a city, port, and holiday resort in western Florida in the US. City (pop., 2000: 303,447), west-central Florida, U.S. Located on the northeastern end of Tampa Bay, the U.S. Army established Fort Brooke on the site in 1824 to oversee the removal of the Seminole Indians. The town was incorporated in 1855. Tampa developed as a cigar-making centre after the town's first cigar factory was established (1886). It now has a wide range of industries and is a major distribution centre. It is a winter and fishing resort and major tourist destination; attractions include Busch Gardens
Inlet, Gulf of Mexico, western Florida, U.S. The bay is 25 mi (40 km) long and 7-12 mi (11-19 km) wide, and it serves the recreational and commercial activities of Saint Petersburg on the western shore and Tampa on the northeast. Hernando de Soto began his travels through the southeastern U.S. region when he reached Tampa Bay in 1539. Tampa Bay is spanned by the 15-mi (24-km) Sunshine Skyway Bridge