Download or read book The Story of Gasparilla and the Pirate Islands of the Florida West Coast written by Jack Beater and published by . This book was released on 1949 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Gasparilla Cookbook written by The Junior League of Tampa and published by Ravenio Books. This book was released on 2016-07-22 with total page 567 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Where the spine of Florida, the Ridge District, begins its gentle slope westward to the Gulf of Mexico there lies a town at the head of a beautiful bay, unlike any other town in Florida. This is Tampa, named by the Caloosa Indians long before the advent of the Spanish Conquistadors. This is Tampa which has been occupied in turn by Spanish treasure seekers, missionaries, pirates, U. S. troops garrisoned here during the Seminole Indian Wars, a French Count who was the head surgeon of Napoleon’s Navy, pioneers from southern states, pioneers from northern states, Union troops, Confederate troops, Cuban cigar makers from Key West, troops in the Spanish-American War, Tin Can tourists, wealthy tourists, real estate speculators, Air Corps personnel in World War II, and last of all an influx of permanent residents who have made this the fastest growing area in Florida. Tampa is the hub of the region industrially, but more important for our purposes it’s the hub of good food. Great cattle enterprises lie to the south and east, 22 miles down the coast of Tampa Bay is the farming community of Ruskin known as the salad bowl of the nation, across the bay to the west are the Gulf Beaches where seafood is king, all the area is citrus country at any point of the compass, and 28 miles northwest there is a Greek community called Tarpon Springs where the customs, the language, and the recipes are straight from the isles of the Aegean. The natives of this little town came to Tarpon Springs many years ago from Greece to harvest the sponges which are found in the Gulf of Mexico. Curio shops line the docks on the Anclote River where the sponge fleet ties up, but the Greek food affords the visitor’s greatest enjoyment. In a dining room and lounge decorated with Grecian war masks, maps of the world as Homer knew it, models of ancient Greek warships, and the hull of a primitive sponge boat, one may feast on Greek salad which is fashioned as carefully as a mosaic and just as beautiful to behold. This alone would be worth the trip, but you may also have lamb prepared in strange and delicious ways, scarlet stone crab claws, the meat of which is too delicate to describe, or your choice of seafood, followed by honey-and-almond confections. Tampans can and do find a wonderful meal in any direction. All the good restaurants serve succulent steaks, there are several fine Chinese restaurants, there is even a good French restaurant west across Tampa Bay. The notion that all Florida is palm trees, sand, and bathing beauties is false. So is the idea of Florida as a vast interior of sleepy cracker towns with pigs and chickens running the roads, or a steady diet of greasy fried chicken with blackened string beans. Florida is sun and sand, yes, but it is also cool lakes, ancient oaks, and lacy cypress trees, big cities, beautiful farms, and citrus groves covering rolling hills like tufted bedspreads. Florida is lush ranchland, crystal springs, dogwood and maple trees, people from everywhere and all walks of life who came to see, got sand in their shoes, and had to return. Tampa is a composite of all of it. It’s a bountiful land. We wish all could see for themselves. But if that is impossible, then we in our small way, will try to bring it to you. The food of a land tells the life of its people, and we would like to share our good life with everyone. Here is our offering. May it bring you pleasure as we have known it.
Download or read book Gasparilla Rat written by Jane Brandi Johnson and published by . This book was released on 2019-08 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It all begins with an invitation to: The Children's Gasparilla Extravaganza! Benjy Blake joins Uncle Jake and shouts "Ahoy" as 100 parade floats make their way down Tampa's Bayshore Bouldvard. Buccaneers, balloons, beads, band, and hot dog stands... and fancy fireworks high in the sky! Come on! Join the Crew! Conquer the Bay with Benjy! If you dare!
Download or read book The Treasures of Little Gasparilla Island written by Lloyd Wiggins and published by Xlibris Corporation. This book was released on 2013-03 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a story of a small island off the southwest coast of Florida, on the shores of Gasparilla Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, with its varied plant life among numerous types of land and sea birds. The other residents are local Florida crackers, snowbirds from the North, and holidaymakers looking for sanctuary from the hustle and bustle of modernday living. The lucky ones who set foot on this boat-only-access island will have a sense of tranquility and well-being that is the result of being totally free from modern-day encumbrances and surrounded by the sounds of nature. The main characters are Nikki, Lloyd, and George and how they found a contingent of new friends on a small spit of land called Little Gasparilla Island, fondly referred to as LGI Prologue This island's namesake is Juan Gomez Gasparilla or, as he's known today throughout the west coast of Florida, Jose Gaspar. Some think of Gaspar as folklore, while others say he is just a myth. A few locals have stories handed down by ancestors through the ages and say the proof is probably in the United States naval archives, since the pirates were hunted down by the USS Enterprise in the early 1800s. They all were either killed or put on trial in New Orleans and subsequently hung, all except for Jose Gaspar. He was alleged to be sixty-five years old and on his last campaign before dividing up the spoils among his cohorts. Rather than get caught, he wrapped himself in the anchor's chain and rope then jumped into the dark blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico to end his life; that was his only way to escape the hangman's noose. It is believed that Gaspar and his band of thieves and murderers had their haven around Charlotte Harbor. The barrier islands, such as Gasparilla and Little Gasparilla, would have been excellent cover where they could evade and lie in wait behind tall sand dunes or mangroves, searching the Gulf waters for European vessels sailing within sight, carrying gold, silver, and jewels collected from the Americas to take back to their kings and queens or other financiers. Rumor has it that the pirates would slaughter everyone on board the captured ships except for the attractive ladies, who would become concubines of Jose Gaspar. He was a noted womanizer when he was assigned to the court of Charles III as a naval attaché at the age of twenty-seven. He jilted the daughter-in-law of the king for another woman of the court and was about to be arrested on trumped-up charges of treason when he commandeered a Spanish ship, called the Florida Blanca, and set sail with a hastily assembled volunteer crew for the Florida straits. Little Gasparilla had two passes barely navigable for a sailing ship, but not for a man-of-war ship. The much larger pass into Gasparilla Sound was on the south end of Big Gasparilla through the Boca Grande Pass, with its two rivers emptying into the Gulf, flowing through Charlotte Harbor. This proved to be ideal for the crew to hide and pounce on unsuspecting heavily laden sailing ships heading north. Legend has the number of conquered vessels by Gaspar to be over four hundred. Back then, the amount of the bounty was reported to be in excess of thirty million Yankee dollars. Today's count would be in the billions, which would take scores of stolen chests to accommodate the spoils. No treasure of his to this day has ever been found. I have visited Little Gasparilla most winters for several months during the last seventeen years. On my many walks toward the state park on the north end of the island, I always look wishfully for doubloons washing ashore or a treasure chest sticking out of a tall sand dune while looking for sharks' teeth. Besides the tangible treasures that may be in one's wildest dreams, could be found, there are other riches to discover while walking on the sand, be it purely spiritual or just a perfect seashell lying on the shore of Little Gasparilla Island, brought in by the gentle waves.
Download or read book Boca Grande written by Marilyn Arbor Hoeckel and published by Arcadia Publishing. This book was released on 2000 with total page 132 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Life on Gasparilla Island once had a very different rhythm. With a past intimately tied to Charlotte Harbor and the rich fishing grounds it provided, Gasparilla Island was, in its early history, the site of a small fishing village and a commercial fishery. The discovery of phosphate deposits in the region and the introduction of the railroad soon increased the pace of life, and a thriving port was built on the island's south end. As the twentieth century dawned and the Florida boom loomed on the horizon, the town of Boca Grande began to hum with the activity of a rapidly growing population. Though much has changed through the years--the little fishing village has vanished, the estimable Boca Grande Hotel is gone, and the once bustling port is now a state park--much of the region's unique history continues to inform the modern landscape. The venerable lighthouse, constructed in 1890, now serves as a museum of local history, and the grand Gasparilla Inn still stands firmly upon its original 1911 site. Those who now call Boca Grande home cherish it for the same island magic that fishermen and railroad officials recognized long ago: its unspoiled natural beauty, inviting climate, world-class fishing, and welcoming community.
Download or read book Historic Tales of Gasparilla Island written by David Futch and published by History Press. This book was released on 2022-02-14 with total page 162 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Natural beauty and the sportfishing life brought the Cabots, Vanderbilts and Du Ponts to this island paradise, where local fishing families danced, ate and drank with the rich and famous at their castles on the beach. As the wealthy played, they relied on locals for everything from fishing charters to literally laundering and ironing their money. These are tales of 1920s rum smugglers whose offspring smuggled marijuana in the 1970s, a woman who caught 236 tarpon in one season and a bar owner whose Pink Elephant restaurant fed American presidents. James Bond's Goldfinger even has a part as an island player. From Placida to Boca Grande Pass to Cabbage Key, fourth-generation Gasparilla Islander David Futch offers a wild ride with Bull Bay hermits and billionaires.
Download or read book The Last Pirate a novel by Wilson Hawthorne written by Wilson Hawthorne and published by The Last Pirate, W Hawthorne. This book was released on 2009 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Tampa Bay Noir Akashic Noir written by Colette Bancroft and published by Akashic Books. This book was released on 2020-08-04 with total page 211 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tampa Bay joins Miami in representing the (alleged) Sunshine State in the Noir Series arena. “Fifteen tales that reveal the dark side of sunny Tampa Bay.” —Kirkus Reviews Akashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each book comprises all new stories, each one set in a distinct location within the geographic area of the book. Brand-new stories by: Michael Connelly, Lori Roy, Ace Atkins, Karen Brown, Tim Dorsey, Lisa Unger, Sterling Watson, Luis Castillo, Sarah Gerard, Danny López, Ladee Hubbard, Gale Massey, Yuly Restrepo Garcés, Eliot Schrefer, and Colette Bancroft.
Download or read book Haunted Tampa written by Deborah Frethem and published by Arcadia Publishing. This book was released on 2015-06-01 with total page 110 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explore the spirited history and haunted sites of Tampa with this guide from a local historian. Tampa may be known for sunshine and good times, but it has a scary side. When dusk settles down over the Hillsborough River, spirits begin to stir. Strange things happen in old hotels, theaters and public buildings, and an old cemetery becomes surprisingly lively. Some have seen an old crime boss walking the street. Some have encountered ancient spirits in a public parking garage. Still others have met a long-dead soul in a downtown shop. Join local author and historian Deborah Frethem as she navigates the twists and turns of the more macabre side of Tampa Bay.
Download or read book Doubloon written by Bruce Rougraff and published by Sdp Publishing. This book was released on 2020-01-24 with total page 218 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Doubloon! is a delightful story told through the eyes of a nine-year old boy with an unforgettable cast of characters who are relatable, funny and love solving an old mystery!
Download or read book The Pirates Who s Who written by PHILIP GOSSE and published by BoD – Books on Demand. This book was released on 2023-11-01 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The fascinating and complete photograph "The Pirates' Who's Who" changed into made through the British naturalist and marine biologist Philip Gosse. Even though he had the equal name as his father, who changed into also an exquisite naturalist, this Philip Gosse turned into extra interested by marine records and piracy. The book is going into detail approximately the lives and adventures of famous pirates from history, giving short ancient sketches of those sea criminals. Gosse paints a shiny photograph of the people who terrorized the excessive seas at some stage in the Golden Age of Piracy, from famous pirates like Blackbeard to less famous however simply as thrilling characters. Gosse makes use of ancient information, first-hand bills of cash due, and legends to craft an exciting tale that looks into the pirates' motivations, moves, and deaths. The book isn't handiest a useful account of the past, however it also indicates how creative people have been all through that point by telling stories of bold raids, interesting adventures, and characters that have been bigger than existence. "The Pirates' Who's Who" is proof of Philip Gosse's thorough studies and ability as a storyteller. It offers readers an exciting and educational investigate the lives of the men and women who sailed underneath the black flag and left a long-lasting mark on maritime history.
Download or read book Florida Pirates written by James F. Kaserman and published by The History Press. This book was released on 2011 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The coast of southwest Florida, with its shallow waters, inlets, and mangrove islands provides the setting and backdrop for a variety of pirates, privateers, and independents. The history of this region and Florida as a whole is influenced largely by the illegal activities of piracy. Piracy has a long and rich tradition in this area dating from before the formation of America through the infamous prohibition era. Educators, authors, and pirate enthusiasts James and Sarah Kaserman recount the stories, legends and myths that surround piracy in Florida. Telling the tales of Anne Bonny, Calico Jack Rackham, Civil War smugglers and prohibition rum runners, the authors provide a compelling narrative of the historically dangerous waters around Southwest Florida and beyond.
Download or read book Pirates and Buried Treasure on Florida Islands written by Jack Beater and published by . This book was released on 2012-07-01 with total page 120 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Florida Old and New written by Frederick W. Dau and published by Gale Cengage. This book was released on 1975 with total page 436 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Historical Collections of the Essex Institute written by and published by . This book was released on 1923 with total page 560 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Life and Exploits of Gasparilla Last of the Buccaneers written by Edwin Dart Lambright and published by . This book was released on 1936 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Pirates and Buried Treasures of Florida written by Jack Beater and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2021-04-01 with total page 109 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A timeless collection of pirate stories from Florida originally written in the late 1950s, this book includes stories of well-known and lesser known pirates and buccaneers and the treasure they left behind. From the tale of Gasparilla, the Pirate of Boca Grande, to the tale of the capture of the Mary Anders, these swashbuckling tales of thrilling adventure on the high seas and treasure hunts on land are a delightful part of the history of the Sunshine State.
