Channel District
Born in Hernando County, Stephen Sparkman had a simple upbringing but two big ideas for Tampa. The first, constructing a federal building on Florida Ave (now Le Méridien hotel), was easy enough, but the second, staking our claim as a major port city, was a little loftier. In 1905, Sparkman got the ball rolling by successfully lobbying for federal funding. Four years later, the first freighter docked at Seddon Island and it was official: Tampa had a real port. Today, the former warehouse district, once home to longshoremen and ships’ chandlers, is a dynamic, artsy, urban waterfront residential community with a very rich history.