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Creation Date
5-5-2012
Building Name
Sicilian Club (La Sicilia)
Historic District
West Tampa Historic District
Description
Sicilian Club , WestTampa FL
In 1894 Cubans built Sociedad Cespedes, a three-story social club that loomed above the business district at Main and Albany. The Centro Espanol de West Tampa at Howard Avenue and Cherry Street served arts and cultural needs.
In 1916 Sicilians organized to build the Sicilian Club (La Sicilia); the building remains at the corner of Howard and Spruce Street. These clubs provided social, recreational, music, dance, theatre, education, medical clinics and social services "from cradle to grave."
The Sicilian Club is one of Tampa’s original ethnic clubs that aided immigrants in their assimilation into the Tampa area. The Club offered members the same “cradle to grave” benefits as did ethnic clubs in Ybor City. The rear portion of the building houses a theatre that provided an array of entertainment options to those in the area. The Sicilian Club building is significant to the development of West Tampa and served as a focal point to the West Tampa community. The Sicilian Club is an excellent example of Mediterranean Revival style architecture, as evidenced in its elaborate blond and red brick detailing.
Contributing Building - West Tampa Historic District - National Register of Historic Places NRIS #83003539
Latitude, Longitude
27.95942778, -82.48287778
Recommended Citation
Taylor, George Lansing Jr., "Sicilian Club , WestTampa FL" (2012). George Lansing Taylor Collection Main Gallery. 5573.
https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/historical_architecture_main/5573
