Gasparilla Photos of Decades Past are Pure Pirate Treasure

Gasparilla season has arrived! For the next two months Hillsborough County will enjoy various events, including festivals celebrating music, art, and film. However, the crown jewel of festivities will be the Gasparilla Pirate Fest parade. Hailed as the nation's third-largest parade, this party has raised the roof almost every year since 1904. Can you imagine what the revelry in the streets looked like over 100 years ago?

Now, with only a few clicks, you can see for yourself. An online collection of photographs shows Gasparilla merrymaking from 1904 to 1969. You can search images by decades or places such as Bayshore Boulevard, Davis Islands, Hillsborough Bay, and more. You can further refine your search using keywords like "costumes," "crowds," "ships," etc.

The images are only a small portion of the Burgert Brothers Photographic Collection at the Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative. The Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative currently has 15 unique digital collections that each tell a vital story about the local history, culture, and people of the Tampa Bay area and Florida. There are over 548,000 items to explore, from historic images to artwork and genealogy records.

Learn more at Hillsborough County Public Library Cooperative.