...The Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce celebrated the announcement that Tampa International Airport has been granted the authorization to serve as a port of entry and exit for nonstop flights to Cuba -- a historic milestone in a two-and-a-half year campaign....
Tampa's relationship with Cuba dates back to 1539 when Hernando de Soto sailed from Cuba to Tampa Bay. As early as the 17th century, Cuban fisherman would frequent the Tampa Bay area on a seasonal basis, and, over time, the maritime connection became well established. In the 1850s Captain James McKay established regular commercial shipping service from Florida to Cuba through Tampa. In the 1880s Cuban immigrants established Tampa's Ybor City neighborhood as the cigar capital of the United States. On November 26, 1891, Jose Marti delivered his famous "Con Todos y Para el Bien de Todos" speech in Tampa. According to the 2009 American Community Survey, the Tampa Bay region today is home to approximately 91,516 Cuban-Americans, the third largest population of its kind in the United States.
- Jonny
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