Back to the Future for Friends of the Port Tampa Library

Many communities can trace their current state of affairs, good or ill, to a particular event. Here in Port Tampa residents point with sadness to the "overnight annexation" into the City of Tampa in 1961, and with much pride to the drive to restore the Commercial Bank Building and adapt it for use as the Port Tampa City Library. The new library story, which began with a condemnation order in December of 1992, might have ended with the dedication on June 14, 1998 if not for the activism the project spawned.

The immediate post-annexation period saw many fine 19th century and early 20th century homes torn down in favor of low income/subsidized housing and the tiny tract homes in vogue at the time. Now many of those post annexation buildings are being destroyed in favor of larger, far more expensive, single family homes and townhouses. Change isn't just coming to Port Tampa, it's already here. No one knows this better than the Friends of the Port Tampa Library and Maritime Reading Room.

After going dormant for a period the group is back and ready to take on some more important preservation work. This time their goal is to digitize the old Port Tampa City archives including tax rolls and minutes of the city council meetings. The Friends of the Library hope that partnerships with USF and the City of Tampa will yield a searchable data base that also preserves the handwritten records.

You can join the Friends of the Port Tampa City Library and Maritime Reading Room by paying $10 in dues at the next meeting, 7:00 PM Wednesday April 26th, at the library.