don Barnes, Executive Officer of Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla said a lot has changed since then. "Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla" (YMKG) came together informally to stage the first pirate "invasion" in 1904 and has evolved into a registered non-profit organization which has organized the Gasparilla Parade ever since. [3], In the 1930s, construction worker Ernesto Lopez showed his family a mysterious box he claimed to have found while working with a repair crew on the Cass Street Bridge in downtown Tampa. Credit Daylina Miller / WUSF Public Media. [23] However, during the 1880 US census, Gmez claimed to have been born in France in 1785. On Saturday, several hundred thousand people will line Bayshore Boulevard and the streets of downtown Tampa for the invasion and parade. [8] Different versions of the story say that he was either a Spanish nobleman and advisor to King Charles III of Spain who was exiled after a romantic scandal in court, a traitorous admiral of the Spanish Royal Navy who stole a ship and fled when his treachery was revealed, or an ambitious young officer in the Spanish navy who was driven to mutiny by a tyrannically cruel captain. When his theft was discovered, he seized the "prize vessel of the Spanish fleet" with a group of loyal followers and abandoned his wife and children to flee across the Atlantic Ocean. so you can be prepared. Here's where to find them", "Hundreds of volunteers with Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful clean up Gasparilla litter", "Think Gasparilla is rowdy now? Gaspar is said to have taken many ships and held many female hostages for ransom while preying on shipping in the Gulf of Mexico from Louisiana to the Spanish main aboard his flagship, the Floriblanca. [ IVY. The first Gasparilla parade was held in May 1904, after Tampa Tribune society editor Louise Frances Dodge and Tampa's director of customs George Hardee decided to combine elements of New Orleans Mardi Gras with a pirate theme to promote and enliven Tampa's May Day celebration. [4] The brochure consisted of two parts: a telling of the legend of Jos Gaspar followed by a promotional section touting the Gasparilla Inn and the Charlotte Harbor area in general. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Many of the same krewes - large and small - also participate in the Gasparilla Children's Parade and the Sant'Yago Knight Parade. [18] Outside of Gasparilla season, the Jose Gasparilla II can usually be found moored near the northern end of Bayshore Boulevard within sight of downtown. [1] (For comparison, Spain had just agreed to transfer all of Florida to the United States for $5 million. [1] Finally, it claimed that a burial mound "forty feet high and four hundred feet in circumference" near Gasparilla Island had been found to contain "ornaments of gold and silver" along with "hundreds of human skeletons", but that the bulk of the buccaneer's vast cache of buried treasure "still lies unmoved" nearby, in the vicinity of the Gasparilla Inn. Im passionate about highlighting community efforts to improve the quality of care in our state and make it more accessible to all Floridians. While some feel that the widespread use of the name constitutes a "co-branding" which promotes all similarly named organizations and Tampa in general, others believe that overuse could "water down what it means", and that the potential failures or missteps of one event or organization might reflect poorly on all the others. [38], The theme of the Gasparilla Festival was inspired by the legend of the pirate Jos Gaspar, who supposedly operated off the west coast of Spanish Florida from the 1780s until the 1820s. [19] So many beads are thrown that in recent years, the city has organized post-parade volunteer cleanup efforts which annually collect thousands of pounds of plastic from the parade route and nearby Tampa Bay. The Gasparilla parade in 1910 was the last year the invasion was done on horseback. Two other major parades during this time are the Gasparilla Children's Parade, which is held on Bayshore Boulevard one week before the main parade, and the Sant'Yago Illuminated Knight Parade, which is organized by the Krewe of the Knights of Sant'Yago in the historic neighborhood of Ybor City two weeks after the main parade. [7], Several historians and other interested parties have attempted to find documentation of Gaspar's existence without success. The family brought the box to the attention of a local reporter, whose TV news report on the strange find was picked up by several national and international news outlets. Some claim that Gmez was the pirate's cabin boy, others that he was Gaspar's brother-in-law and first mate, still others that Gmez was Gaspar's first mate while his son was a cabin boy, and some even suggest that Gmez was the extraordinarily long-lived Jos Gaspar himself living under a false name. Kings & Queens. 50 years ago, guns were everywhere", "Gasparilla Pirates Try to Shed Old Image", "Ybor Naval invasion begins Gasparilla festivities", "Ybor Naval Battle Clears Way For Gasparilla Invasion", "Bob Buckhorn makes his last stand against Gasparilla pirates", "Gasparilla Pirate Fest - Tampa, Florida", "Gasparilla Children's Parade 2023 | What You Need to Know Before You Go - Tampa Bay Parenting Magazine", "2018 Children's Gasparilla Parade: Guide and insider tips", "The Krewe of the Knights of Sant'Yago historical marker", "The Krewe of the Knights of Sant'Yago official website", "Ybor's Knight parade, once Gasparilla's wild child, cleans up image", "Palma Ceia Country Club hosts long-time event rich in tradition", "Ye Mystic Krewe does not own the name 'Gasparilla.' It moors along the Riverwalk behind the Tampa Convention Center, where the "pirate captain" demands that the mayor hand over the key to the city in a playful ceremony which has had different outcomes in different years. [3][18][7][5], Inspired by the story of Gaspar, the city of Tampa organized a pirate-themed May Day festival in 1904. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. More than a century. This error led to Gaspar being mentioned in a few other non-fiction books about piracy and Florida history, causing ongoing confusion as to the authenticity of the legend. Thus, Gasparilla was born. Bill Before Florida Senate Would Put Local Ordinances on Hold if Challenged, Legislation would make it illegal for doctors to provide gender-affirming care to transgender youths, Florida Republicans are taking on the media. Pirates with Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla fill up the 168-ft. Jose Gasparilla II for the annual invasion. On Gasparilla Day, members of YMKG don pirate regalia and sail across Tampa Bay aboard the Jose Gasparilla II, a 165-foot-long (50m) "pirate ship" which is actually a steel barge converted to look like a large West Indiaman. Karl E. Holland / State Library & Archives of Florida. The Children's Parade was first held in 1947 and has grown over the years, usually drawing about 100,000 attendees. Gasparilla, the city's most popular annual event, centered around a pirate-themed parade, resulted from a conversation seeking to spice up an existing parade.. [11], The old wooden ship was in serious need of repairs and renovation by the early 1950s, so with financial assistance from the city of Tampa, YMKG commissioned the $100,000 Jose Gasparilla II, which was constructed from a 165-foot-long (50m) steel barge to which masts and other elements were added so that it resembles an 18th-century West Indiaman. It is held in the historical neighborhood of Ybor City on a Saturday night, usually two weeks after the Parade of Pirates in mid-February. [17] The first occurrence consisted of several dozen local businessmen disguising themselves as pirates, riding horses through town to simulate a surprise pirate invasion, and encouraging startled observers to follow them to the May Day festival. Tampas first krewe, the Ye Mystic Krewe is one of more than 100 organizations taking part in the festivities. Plastic beads like those at New Orleans Mardi Gras festivities are by far the most prevalent item, with varieties ranging from simple single-color necklaces to intricate and expensive designs, most of which are purchased by krewe members themselves. [35], Other large-scale events held during the Gasparilla season include the Gasparilla Festival of the Arts (established 1970), the Tampa Rough Rider's St. Patrick's Day Parade (first held in 1977), the Gasparilla Distance Classic road race (established 1978), the Gasparilla Film Festival (established 2006), the Gasparilla Music Festival (established 2013), and the Gasparilla Bowl college football game (renamed in 2018). [31], The Sant'Yago Illuminated Knight Parade (sometimes referred to as the "Gasparilla Night Parade") has been organized since 1972 by the Krewe of the Knights of Sant'Yago. Taken together, the events of Tampa's Gasparilla Season have an estimated local economic impact of about $40 million.[4]. Some versions of the story claim that one of the escapees was John Gmez, who would tell the tale to subsequent generations. [17], "The Legend of Gasparilla: Myth and History on Florida's West Coast", "Gasparilla parade's 100th edition marked by mostly behaved revelry", "Children's parade kicks off Tampa's Gasparilla celebration this weekend", "Annual Knight Parade lights up Ybor with family-friendly revelry", "Everything you need to know for Gasparilla 2019", "The True History and Swashbuckling Myth Behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Namesake", The History of Gasparilla Pirate Fest - Tampa, Florida, "The pirates are coming! Gasparilla began in 1904 when Miss Louise Francis Dodge, society editor of the Tampa Tribune, and George W. Hardee, then with the federal government in Tampa, conspired to promote the City of Tampa and its May Day celebration. Research in Spanish archives has turned up no mention of his early life, his presence in the Spanish royal court, or his career in the Spanish navy. Most stories agree he was an aristocratic Spanish . [21] This tradition was restricted in the interest of safety in 1992 and ended entirely several years later. [29] Assuming that the story of Gasparilla as described was authentic, Bradlee included many details in his book Piracy In The West Indies And Its Suppression without attempting to verify the information. Over 300,000 spectators are expected to line the streets to watch the Ashley Children's Gasparilla Parade presented by Chick-fil-A on January 21, 2023 and the Seminole Hard Rock Gasparilla Pirate Fest on January 28, 2023. "In 1783, having become a traitor and a pirate, Jos Gaspar gave the name of "Gasparilla" to himself as well as to his ship and the island in Charlotte Harbor, on the west coast of Florida near. The Gasparilla Innin 1913]. The latest news and how to stay informed. And a few pigs and chickens didnt make it from one end of the invasion to the other.". At least a portion of the Gasparilla Parade of Pirates has traversed Bayshore Boulevard into downtown almost since its inception. "That's my uncle and my mother going to Coronation back in 1950," said. [52] The city and the National Football League put pressure on the Krewe of Gasparilla to admit African-American members before the event, but the organization refused and cancelled Gasparilla instead. [41][3], The first written account of Jos Gaspar appeared in the early 1900s as part of an advertising brochure for the Gasparilla Inn in Boca Grande on Gasparilla Island. Gasparilla Pirate Fest is on January 28, 2023 with the Parade of Pirates stepping off at 1pm. "Supersized Gasparilla" saw a record attendance of about 750,000, but though the event was generally well received, the city has opted not to reschedule the parade to coincide with subsequent Superbowls played in Tampa due to the serious challenges posed by large crowds and snarled traffic. A look ahead at the legislative session, Barbara Bryant, the first woman to head the U.S. census, has died at 96, Scientists find signs of horse riding in ancient human remains, A man dies of a brain-eating amoeba, possibly from rinsing his sinuses with tap water, Garland supports effort to hold Russia accountable for war crimes. Courtesy Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System], [Burgert Brothers | Courtesy, Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System], [DAVID KADLUBOWSKI | Tampa Bay Times], [PENDYGRAFT, JOHN | St. Petersburg Times], [ | Tampa Bay Times], Gasparilla Festival of the Arts returns to Tampa. Krewes are centered around various ethnic, cultural, and historical themes or favorite charity causes, and much like the krewes of Mardi Gras, members often spend a great deal of money on elaborate costumes, beads, and floats. Rodney Kite-Powell said the first invasion was a huge success. "Taking the best of everything when a capture was made, he chose the best of the islands in Charlotte Harbor, for his own secret haunts," declared the leaflet. According to family stories, the wooden box contained a pile of Spanish and Portuguese coins, a severed hand wearing a ring engraved with the name "Gaspar", and a "treasure map" indicating that Gaspar's treasure was hidden near the Hillsborough River in Tampa. The 1935 edition had the largest prize purse on that year's PGA Tour ($4000), but with the deepening of the Great Depression, the tournament was discontinued thereafter.
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