The Bayshore Boulevard

In 1907, Alfred Swann and Eugene Holtsinger constructed the original section of seawall and roadway from Swann Avenue to Rome Avenue. Called Bayshore Drive, this initial section served Suburb Beautiful, the first residential development along the bayshore. After a 1912 bond issue, Hillsborough County added 2.3 miles of seawall and roadway, expanding the bayshore to 3.2 miles and changing the original drive into Bayshore Boulevard. The Great Hurricane of 1921 destroyed a substantial portion of the boulevard, leading to a 1925 reconstruction project in which the City of Tampa rebuilt the boulevard within the city limits while Hillsborough County built a new section from Hawthorne Road to Howard Avenue. In 1935, the Works Progress Administration provided resources to reconstruct Bayshore Boulevard again and build the Bayshore Boat Docks, now known as the Bayshore Marina, resulting in a wider boulevard extending from Hawthorne Road to the Platt Street Bridge. Since 1935, time and storms have taken a toll on Bayshore Boulevard, and in 1992, under Mayor Sandra Warshaw Freedman, a restoration project restored the seawall system and realigned the northbound roadway between Hawthorne Road and Rome Avenue. Bayshore Boulevard has evolved to serve vehicular traffic and provide a recreational linear green space along four miles of uninterrupted waterfront sidewalk.

Tampa, Florida · United States