The Catholic history of Tampa-Saint Petersburg, Florida:
After Juan Ponce de Leon’s initial discovery of Florida and Tampa Bay in 1513, explorers over the next several decades such as Panfilo de Narvaez and Hernando de Soto came here, bringing with them priests and religious in the hope of native conversions. The hostility of the native Tocobaga peoples in this area, however, continued to frustrate Spanish missionary plans as demonstrated by the martyrdom of famed missionary Fr. Luis de Cancer on the shores of Tampa Bay in 1549. Fr. Cancer and his two fellow Dominican martyrs are currently being considered for canonization.
The Tampa Bay area remained largely unpopulated until Florida became a territory of the United States in 1821. Shortly thereafter, the Fort Brooke military garrison was established in what is today downtown Tampa. Slowly the Catholic population began to grow, necessitating a need for a local Catholic church. The founding of St. Louis Catholic Church in Tampa in 1859 provided a focal point for local Catholic settlers.
After a serious outbreak of yellow fever in Tampa in 1888 Bishop Moore of the Diocese of St. Augustine in desperation turned to the Jesuits from New Orleans for help. Not only did the Jesuit Fathers take over St. Louis Church, but also they were responsible for founding many of the early parishes and schools of the area and throughout south Florida. In 1905, a new Church was constructed in Romanesque style and the parish was renamed Sacred Heart. It is the oldest parish and church within the diocese.
After the establishment of the Catholic colony of San Antonio and the Parish of St. Anthony of Padua (in which the town was literally built around the church) in the early 1880s, the Benedictine monks and nuns who came to Pasco County later in that same decade are another important religious community in the history of the diocese. They founded, and staffed for many years, most of the parishes of Pasco, Hernando and Citrus Counties. Other early pioneer Religious include the Sisters of the Holy Name of Jesus and Mary, who founded their oldest Catholic school in 1881, the Sisters of St. Joseph, who came to educate African-American children, and the Redemptorists and Salesians, both of whom worked in the immigrant Latin community in Ybor City and West Tampa.
The growing population and economic boom following World War II brought major changes to this area, much of it under the tutelage of the sixth bishop of St. Augustine, Joseph P. Hurley. Archbishop Hurley presided over the largest institutional build-up in the history of the Florida Church. Not only did the Archbishop purchase property for future investment or development, he also established many new parishes and schools and recruited many priests from Ireland and the northern United States to staff them.
Catholic places of interest in Tampa-Saint Petersburg, Florida:
The two cities sit next to each other, connected by a bridge over Tampa Bay. The Diocese of Saint Petersburg, which includes Tampa, was established in 1968 and covers 3,177 square miles in five counties. As of 2025 the diocese served a total population of approximately 2,900,000, of whom over 450,000 are Catholics and includes 75 parishes, 5 missions, more than 13,000 students registered at 46 schools and early childhood centers, plus two universities. Mass is celebrated in 14 languages.
City of Saint Leo:
Saint Leo Benedictine Abbey and Retreat House
City of Saint Petersburg:
Cathedral of Saint Jude the Apostle
Saint Mary, Our Lady of Grace (the first Catholic parish in St. Petersburg)
Mary Help of Christians Center
St. Louis Catholic Church: Founded in 1859, St. Louis Catholic Church was a focal point for local Catholic settlers.