YBOR CITY POCKET GUIDE
Coming in December 2023
Ybor City, Its Story in Pictures
Ybor City, Its Story in Pictures has been a collaboration of photographers, historians, and members of the business, restaurant, and art communities to tell the story of Ybor’s past and present. More than 150 illustrations and accompanying text illuminates the significance of the images in Ybor City’s history. They show the unique nature of an historic district that encompassed more than seven different cultural and ethnic groups living in one community. In 1885, the advent of the cigar industry in Tampa jumpstarted the little township of 700 to the prominent, three million and counting, urban environment of Tampa Bay today. This visual history documents Ybor City’s contribution to that story.
Coming Soon to Local Retailers in Tampa, FL
Ybor City Pocket Guide - 2nd Edition updated for 2024
WRITTEN BY: Phil Sauerbrun
Inquire with the author here, to purchase multiple copies at a discount.
Updated for 2023 - 2024! The guide suggests several starting points including the Ybor City Chamber of Commerce Visitor Information Center (the "VIC").
You'll get an insight into the state of the cigar industry today and learn how they are made.
Guided walking tours are plentiful and self-guided tours are also included with descriptions of the significance of all the historical sights. You'll be directed to enlightening museums and exhibits documenting the more than 135 years of Ybor City's existence.
Eating, restaurants, and entertainment information is provided as no historical district is complete without its featured entertainment which has earned Ybor City the comparison to being the Bourbon Street of Tampa. Ybor for Kids and Arts and Culture are also presented and in case you are overwhelmed, there is one short section simply entitled "Ybor City At a Glance."
You can't see it all in one visit but you can make a start with this resource as well as explore further this landmark district in future visits.
Also available locally in Tampa, Florida at these shops:
SHOPS COMING SOON!
The story of Ybor City is how seven different cultural and ethnic groups came together to make up the cigar economy in Tampa, Florida. It is a unique saga of immigration in American history. A majority were Hispanic including Spanish, Hispanic Cubans, and Afro-Cubans. They were followed by Sicilians, Italians, Romanians, Germans and other eastern Europeans, many of whom were Jews. It was a diverse community that was multilingual, multi-ethnic, multi-racial from three religious backgrounds living together in one ward of Tampa.
Have you ever been to the Ybor City Historic District in Tampa, Florida and didn't know how to begin exploring it or you are planning a visit and want some pointers for guidance? The Ybor City Pocket Guide features more than 200 pages of information in 15 sections. It covers a waterfront of information to look forward to in your next visit and have an enjoyable time.
There is basic planning info including accommodations, parking, transportation, and practicalities. There is background information including short bios on its two illustrious figures, Don Vicente Martinez-Ybor and Jose Marti.
There is info on the cultural and ethnic groups that settled in Ybor City, the impact of organized crime on the community and about the long-term rooster residents.
FROM THE BLOG
PHIL SAUERBRUN
TOURISM ADVISOR, YBOR CITY
Phil Sauerbrun is a tourism advisor that counsels people in the Ybor Chamber of Commerce Visitor Information Center on what to do and see in historic Ybor City and Tampa. He is a Florida native and retired Georgia attorney, living in the Tampa area. He worked in private practice and for Emory University. He graduated magna cum laude with a degree in political science and secondary emphasis in history from Emory University and from Wake Forest Law with a J.D. He loves history in all its forms and the perspective it offers on our times. He appreciates the support he has received from the Ybor community in bringing Ybor City its first comprehensive guide in line with the other historic districts in the country.