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

St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery

1890 – 1926

Photographed by Fr. Len Plazewski

1. St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery Marker

Inscription. The advent of the cigar industry in the late 1890’s ushered in an era of significant growth for Tampa which included many Catholic immigrants from Spain, Cuba, and Sicily as well as Catholic families who relocated from other parts of the U.S. This influx hastened the need for a second cemetery for Catholics to accompany downtown’s St. Louis Cemetery (est. 1874). In 1890, the pastor of St. Louis parish (now Sacred Heart), Father John Quinlan, S.J. purchased 8 acres on north Florida Avenue for a new cemetery which was named in honor of Our Lady. For more than three decades, many Catholics of various ethnicities including white, Latin, and African-American were interred here. With an eye to establish a parochial school on the site, in 1925-26 the remains of those buried at St. Mary’s were transferred to the newly created Catholic section at Myrtle Hill Cemetery or to other local cemeteries. Sacred Heart Academy opened in 1931 and would serve thousands of children until declining enrollment led to its closure in 2012. The Arguelles and Ficarrotta Ferlita mausoleums remained here because of the prohibitive costs involved in

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relocation. They now stand as silent sentinels of this once hallowed ground.

Erected 2023 by Diocese of St. Petersburg.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Immigration • Religion & Religious Structures. A significant historical year for this entry is 1890.

Location. 27° 58.609′ N, 82° 27.515′ W. Marker is in Tampa, Florida, in Hillsborough County. It is in Tampa Heights. It is on Florida Avenue (Business U.S. 41) north of East Emily Street, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3515 N Florida 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

Photographed by Fr. Len Plazewski

2. St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery Marker

South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within one mile of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Zion Cemetery (approx. 0.2 miles away); Woodlawn Cemetery (approx. 0.4 miles away); Hillsborough County High School (approx. 0.6 miles away); The Buffalo Soldiers in Tampa Heights (approx. 0.7 miles away); Angus R. Goss (approx. ¾ mile away); George Washington Junior High School (approx. 0.8 miles away); Old People's Home (approx. 0.8 miles away); German-American Club (approx. one mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Tampa.

Arguelles Masoleum image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Fr. Len Plazewski

3. Arguelles Masoleum

Former Sacred Heart Academy buildings image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Fr. Len Plazewski

4. Former Sacred Heart Academy buildings

Credits. This page was last revised on July 28, 2024. It was originally submitted on December 30, 2023, by Fr. Len Plazewski of Tampa, Florida. This page has been viewed 432 times since then and 40 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on December 30, 2023, by Fr. Len Plazewski of Tampa, Florida. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.