by This page is dedicated to Florida historical markers near Tampa Plant Field. There are many historical markers in Florida. This marker in Hillsborough County is an excellent example.
Plant Field
This Florida Historical Marker is entitled Plant Field and is located in Tampa in Hillsborough County, Florida. The marker is on North Blvd. near W North B Street, on the left when traveling south.
Inscription on the Marker
The inscription reads:
Plant Field – The area encompassing The University of Tampa’s baseball, track, and soccer facilities was known as Plant Field from early in the 20th century until the mid – 1970s. Plant Field, named for railroad and hotel magnate Henry B. Plant, served as the site for significant sporting events and other community activities., The one-half-mile horse racing track that Plant built in the late 1890s was altered to accommodate dirt-track auto racing. From February 1921 until the mid-1970s, races were held each year during the South Florida Fair, later designated as the Florida State Fair. Along with talented local racers, the country’s most famous drivers, including Jimmy Wilburn, Emory Collins, Gus Schrader, Ted Horn, Frank Luptow, Tommy Hinnershitz, and Bobby Grim, raced here during the winter months. Pete Folse, a local driver, became a national champion. Their cars were powered by engines made by Miller, Offenhause, and Riley, among others. Tampa became known as “The winter auto racing capital of the nation.” Sadly several drivers lost their lives at Plant Field.
Plant Field was also the site for football games. On New Year’s Day 1926, the Chicago Bears, starring Red Grange, defeated a team featuring Jim Thorpe. The University of Tampa played its home games on Plant Field from 1933 to 1936. Tampa high school teams also competed on Plant Field.
Plant Field was the home for several major league baseball teams during spring training. The Chicago Cubs arrived in 1913 and returned each year through 1916. The Boston Red Sox played their home games at Plant Field in 1919, and Babe Ruth, playing for the Red Sox, hit the longest home run of his career during a game on this field. Plant Field was home to the Washington Senators during the 1920s, to the Detroit Tigers in 1930, and for the Chicago White Sox in 1954. The Cincinnati Reds played here the most seasons, starting in the 1930s through 1954. In November 1950, an African- American all-star team led by Jackie Robinson played an exhibition game against the Tampa Rockets, a semi-professional African-American team. The Tampa Smokers played their home games in the minor leagues at Plant Field.
In 1905, during the state fair, Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla paraded into Plant Field, a tradition that continued for decades. Presidential candidate Henry Wallace spoke at Plant Field in February 1948, and Paul Robeson sang at a Wallace rally at Plant Field in October. During the 1952 campaign, Dwight D. Eisenhower appeared at Plant Field., This Plaque is dedicated to all those who performed and spoke here, especially those car racers who lost their lives at Plant Field.
Marker Sponsor and Install Date for Plant Field
Placed by Hillsborough County Historical Advisory Council, National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum, Tampa Bay Area Racing Association.
Installed in 2007.
Maps & Location Views
Using mapping services from Google, we can show detailed location maps and street views if they are available.
Sometimes you will be able to see the Plant Field Marker in Google Maps. A 360-degree view of the area near the marker is available on the link below. You can see the marker or monument and read it in many cases.
The History of Tampa
More than a century before the Pilgrims set foot at Plymouth Rock, in 1513, Florida began its modern-day history, of which Orlando is a part.
During this period, Florida was still part of the United States Territory and not yet a state; therefore, many Native American tribes occupied land throughout Central Florida, including Seminole Indians who had migrated there from Georgia during the First Seminole War (1817-1818).
In 1838, the U.S. Army built Fort Gatlin south of the present-day Orlando City limits to protect settlers from attacks by Indians during the Second Seminole War. During the Civil War, Orlando’s role included supplying the Confederacy with food, cattle, and horses from the vast plantations in the region.
Today Orlando is recognized as a global tourist attraction and entertainment city
About the Florida Historical Marker Program
One of the most well-known and noticeable public history initiatives of the Division of Historical Resources is the Florida Historical Marker Program. It is intended to increase residents’ and visitors’ enjoyment of Florida’s historic places and to increase public knowledge of the state’s rich cultural past.
About Floridamarkers.com & Florida Historical Markers Near Tampa Plant Field
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