Fort Brooke was among the first of the US government’s operations in Florida, and the first in Tampa. The fort’s establishment was integral to Tampa’s development, and now it’s mainly known as the name of a parking lot.

        Fort Brooke was built on the Southern tip of the Hillsborough River, around the point where it connects to Tampa Bay. It was established in 1824 after a treaty with the Seminole Native American tribe. The treaty of Moultrie Creek pushed the Seminoles into a certain area of Tampa in 1823, which prompted the government to request a military presence in the area. Fort Brooke was originally built to act as a place of trade with the Seminoles, as well as overseeing them. However, due to its strategic positioning and eventual necessity, it was transformed into a full blown military base.

        Fort Brooke wasn’t a part of a lot of battles, but what it was part of it did well in. Its positioning meant that it was mainly defending the town to the North (modern-day Tampa.) It was mainly involved in two of the three Seminole wars, a series of skirmishes and raids against the Americans residing in Tampa from 1816-1858. The fort was built after the first from 1816-1819 as a response, and it was the force that protected the Northern town from the further raids in the second war (1835-1842) and the third war (1855-1858). It was also involved in a minor but significant raid during the Civil War (1861-1865) that left the fort with heavy damage.

        The damage from the Civil War had made the fort effectively useless. The damage it sustained severely limited its effectiveness in protection. The town had developed to a point where the fort was less and less necessary with each passing year. Less conflict had been happening in the area as a result of this, meaning that the fort would be active much less. The town’s development and the fort’s wavering usefulness led to it never being repaired. It stayed dormant until it was eventually decommissioned in 1883.

        After being decommissioned it became incorporated land to the state, being used by homesteaders and anyone that could use the land. Then, in 1907 the land was finally annexed by Tampa. The land where it once stood is where the Tampa Bay History Center, the Glazer Children Museum, the Tampa Theater, and of course, the Fort Brooke Parking Garage now stand.