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Unjustly facing arrest, he commandeered a ship and fled, vowing to exact revenge on his country. [28][23][3][15][22], The first known written account of Jos Gaspar comes from an early 1900s brochure for the Gasparilla Inn Resort in the recently established tourist town of Boca Grande, Florida on Gasparilla Island in Charlotte Harbor. The landfall of the Jose Gasparilla Pirate Ship and the Children's Gasparilla Parade & Piratechnics display have become tourism icons. What are those large pyramids next to the Skyway? He was well known along Florida's Gulf coast as an expert hunting and fishing guide, boat pilot, and an eccentric teller of tall tales, mostly about himself. Some versions of the legend claim that Gaspar entrusted Lopez with his personal log or diary, which have been cited as sources for information about the pirate although neither has ever been produced. For men, getting the chance to don a pirate costume and join the invasion could be a very . [2] No contemporaneous mention of his life or exploits have been found in Spanish or American ship logs, court records, newspapers, or other archives, and no physical artifacts linked to Gaspar have been discovered in the area where he supposedly established his "pirate kingdom. [12] Gaspar had decided to retire after almost four decades of pirating, and he and his crew gathered on Gasparilla Island to split the wealth he'd gathered throughout his career, which some versions of the story value at the enormous sum of $30 million. [11], For over half a century, various Gasparilla pirate ships would sail about half a mile up the Hillsborough River to near the University of Tampa, where members of YMKG would disembark for the parade. [3][7] While the USS Enterprise was assigned to the West Indies Squadron tasked with suppressing piracy in the Caribbean, it is documented to have been in Cuba in December 1821, not in Charlotte Harbor, where Gaspar's last battle is said to have taken place. 4 things to know. Gasparilla was heavily criticized in the early 1990s for being mostly white and male. Most stories agree he was an aristocratic Spanish Navy Officer who later. [3][18][7][5], Inspired by the story of Gaspar, the city of Tampa organized a pirate-themed May Day festival in 1904. If you're looking for something to do that combines culture and the outdoors, the Gasparilla Festival of the Arts is the hot ticket this weekend. King Edward R. Gunby & Queen Mary Lee Douglas, King W. Penn Dawson & Queen Lillian Stevens, King E.M. Hendry & Queen Kathleen Phillips, King J.G. [3] The brochure also claimed that the bulk of Gaspar's vast treasure cache "still lies unmoved" somewhere in the vicinity of Boca Grande. "[3], Despite this colorful history, there is no evidence that a pirate named "Gaspar" or "Gasparilla" ever roamed the Florida coast. Now in its 53rd year, the festival is popular with . [15][36], Tampa now hosts many community events during its "Gasparilla Season", which runs approximately from January to March. [28] It is billed as a "family friendly" event, as unlike during the Parade of Pirates, alcohol is not allowed along the parade route, which runs along Bayshore Boulevard and is about half as long as the main Gasparilla Parade. [23] However, during the 1880 US census, Gmez claimed to have been born in France in 1785. Kings & Queens. There are 65 different krewes, a lot of family-style krewes, mixed krewes as far as male-female, cultural I think that we have everything you could possibly imagine and if we dont, well find room for it, he said. Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. The 1966 Boat Parade in Tampa Harbor where Gasparilla attacks the City and it "surrenders.". & Queen Jane Wallace, King Lee M. Bentley & Queen Dada Pittman Glaser, King G. Pierce Wood Jr. & Queen Patricia C. Williams, King W. DeHart Ayala & Queen Sandra Louise Fogarty, King Michel G. Emmanuel & Queen Caroline E. Murphey, King James W. O'Neal & Queen Helen Parkhill Murphey, King John Germany & Queen Suzanne Galloway Adams, King John H. Boushall Jr. & Queen Jane Gray Hanlon, King Fred R. Martin III & Queen Camille Amanda McWhirter, King James L. Ferman & Queen Mary Winifred Wilson, King Russell S. Bogue Jr. & Queen Darby Crowder, King L.G. The two most common throws before that were plastic or metal commemorative coins produced annually by various krewes and spent gun cartridges. For all the art lovers out there, the 2023 Gasparilla Festival of the Arts is returning to Tampa this coming weekend. [13] In addition to the krewes, high school and university marching bands and drill teams often participate, and many local businesses and organizations build and enter their own elaborate floats from which they also throw trinkets to the crowd. [7][3], Though his story has been retold in many forms since its first appearance around 1900, there is no evidence that the pirate Jos Gaspar existed. [8] Archives in Spain make no mention of Gaspar as a member of the Spanish court or an officer in the Spanish navy, the U.S. Navy has no documentation indicating that any of its vessels ever encountered a pirate named Gaspar or a ship named Floriblanca, and neither Gaspar nor anyone claiming to be a member of his crew are mentioned in the records of hundreds of piracy trials from the era, which was well after the "Golden Age of Piracy". [7][3][9], Different versions of Gaspar's legend relate different episodes in his piratical career. YMKG was instrumental in establishing the Inter-Krewe Council, which has grown to include more than 60 other Krewes. When you are 11 or 12 you are a page, so you serve at the coronation and you walk behind the king or the queen, so you participate, Chapman explained. Also, they saw pretty early on that this could be a neat attraction and a neat tourist draw to a city that didnt really have much of a tourist industry aside from the Tampa Bay Hotel and the fact that the railroad did come here. Over the next few decades, several more books about pirates or Florida history erroneously included Jos Gaspar / Gasparilla as a real historical figure, leading to continuing confusion about his historical authenticity and repeated attempts to find his lost treasure. [1] Most of his surviving crew were captured and hanged, but a few escaped or were imprisoned. [41][3], The first written account of Jos Gaspar appeared in the early 1900s as part of an advertising brochure for the Gasparilla Inn in Boca Grande on Gasparilla Island. Check out our listof street closures, parking info, etc. However, African-Americans and others among Tampa's diverse population felt left out of the planning and organization of the events, with some observers questioning the tradition of local elites dressing as pirates and pretending to plunder the city. [39][40] To tie these events together in the public eye, Visit Tampa Bay, the local tourist bureau, has run multimillion-dollar promotional campaigns across the United States, Canada, and Europe to attract visitors to the area during "Gasparilla Season". The first invasion by boat was in 1911. Pirates with Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla fill up the 168-ft. Jose Gasparilla II for the annual invasion. Most importantly, if at the end of day, when I talk to the Tampa Police Department and the mayors office, (and they tell me) everybody got home safely, there werent significant numbers of incidents, people had a fun day and we showcased the rich, diverse culture of TampaI am just as happy as I could possibly be that we were able to pull off such an amazing event and that were able to do it year after year without significant incidents.". Ye Loyal Krewe of Grace O'Malley formed in 1992 and was first all-female group. Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla will celebrate their conquest of Tampa with a festive celebration that will include live music and merriment, as Tampa's favorite pirates make ready to leave the city from Sparkman Wharf! [17] The first occurrence consisted of several dozen local businessmen disguising themselves as pirates, riding horses through town to simulate a surprise pirate invasion, and encouraging startled observers to follow them to the May Day festival. Updated: Mar 1, 2023 / 06:30 PM EST. [1], While Gaspar is a popular figure in Florida folklore, there is no evidence that he actually existed. [43][41]. When Daniel Westcott, the newly chosen Gasparilla King of Tampa Bay, Florida, goes missing in 1972, the remaining Westcotts are thrown into chaos. [1] It also sought to connect Gaspar to Charlotte Harbor by claiming that his sprawling home base had encompassed several islands in the area. [52] However, in 2018, the city did not change the regularly scheduled date of the parade to avoid the NHL All-Star Game and related activities, which were held at Amalie Arena in downtown Tampa over the same weekend. [4] Subsequent retellings of the Gaspar legend are based upon this fanciful account, including the accidental inclusion of Jos Gaspar in a 1923 book on real pirates that has caused ongoing confusion about his historical authenticity.[5]. [7][3], In still other versions, Gaspar was a brilliant Spanish admiral of questionable character who actually succeeded in stealing the crown jewels. [16], The Krewe of Gasparilla was Tampa's only Gasparilla krewe until the woman-only Krewe of Venus was organized in 1966, the Ybor City-based Krewe of the Knights of Sant'Yago was organized in 1972, the Tampa Rough Riders were organized in 1978, and many more were established after YMKG opened up participation in the parade to more krewes in the 1990s. The award-winning Raymond James Gasparilla Festival of the Arts returns for its 53rd year on March 4th and 5th. In the decades after another hiatus during World War II, it was set for the second Monday in February. so you can be prepared. The Jose Gasparilla pirate ship is decorated with a banner welcoming the Tampa Bay Lightning, 2020 Stanley Cup Champions, as they return to downtown Tampa on Tuesday, September 29, 2020. Though there is no evidence he actually existed, Gaspar was adopted patron rogue of this new Tampa celebration. ", "Aboard Tampa's pirate ship, the 'Jose Gasparilla', "Tampa Mayor Buckhorn defies Gasparilla pirates, keeps key to city", "Experience the Fun & Excitement of Gasparilla Tampa Bay", "8 things you may not know about Gasparilla", Seed for Gasparilla was planted in the Tribune's old newsroom | TBO.com, "Travel through time with our '100 doubloons' of Gasparilla in Tampa Bay", "Need beads for Gasparilla? . Sometimes the ships they found werent in great shape, so they would run aground, he said. An average of over 300,000 people attend the event, which contributes over $20 million to the local economy.[38]. Most stories agree he was an aristocratic Spanish . Tampa's most prized tradition was sparked 118 years ago and continues to be shrouded in some mystery. "[3][31], Beater published several additional books about southwest Florida; some marketed as fiction, some as non-fiction, and some as guidebooks for tourists, all including tongue-in-cheek dramatic tales about Gaspar and other pirates. Activating the 25-acre Julian B. [42][43] Besides promotional material and contact information for the Gasparilla Inn, the brochure prominently featured the "Story of Jose Gasparilla," the "last of the Buccaneers" who it said had terrorized the Gulf of Mexico for almost 40 years.