The evening leader.

Format:

Journal/Periodical

Newspaper

Standardized Title:

Evening leader (Tarpon Springs, Fla.)

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Greek Americans.

Sponge trade.

Tarpon Springs (Fla.)--Newspapers.

Tarpon Springs (Fla.).

Pinellas County (Fla.)--Newspapers.

Pinellas County (Fla.).

Florida--Pinellas County.

Florida--Tarpon Springs.

Genre:

Newspapers.

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Daily (except Sunday)

Other Title:

Leader

Place of Publication:

Tarpon Springs, Florida : The Leader Publishing Company

Summary:

The Evening Leader (sn96027122) began publication in the early 1900s in Tarpon Springs, FL under the guidance of H.W. Morford, who served as manager and editor, and E.T. Byington, the associate editor. The four-page paper was printed daily (except Sundays) and published every afternoon, not evening, as its name would suggest. The Leader informed its readers of international events such as World War I, the US occupation of Veracruz during the Mexican Revolution, and the 1918 pandemic. The paper reported on major national events, with coverage often appearing on the front page of every issue. The election leading to Woodrow Wilson's second presidency, the operation of the Panama Canal, and the development of the Federal Trade Commission were just some of the events featured in its earlier publication years. Although the Leader featured national and global news, it primarily reported on happenings from Tarpon Springs and neighboring towns, offering readers coverage of local politics and government. Social and personal news sections appeared regularly, providing a glimpse of local life with notes on social gatherings and hotel arrivals. Sporting events, both local and national, are highlighted frequently. The Leader also featured advertisements for various goods, including but not limited to lumber, banking, and sponges. Tarpon Springs is a city on Florida's Gulf coast that traces its origins to pioneer settlements in the 1870s. Rumors say it acquired its name after fish (tarpon) were spotted "springing" from the bayou. The first incorporated city in what would later become Pinellas County, Tarpon Springs was incorporated in 1887. The city became home to Greek immigrants in the 1880s. Today, Tarpon Springs is home to the largest Greek community in the United States. In 1905, J.K. Cheyney, a local businessman, partnered with John Cocoris, a businessman of Greek descent from New York City, to recruit 500 men from the Dodecanese region of the Greek islands as sponge divers. Unlike in Key West, where local spongers used long poles to harvest sponge, the Greeks employed diving techniques in Tarpon Springs. The difference in approach proved fruitful and allowed Tarpon Springs to flourish and become the "sponge capital of the world." Within a few years, Tarpon Springs welcomed new Greek residents who changed the city's culture. These newcomers opened Greek restaurants, bakeries, and grocery stores that flourished and provided a semblance of the motherland. By 1907, the first Greek church in the city, the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, was founded. A celebration is held annually on the sixth of January for Epiphany (known initially as Greek Cross Day). This city-wide celebration is quite the attraction, drawing visitors from all over who travel to join in on the festivities.

Notes:

H.W. Morford, editor.

Weekly ed.: Tarpon Springs leader (Tarpon Springs, Fla. : 1910).

Description based on: Vol. 1, No. 266 (November 19, 1914); title from masthead (Chroniclingamerica.loc.gov, viewed May 18, 2022).

Latest issue consulted: Vol. 7, No. 120 (June 6, 1919) (Chroniclingamerica.loc.gov, viewed May 18, 2022).

OCLC:

1264229708