Counties In The Tampa Bay Area PDF Download

Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 23. Chapters: Hernando County, Florida, Hillsborough County, Florida, Pasco County, Florida, Pinellas County, Florida. Excerpt: Pinellas County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. Its 2010 population was 916,542. Its county seat is Clearwater and its largest city is St. Petersburg. Pinellas, together with Hillsborough, Hernando, and Pasco counties form the Tampa-St.Petersburg-Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area, and along with various combinations of Manatee and Sarasota counties to the south, Citrus County to the north, and Polk County to the east is often referred to as the Tampa Bay Area. View from the top of the Tocobaga mound at Philippe Park Marker at site of 1528 Narvaez landing, Jungle Prada, St. Petersburg The original span of the Gandy Bridge The Belleview Biltmore hotel built by Henry Plant Battery and guns at Fort De Soto The Renaissance Vinoy Hotel Prior to European exploration and settlement the Pinellas peninsula was inhabited by the Tocobaga, who built a town and large temple mound overlooking the bay in what is now Safety Harbor. The modern site is protected by the county and can be visited as a part of Philippe Park. During the 16th century Spanish explorers discovered and slowly began venturing into Florida, including Tampa Bay. In 1528 Panfilo de Narvaez landed in Pinellas, and 10 years later Hernando de Soto is thought to have explored the Bay. By the early 18th century the Tocobaga had been virtually annihilated, having fallen victim to European diseases from which they had no immunity, as well as European conflicts. Later Spanish explorers named the area Punta Pinal (Spanish for "Point of Pines" or "Piney Point"). After trading hands multiple times between the English and the Spanish, Spain finally ceded Florida to the United States in 1821, and in 1823 the U.S. Army established Fort...