Vicente Martinez Ybor
Encyclopedia
Vicente Martinez Ybor was a Spanish American
industrialist and cigar
manufacturer, best known for founding the cigar-manufacturing town of Ybor City near Tampa, Florida
in 1886.
in 1832, in part to avoid the military service
then mandatory for all male Spaniards, and took a job as a grocery clerk before learning the cigar business. In 1848, Ybor married Palmia Learas, and they had four children before her death.
In 1856 Ybor founded his own company in Havana, Cuba and began manufacturing his El Principe de Gales ("Prince of Wales") brand. The brand quickly became popular, and Ybor's factory was soon producing 20,000 cigars a day. In his personal life, Ybor remarried in 1862. He and his wife Mercedes de las Revillas would have eight additional children.
broke out as Cubans fought to win their independence from Spanish colonial rule. Even though he was a Spaniard, Ybor sympathized with the Cuban cause and was accused (correctly) with providing funds to Cuban rebels. He was threatened with arrest and slipped out of Cuba to Key West, Florida
in 1869.
Ybor quickly built a new factory to continue manufacturing his Principe de Gales brand, employing many Cubans who had also left their homeland due to the war. Though his business prospered, conflict between Spanish and Cuban workers, labor unrest, and the difficulty of transportation to and from the island city eventually led Ybor to search for another site.
With the enticement of a subsidy from Tampa's Board of Trade, Ybor purchased 40 acres (161,874.4 m²) of scrubland northeast of Tampa, Florida in October 1885. By the following spring, Ybor, along with business partners Eduardo Manrara and Ignacio Haya and planner Gavino Gutierrez, had built a company town dubbed Ybor City. His cigar factory
, an imposing brick complex that filled a city block, was the largest in the world at the time.
Ybor sought to avoid the constant labor unrest he had struggled with in Key West by providing what he considered good wages and living conditions. His company built small houses that his workers could purchase for cost, hoping that home ownership would keep his employees from migrating back and forth to Cuba, as was common practice among cigar workers in those days. Ybor encouraged other cigar factories to move in to increase the pool of workers, and welcomed entrepreneurs who founded businesses in the area. He also ran a variety of other businesses catering to the growing community, including a brewery, a hotel, an ice factory, and a brick factory, among many others.
Ybor's plan worked. After a slow start, both his business and Ybor City as a whole flourished, with the area's cigar factories hand-rolling and shipping tens of millions of cigars annually by the late 1880s, the number increasing into the hundreds of millions by the turn of the 20th century. The initially independent town was annexed by the city of Tampa in 1887 and continued to grow and prosper for several decades.
Vicente Martinez-Ybor is buried in Oaklawn Cemetery
in downtown Tampa
. In honor of his contributions to the area's development, his bronze likeness was installed at the front of the Centro Ybor shopping area located in Ybor City's traditional commercial district on 7th Avenue.
Spanish American
A Spanish American is a citizen or resident of the United States whose ancestors originate from the southwestern European nation of Spain. Spanish Americans are the earliest European American group, with a continuous presence since 1565.-Immigration waves:...
industrialist and cigar
Cigar
A cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...
manufacturer, best known for founding the cigar-manufacturing town of Ybor City near Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
in 1886.
Cuba
At the age of fourteen he emigrated to CubaCuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
in 1832, in part to avoid the military service
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
then mandatory for all male Spaniards, and took a job as a grocery clerk before learning the cigar business. In 1848, Ybor married Palmia Learas, and they had four children before her death.
In 1856 Ybor founded his own company in Havana, Cuba and began manufacturing his El Principe de Gales ("Prince of Wales") brand. The brand quickly became popular, and Ybor's factory was soon producing 20,000 cigars a day. In his personal life, Ybor remarried in 1862. He and his wife Mercedes de las Revillas would have eight additional children.
Tampa, Florida, United States
In 1868, the Ten Years' WarTen Years' War
The Ten Years' War , also known as the Great War and the War of '68, began on October 10, 1868 when sugar mill owner Carlos Manuel de Céspedes and his followers proclaimed Cuba's independence from Spain...
broke out as Cubans fought to win their independence from Spanish colonial rule. Even though he was a Spaniard, Ybor sympathized with the Cuban cause and was accused (correctly) with providing funds to Cuban rebels. He was threatened with arrest and slipped out of Cuba to Key West, Florida
Key West, Florida
Key West is a city in Monroe County, Florida, United States. The city encompasses the island of Key West, the part of Stock Island north of U.S. 1 , Sigsbee Park , Fleming Key , and Sunset Key...
in 1869.
Ybor quickly built a new factory to continue manufacturing his Principe de Gales brand, employing many Cubans who had also left their homeland due to the war. Though his business prospered, conflict between Spanish and Cuban workers, labor unrest, and the difficulty of transportation to and from the island city eventually led Ybor to search for another site.
Ybor Factory Building
The Ybor Factory Building is a historic site in Tampa, Florida, United States. The main factory and its surrounding support buildings cover an entire city block between 8th Avenue and 9th Avenues and 13th and 14th Streets in the Ybor City Historic District section of the Ybor City neighborhood.The...
, an imposing brick complex that filled a city block, was the largest in the world at the time.
Ybor sought to avoid the constant labor unrest he had struggled with in Key West by providing what he considered good wages and living conditions. His company built small houses that his workers could purchase for cost, hoping that home ownership would keep his employees from migrating back and forth to Cuba, as was common practice among cigar workers in those days. Ybor encouraged other cigar factories to move in to increase the pool of workers, and welcomed entrepreneurs who founded businesses in the area. He also ran a variety of other businesses catering to the growing community, including a brewery, a hotel, an ice factory, and a brick factory, among many others.
Ybor's plan worked. After a slow start, both his business and Ybor City as a whole flourished, with the area's cigar factories hand-rolling and shipping tens of millions of cigars annually by the late 1880s, the number increasing into the hundreds of millions by the turn of the 20th century. The initially independent town was annexed by the city of Tampa in 1887 and continued to grow and prosper for several decades.
Death
When Ybor died in December 1896 at the age of 78, the headline of the Tampa Tribune read "Great Benefactor Gone.". He owned so many business ventures and real estate in the area that his partners concluded that there was not enough available capital in Tampa to turn his assets into money. His family did sell off most of his holdings, but it took almost 10 years to do so.Vicente Martinez-Ybor is buried in Oaklawn Cemetery
Oaklawn Cemetery
Oaklawn Cemetery was Tampa, Florida's first public burial ground. The location was deeded in the mid-19th century. It was named as the final resting place for "White and Slave, Rich and Poor". The First Mayor of the City of Tampa Judge Joseph B. Lancaster is buried at Oaklawn along with pirates,...
in downtown Tampa
Downtown Tampa
Image:Tampa_Skyline.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Downtown Tampa looking from the Hillsborough Riverpoly 2403 537 2441 500 2488 483 2516 455 2566 439 2597 410 2649 390 2682 358 2803 315 2949 342 2956 362 3068 383 3074 406 3202 431 3204 447 3332 473 3350 484 3485 1616 2446 1587 Wachovia Centerpoly 1745 1216...
. In honor of his contributions to the area's development, his bronze likeness was installed at the front of the Centro Ybor shopping area located in Ybor City's traditional commercial district on 7th Avenue.
External links
- Historical markers relating to V.M. Ybor in Ybor City
- Cameron B. LeBlanc, "Preserving the Memory of Ybor City, Florida", Southern Spaces, 22 December 2009.