When out of town visitors come to our store and community info center of sorts in Ybor City, they ask what to do, where to go and of course of the history of what made Tampa famous, the hand-rolled cigar making. An historical short walk leads them to explore the Ybor City’s history of the artistry crafted hand-rolled cigar makers, known as ‘tabaqueros’ . Of course they buy the Tampa jeweled rolled tobacco torpedoes to enjoy smoking. But it isn’t just the cigars that entices them to see Ybor, it is the fascinating culture, festivals and older architectural buildings and cigar factory structures all over the district that make visitors enjoy the famed National Landmark Historic District.

Cigar Factories star,t 1886, was in the outskirts swamp lands, now Ybor City. The low land sales were owned and evolved by a diverse group of newly arriving immigrants in Tampa that included multi- ethnicity groups working together. In 1890’s that was very rare in the southern states. There were Spanish, Cuban, Italian, Sicilian, Eastern European and German cigar company owners. It truly was a “new world” and new settlement area to move to.

We have lived in Tampa and have a business here but we re-introduced ourselves to Ybor with a different mind set. One of visitor curiosity and camera in hand to seek the renaissance of the hand-made cigar making buildings built over a century ago. Tampa was  then known as ” The Cigar Capital of the World!”

Wow… what again 1 person’s actions can make! Pioneer and namesake of Ybor City, Vincent Martinez-Ybor started and relocated a dream venture in 1885 that still continues today.

The old family cigar factories are plentiful in West Tampa as they are in Ybor City but we just photographed Ybor City’s historical hand-rolled cigar structures. Buildings that were built in the late 1880’s to early 1900 are still majestic and all somewhat similar.

We know that the possibility of tearing down some of the old historic factories is still feasible. In fact only one of 2 wooden historic cigar factories still remain. The old Oliva & Monett Cigar Factory on Palm & 19th Street.

Here is our recent photo tour of those building retrofitted to a new life and proudly remain standing in historic Ybor City.

We have the todays present tenants and the original cigar company info.

1). U-Haul Storage along I-4 was the Sanchez & Haya Cigar Factory built with brick in 1912. The first Sanchez & Haya Cigar Factory was a wooden building built in 1886 and burned down in the Great Ybor fire in 1908.

2). Stantec was the Seidenburg Cigar Company (aka M. Stachelberg Cigar Co.) 1894 made of brick on the corner of 20th St & 12th Ave.

3). JC Newman Cigar Factory still making cigars with a huge working clock tower nicknaming the factory, “El Reloj”, Spanish for clock and have a great cigar history museum just north of I-4 at the corner of 16th & Columbus Ave was the Regensburg Cigar Factory one of Tampa’s largest and lastly built brick cigar factories, era 1910.

4). Abandoned large factory on North 15th Street & 28th Ave was Perfecto Garcia Cigar Factory built with brick, era 1914.

5). Office Building presently was Corral & Wodiska Cigar Factory built out of brick with large tower with its most popular cigar name the company made, Bering , at 1302 North 19th Street, era 1928.

6). Tampa Sweetheart Cigar Company still producing cigars today with a store was the Arturo Fuente Cigar Company, 1310 North 22nd St brick built , era 1895.

7). Lions Eye Institute for Transplant & Research was F Lozano & Sons Cigar Co. large factory built with brick, 1908.

8). Warehousing presently and was proposed to become a bed & breakfast was the Oliva & Monett Cigar Factory built out of wood, 2 stories on Palm & 19th, era.1900.

9). Scientology Church, Spaghetti Warehouse & Creative Loafing Newspaper Offices was the V.M. Ybor Cigar Company, the grand daddy of the Ybor cigar factories with multiple buildings for the imported Cuban tobacco to be processed and hand-rolled. The building is on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places with red brick layed streets. Previously it was an artist space then converted to retail, restaurants and bars named “Ybor Square.” Later sold to office management company now with its present owners & tenants.

10) Hillsborough Community College’s Administration Offices in Ybor City was Cyrilla Cigar Factory, brick built at 2112 North 15th Street, era 1905.