Since the days when Native Americans bathed in its springs, the pretty city by the bay has distinguished itself as a pioneering, healing mecca. Here are some highlights of the area’s rich history.
The Tocobaga were here.
An Indian temple mound at Safety Harbor’s Philippe Park can be traced back to the area’s earliest Native American inhabitants. The majority of them were not killed off in battle, but on the contrary laid waste to many a European settler. The final batch, the Tocobaga Chiefdom, virtually disappeared, dispersing and assimilating into other tribes and sold into slavery. Unfortunately, the diseases the Spaniards imported did most of Tocobaga in. Their mound is listed in the National Register of Historic Landmarks.
The park’s namesake.
Odet Philippe was the first permanent, non-native settler on the Pinellas County peninsula, acquiring 160 acres of land in what is now Safety Harbor back in 1842. His own history is a matter of some debate; legend has it he was a French surgeon in Napoleon’s army and of noble birth, but as Safety Harbor historians Laura Kepner and Warren Frischein point out in their definitive history of the town, other evidence suggests he may have been descended from landowners in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (now Haiti). Whatever his origin, he was indubitably Florida’s first citrus magnate, figuring out an ingenious way to graft grapefruit to existing citrus trees. He was Tampa’s first cigar manufacturer, too, accounts say. Philippe was buried in an undocumented spot at his home, known then as the St. Helena Plantation. The 122 acres — located in a très scenic spot along Old Tampa Bay, shaded by massive, centuries-old oak trees — became Philippe Park in 1948, the oldest Pinellas County park. A portrait of Philippe can be found at the Safety Harbor Museum and Cultural Center.
You know that nearby road, McMullen-Booth?
It’s named after two of the city’s founding families, who are direct descendants of Philippe. The Booths don’t have as much written about them as the McMullens, but both families played significant roles in the city’s history.
That old oak tree.
The Baranoff Oak by Safety Harbor Public Library is the oldest living live oak in Pinellas County. Named after Dr. Stephen Baranoff, the doctor who owned the Safety Harbor spa more than 60 years ago, the tree is estimated to be between 300 and 500 years old.
The Father, the Son and the Holy Springs. Folklore has it that Hernando de Soto discovered the “Holy Spirit” mineral springs of Espiritu Santo Bay (Old Tampa Bay and Tampa Bay’s name back in the day) where the Safety Harbor Resort & Spa sits today. Legend has it that de Soto believed the “healing waters” to be Ponce de Leon’s sought-after Fountain of Youth. There is no written proof of this or of de Soto’s landing site in Florida. (However, letters from de Soto and his men describe the Ucita Village settlement where Philippe Park sits today.) In the late 1800s and the early 20th century, the springs were touted for curative benefits, attracting tourism and investors. The Water Tower Pavilion and other wooden structures on the easternmost end of what is now Main Street were destroyed in 1921 by a hurricane. The Safety Harbor Sanitorium followed in 1936, purchased by Dr. Baranoff in 1945 and named the Safety Harbor Spa. In 1964, the U.S. Department of the Interior designated the spa a historical landmark.
What’s in a name?
Americans named the settlement Green Springs in the 19th century. The city wasn’t known as Safety Harbor until 1917. Ironically, three months after its renaming, the city endured a devastating fire that destroyed several buildings on Main Street.
Running in the top 5.
In 2014, The Road Runners Club of America named Safety Harbor one of the top five runner-friendly communities in the country.
Sources: A Brief History of Safety Harbor, Florida, by Warren Firschein and Laura Kepner; The Safety Harbor Resort and Spa; Pinellas County’s website; and the Tampa Bay Times.
This article appears in Apr 9-15, 2015.