History
Present-day Clearwater was originally the home of the Tocobagan Indian tribe. Around 1835, the U.S. Army began construction of Fort Harrison as an outpost during the Seminole wars. The fort was located on a bluff overlooking Clearwater Harbor in an area known today as Harbor Oaks. University of South Florida archeologists excavated the site in 1977 after Alfred C. Wyllie discovered an underground ammunition bunker while digging a swimming pool on his estate.

The area's population grew in 1842, after the Federal Armed Occupation Act of 1842 offered 160 acres to anyone who would bear arms and cultivate the land. Early settlers included the Stevens, Stevenson and McMullen families, who claimed and farmed large tracts of land. Prior to 1906, the area was known as Clear Water Harbor. The name "Clear Water" is thought to have come from a fresh water spring flowing from near where the City Hall building is located today. There were many other freshwater springs that dotted the bayfront, many in the bay itself, which were the reason for the crystal clear water found there.


Originally part of Hillsborough County, the first road joining Clearwater and Tampa was built in 1849, which dramatically reduced the prior day-long commute between the cities. The first US Post Office for Pinellas County was built on the site of the present Turner Street Dock Park, circa 1859.

During the U.S. Civil War, Union gunboats repeatedly raided the city's supplies as most of the able-bodied men were away fighting for the Confederate States of America army. The city began booming in late nineteenth century, prompted by Peter Demens building the first passenger railroad line into the city 1888. Clearwater was incorporated as a town in 1891 and James E. Crane became the town's first mayor. The town's reputation as a tourist destination grew in popularity when Plant built the Belleview Biltmore in 1897.

By the early 1900s, Clearwater's population had grown to around 400, ballooning to nearly 1,000 in the winter. Clearwater was reincorporated, this time as a city, on May 27, 1915, and made the county seat for Pinellas County, which broke from Hillsborough County in 1912. Also in 1915, a bridge was built across Clearwater Harbor, joining the city with modern-day Clearwater Beach. Remnants of the original bridge still remain as boating hazards in the harbor's shallows.

During World War II, Clearwater became a major training base for U.S. troops destined for Europe and the Pacific. Virtually every hotel in the area, including the historic Belleview Biltmore and Fort Harrison Hotel, became luxury barracks for new recruits. Vehicle traffic regularly stopped for companies of soldiers marching through downtown, and nighttime blackouts to confuse potential enemy bombers were common practice. The remote and isolated Dan's Island, now Sand Key, was used as a target for US Army Air Corps fighter-bombers for strafing and bombing practice.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 108,787 people, 48,449 households, and 27,422 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,660.8/km² (4,302.1/mi²). There were 56,802 housing units at an average density of 867.2/km² (2,246.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 83.85% White, 9.79% African American, 0.32% Native American, 1.64% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 2.48% from other races, and 1.85% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.97% of the population.

There were 48,449 households out of which 21.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.7% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.4% were non-families. 35.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.79.

In the city the population was spread out with 19.1% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 23.8% from 45 to 64, and 21.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 91.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $36,494, and the median income for a family was $46,228. Males had a median income of $31,067 versus $25,066 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,786. About 8.4% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.8% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.

Economy
Service, retail, finance, insurance, and real estate play a vital role in the area's economy. Hillsborough County alone has an estimated 740,000 employees, a figure which is projected to increase to 922,000 by 2015. Many corporations, such as large banks and telecommunications companies, maintain regional offices in Tampa.

Downtown Tampa is undergoing significant development and redevelopment in line with a general national trend toward urban residential development. The Tampa Downtown Partnership notes development proceeding on 20 residential, hotel, and mixed-use projects as of April 2007. Many of the new downtown developments are nearing completion in the midst of a housing market slump, which has caused numerous projects to be delayed or revamped, and some of the 20 projects TDP lists have not broken ground and are being refinanced. Nonetheless several developments are nearing completion, which city leaders hope will make downtown into a 24-hour neighborhood instead of 9 to 5 business district.

Tampa's port is now the seventh largest in the nation and Florida’s largest tonnage port, handling nearly half of all seaborne commerce that passes through the state. Tampa currently ranks second in the state behind Miami in terms of cruise ship travel. Besides smaller regional cruise ships such as Yacht Starship and SunCruz Casino, Tampa also serves as a port of call for three cruiselines - Holland America's MS Veendam, Royal Caribbean's Grandeur of the Seas, and Carnival's Legend and Inspiration.

Three Fortune 1000 companies are headquartered in the metropolitan area-- OSI Restaurant Partners (the parent company of Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba's Italian Grill, and Bonefish Grill), TECO which provides energy for the surrounding area, and Raymond James Financial, the namesake of Buccaneers home field Raymond James Stadium. Fortune 500 company Tech Data is based across the bay in Clearwater, Florida.

Wikipedia is based in Tampa, with additional servers in Amsterdam and Seoul.

Attractions
Nighttime hot spots include the SoHo District, Channelside, and Ybor City.

Some well-known shopping areas are the International Plaza and Bay Street, WestShore Plaza, Westfield Brandon, Westfield Citrus Park and Hyde Park Village.

Events held annually in Tampa include the Outback Bowl (every New Year's Day), the Gasparilla Pirate Festival (every February), the Sant'Yago Knight Parade (usually 1 week after the day parade during the Pirate Festival), the Florida State Fair (mid-February), and Guavaween (every October near Halloween).

Tampa is also known for its significant landmarks. The Sulphur Springs Water Tower, a landmark in Sulphur Springs section of the city dates back to the late 1920s. Also during this time period was the construction of Bayshore Boulevard, which parallel Hillsborough Bay from Downtown Tampa to areas in South Tampa. The road has a 4.5-mile continuous sidewalk on the eastern end, the longest in the world. Babe Zaharias Golf Course in the Forest Hills area of Tampa has been designated a Historical Landmark by the National Register of Historic Places. It was bought in 1949 by the famous 'Babe' who had a residence nearby and closed at her death. In 1974, the City of Tampa opened the golf course to the public

The Story of Tampa, a public painting by Lynn Ash, is a 4' x 8' oil on masonite mural that weaves together many of the notable aspects of Tampa's unique character and identity. It was commissioned in 2003 by the City of Tampa's Public Art Program and can be found in the lobby of the Tampa Municipal Office Building.

Park Tower (originally the First Financial Bank of Florida), the first substantial skyscraper in Downtown Tampa. Completed in 1973, it was the tallest skyscraper in Tampa until the completion of One Tampa City Center in 1981.

Future landmarks include The Tampa Riverwalk, a proposed continuous pedestrian walkway along the eastern end of the Hillsborough River. The sidewalk will extend from the Channelside district to Tampa Heights. The schedule time for completion is around 2010.

Other landmarks within the city include theTampa Theatre, Museum of Science and Industry (which include the IMAX dome theater), Fun-Lan Drive-In (drive-in theater), and Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center.

Downtown Tampa boasts a number of landmark high rises, including the Suntrust Building, Sykes Building, SkyPoint Condominium, Towers of Channelside, and the Bank of America Building.

South of Tampa, spanning the southern part of Tampa Bay, is the region's most endearing landmark. In much the same way that San Francisco is recognizable world-wide because of its Golden Gate Bridge, the Tampa Bay area holds its massive steel-span Sunshine Skyway Bridge in the same regard.

Education
Hillsborough County School District boasts an impressive 200+ schools with an enrollment of over 180,000 students as well as 73 additional centers such as charter schools and early childhood education centers. There are also several well known colleges and universities in the area that provide opportunities for continuing education including University of South Florida, ITT Technical Institute, University of Tampa, and Florida College, as well as Hillsborough Community College.

Transportation
Airports

• St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport
• Albert Whitted Airport
• Clearwater Air Park

Mass transit
Pinellas County has the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA) as the public transit provider, with major stops at all local malls and employment centers. There are 197 buses and trolleys that serve 43 routes, in addition to the 2 express routes to downtown Tampa via the Howard Frankland and Gandy Bridges, connecting with HartLine. The 2 main bus terminals are located in downtown Clearwater and downtown St. Petersburg, with routes bisecting and crossing the entire county. During fiscal year 2005-06 PSTA transported 11,400,484 passengers.

Railroads
CSX operates a branch line which sees daily rail traffic from north Tampa though Safety Harbor, Clearwater, Largo, and into downtown St. Petersburg and the adjacent industrial areas.

The former Seaboard Coast Line branch from the western coastal portion of the county was abandoned in the latter portion of the 20th century and converted to a popular recreational trail called the Pinellas Trail.