TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — It’s been 139 years, and Tampa is still looking good.
Tampa was incorporated as a city on July 15, 1887, making Wednesday the city’s 139th birthday.
The earliest known inhabitants of the area were the Elamites Calusa and Timucua peoples, who were later replaced by the Seminoles, according to Encyclopedia Britannica.
The city was later visited by Spanish explorers Pánfilo de Narváez in 1528 and Hernando de Soto in 1539, respectively.
In 1824, right after Florida was acquired by the United States from Spain, Fort Brooke was established to oversee the Seminoles. The military post was eventually captured by Union soldiers during the American Civil War.
Henry B. Plant’s South Florida Railroad arrived in 1884, stimulating population growth and new industry and giving a boost to tourism, according to the encyclopedia.
Cigar manufacturing was introduced by Vicente Martinez Ybor two years later. Then, Ybor City was born, becoming what was considered the center of the cigar industry. The neighborhood is now mostly a tourist spot.
At the time of its incorporation, Tampa had less than 800 residents. The city’s estimated population is now about 419,635, according to World Population Review.
The City of Tampa took to their Facebook page on Wednesday, showing off a cake made for the city’s 139th birthday.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.