Tarpon Springs
As of 2000, Tarpon Springs had the largest proportion of Greek Americans of any city in the United States, with 10.4% of residents of Greek descent.
History
The area has numerous rivers emptying into the Gulf of Mexico and was settled by farmers and fishermen around 1876. The name was suggested from words spoken by Mrs Ormond Boyer, who lived in South Carolina, stood on the shore, saw the fish jumping, and said: "Look at the Tarpon Spring! Most of the fish found there are Mullet instead of Tarpon.
In 1882, Hamilton Disston, who in the previous year had purchased the land, ordered the creation of a town plan. In February of 1887, Tarpon Springs became the first incorporated city in what is now Pinellas County, Florida. Eleven months later in January of 1888, the Orange Belt Railway, the first railroad line to be built in what is now Pinellas County, arrived in Tarpon Springs, FL. The area was developed as a wintering spot for wealthy northerners during these years as well.
Sponge Industry
In 1880, John K. Cheyney established the first domestic sponge industry. The business continued to grow into the 1890s. Many people from Key West and the Bahamas settled in Tarpon Springs to capture and process the sponges. Some Greek immigrants also came to the city in the 1890s to work in the sponge industry.
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