EXPERIENCE & EXPLORE
touring the city, seeing the sights
and enjoying a little sunshine.
ST. PETE’S CULTURAL HERITAGE
The St. Petersburg story began
thousands of years ago with the
Native American Tocobaga Indians
who settled in what is now Florida’s
Gulfcoast. Preserved shell mounds
can be founded throughout Pinellas
County, including one at the southern
tip of St. Petersburg that is marked
with an official plaque. Learn more
at Weedon Island Preserve Cultural
and Natural History Center www.
weedonislandpreserve.org.
The first Europeans arrived when
Spanish conquistador Pánfilo
Narváez led an expedition of ships
that landed in St. Petersburg’s Boca
Ciega Bay in 1528. A plaque in
the city’s Jungle Prada Park marks
the location and is now on the
National Register of Historic Places.
Hernando DeSoto came in 1539,
looking for vast riches and the
fountain of youth. St. Petersburg’s
Fort DeSoto, is named after him.
It wasn’t until the 1800s that
pioneers began to brave the
Florida wilderness. John Williams, a
northerner who came to Florida for
his health, and Russian immigrant
Peter Demens, who was instrumental
in bringing the Orange Belt Railway
to the area, cofounded the city,
which was incorporated in 1892.
By the 1920s, the Florida land boom
fueled a flurry of activity, setting the
stage for St. Petersburg’s reputation
The James Museum of
Western & Wildlife Art
10 St. Petersburg’s Visitors Guide | 2019-2020
/weedonislandpreserve.org