Before the arrival of the Greek divers sponges were usually speared and brought aboard. In the late 1880's hundreds of Greeks, who had perfected the art of deep sea diving and specifically sponge diving, came to Tarpon Springs
The mural on the wall of a shop illustrates a diver at work collecting sponges
Sponge boats used to line the river here and go out to the Gulf to harvest sponges
As the marker says the Gulf waters here are one of the few places in the world where sponges are found. As the industry grew more and more Greek divers came and made their homes here. A large Greek community still resides here today
By the 1950's sponging was nearly wiped out in the area. But in the late 1980's as conditions improved new sponge beds started growing.
Today a visitor to Tarpon Springs can go on a boat and see a sponge dive or just take a tour and see the sights
On Dodecanese Blvd many shops and restaurants have made this a great way to spend the day
Charter boats available for fishing trips
Tarpon Springs...you can easily spend a day here walking and seeing the sights. A great way to spend and afternoon
