Ybor City: Cigar Capital of the World (Teaching with Historic Places)

Walk down Seventh Avenue in Ybor City (now a section of Tampa, Florida) and feel yourself transported to a place in another time. Brick streets are lined with sidewalks of hexagonal concrete pavers and old-fashioned, cast-iron street lamps. Buildings present ornate porticos, decorative brickwork, handmade wrought-iron balconies, and ornamental tile work. A few small, plain workers' cottages, once home to Ybor City's cigar workers, have been preserved. Mutual aid society clubhouses indicate the importance of benevolent organizations to Ybor City's immigrant population. On a quiet corner lies a small park dedicated to Cuban poet and revolutionary José Martí. The park is a reminder of Martí's efforts to gain support for the cause of Cuban freedom in the 1890s. These historic sites speak of Ybor City's intriguing past.

Essential Question

This lesson provides a case study of an immigrant community of the late 19th and early 20th centuries and offers a contrast to the typical textbook coverage that emphasizes immigration from eastern and southern Europe to the big cities of the north.

Objective

1. To identify the role cigar making played in the creation of Ybor City;
2. To explain the cigar manufacturing process;
3. To describe the mutual aid societies that helped immigrants maintain their ethnic identity;
4. To explain the efforts of José Martí to involve Cuban immigrants in Ybor City in the Cuban rebellion against Spain;
5. To investigate the history of their own community and compare it with Ybor City.

Background

Time Period: 1860s-1920s
Topics: This lesson provides a case study of an immigrant community of the late 19th and early 20th centuries and offers a contrast to the typical textbook coverage that emphasizes immigration from eastern and southern Europe to the big cities of the north.

Full Lesson Plan