Riverside Heights in Tampa in Hillsborough County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

Franciscan Center, Founded in 1970

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, October 11, 2022

1. Franciscan Center, Founded in 1970 Marker Side 1

Inscription.

Franciscan Center, Founded in 1970. . , Side 1 , The Franciscan Sisters of Allegany, New York, came to Florida in the 1930s. They founded hospitals in Miami, West Palm Beach, St. Petersburg, and Tampa, including St. Anthony’s in St. Petersburg and St. Joseph’s in Tampa. The Franciscan Center’s story began in the 1960s when Joseph Miyares, a Tampa attorney, got to know the Sisters at St. Joseph’s. He was so impressed with their dedication and hospitality that he donated this Riverside Heights property, over 8 acres, to them. He initially suggested the site as a new location for St. Joseph’s Hospital, which was originally located near Ybor City at E. 7th Avenue and N. Morgan Street. At that time, the local Provincial, Sister Lucian Walsh, OSF, recognized the property’s outstanding natural beauty here along the Hillsborough River, and recommended building a retreat center. Sister Lucian initiated the clearing and development of the land, and erected a sea wall. Sister Lucian’s vision was realized in October 1970, when the Franciscan Center opened as a mission for the Franciscan Sisters of Allegany. Welcoming to people of all faiths, the center evolved into an oasis for private reflection, retreats, spiritual direction, and hospitality. , (Continued on other side), Side 2 , (Continued from other side) , Since opening, the center has welcomed tens of thousands of people. The building can host approximately 80 guests at a time, with over 40 bedrooms and meeting spaces, and it remains wonderfully preserved in time. Throughout its history, the center has regularly hosted retreats with different themes for people of all walks of life. In addition to the center staff, renowned speakers have lead retreats. Among them have been Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, Henri Nouwen, Sister Helen Prejean, CSJ, Sister Briege McKenna, OSC, Bishop Thomas Gumbleton, and Richard Rohr, OFM. The Sabbath House was once a pavilion by the river where dances for young people were held during the 1940s and 1950s. To bridge the past and the present, volunteers and staff collaborated with the University of South Florida’s School of Architecture and Community Design to design and build a new riverside pavilion. The Franciscan Sisters of Allegany who served as the center’s leaders throughout the years are Sister Lucian Walsh, Sister Marion Fanelle, Sister Theresa Collins, Sister Margaret Mary Kimmins, Sister Mary McNally, Sister Cathy Cahill, and Sister Anne Dougherty., A Florida Heritage Site

Side 1
The Franciscan Sisters of Allegany, New York, came to Florida in the 1930s. They founded hospitals in Miami, West Palm Beach, St. Petersburg, and Tampa, including St. Anthony’s in St. Petersburg and St. Joseph’s in Tampa. The Franciscan Center’s story began in the 1960s when Joseph Miyares, a Tampa attorney, got to know the Sisters at St. Joseph’s. He was so impressed with their dedication and hospitality that he donated this Riverside Heights property, over 8 acres, to them. He initially suggested the site as a new location for St. Joseph’s Hospital, which was originally located near Ybor City at E. 7th Avenue and N. Morgan Street. At that time, the local Provincial, Sister Lucian Walsh, OSF, recognized the property’s outstanding natural beauty here along the Hillsborough River, and recommended building a retreat center. Sister Lucian initiated the clearing and development of the land, and erected a sea wall. Sister Lucian’s vision was realized in October 1970, when the Franciscan Center opened as a mission for the Franciscan Sisters of Allegany. Welcoming to people of all faiths, the center evolved into an oasis for private reflection, retreats, spiritual direction, and hospitality.
(Continued on other side)

Side 2
(Continued from other side)
Since opening, the center has welcomed tens of thousands

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of people. The building can host approximately 80 guests at a time, with over 40 bedrooms and meeting spaces, and it remains wonderfully preserved in time. Throughout its history, the center has regularly hosted retreats with different themes for people of all walks of life. In addition to the center staff, renowned speakers have lead retreats. Among them have been Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, Henri Nouwen, Sister Helen Prejean, CSJ, Sister Briege McKenna, OSC, Bishop Thomas Gumbleton, and Richard Rohr, OFM. The Sabbath House was once a pavilion by the river where dances for young people were held during the 1940s and 1950s. To bridge the past and the present, volunteers and staff collaborated with the University of South Florida’s School of Architecture and Community Design to design and build a new riverside pavilion. The Franciscan Sisters of Allegany who served as the center’s leaders throughout the years are Sister Lucian Walsh, Sister Marion Fanelle, Sister Theresa Collins, Sister Margaret Mary Kimmins, Sister Mary McNally, Sister Cathy Cahill, and Sister Anne Dougherty.

A Florida Heritage Site

Erected 2021 by The Florida Humanities Council, Allegany Franciscan Ministries, Franciscan Sisters of Allegany, NY, and the Florida Department of State. (Marker Number F-1148.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic

Franciscan Center, Founded in 1970 Marker Side 2 image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, October 11, 2022

2. Franciscan Center, Founded in 1970 Marker Side 2

lists: Charity & Public Work • Religion & Religious Structures • Women. A significant historical month for this entry is October 1970.

Location. 27° 58.375′ N, 82° 28.778′ W. Marker is in Tampa, Florida, in Hillsborough County. It is in Riverside Heights. It is at the intersection of North Perry Avenue and West Adalee Streeet, on the right when traveling south on North Perry Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3010 North Perry Avenue, Tampa FL 33603, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Florida’s Tampa Bay.

It is also in the American South

and on the Gulf Coast.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within one mile of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Morgan Cigar Factory (approx. 0.6 miles away); The Andres Diaz Building (approx. 0.7 miles away); Centro Español de West Tampa (approx. 0.8 miles away); Woodlawn Cemetery (approx. 0.9 miles away); Academy of The Holy Names (approx. 0.9 miles away); Martí~Colón Cemetery (approx. one mile away); The West Tampa Boys Club (approx. one mile away); The Beginning of the Cigar Industry in West Tampa (approx. 1.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Tampa.

Also see . . . Franciscan Center of Tampa. (Submitted on October 31, 2022, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida.)

Franciscan Center, Founded in 1970 Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, October 11, 2022

3. Franciscan Center, Founded in 1970 Marker

Franciscan Center image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, October 11, 2022

4. Franciscan Center

Credits. This page was last revised on July 28, 2024. It was originally submitted on October 31, 2022, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. This page has been viewed 461 times since then and 30 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on October 31, 2022, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida.