James Franklin Oliver, Sr., known popularly as Jim Oliver, was an amazing shortstop who played with the National, Florida, and local Negro Leagues and clubs from the 1940s to the 1950s. Equally noteworthy, he was a role model and mentor to hundreds of Black youths during the era of segregation. In addition to baseball, Oliver played semi-pro football and was an excellent golfer. Born near Waycross, Georgia in 1919, Oliver moved to St. Petersburg with his family at the age of 7. He attended Davis Elementary, but did not go on to high school and began working at about age 13.… Read More

As the old saying goes, “the grass is always greener…”. But soon, sea grass will be greener at St. Pete’s North Shore Park – or rather, just offshore. 

Starting in late 2025, the City of St. Petersburg will be restoring 32 acres of seagrass habitat near the entrance to Coffee Pot Bayou. The restoration will begin by repairing a dredge hole just offshore using 470,000 cubic yards of fill from a recent channel deepening project at SeaPort Manatee. Over the summers of 2026 and 2027, manatee grass, turtle grass, and shoal grass plugs gathered from a donor site just to the north will be added to this new bay bottom, then monitored for growth.… Read More

You wouldn’t expect a busy doctor and a small-business owner to spend their precious evenings picking up trash and old fishing line. But nearly every night after dinner, Ashley and Lorenzo Hernandez do just that.

Their nightly walks along Coffee Pot Bayou in St. Petersburg have become a ritual. The couple walks the same path with trash pickers in hand, collecting cigarette butts, discarded bait containers, and bits of tangled line. It’s quiet, methodical work that they say started organically. 

“We were already walking every night,” Ashley said. “May as well help clean up while we’re out here.” 

Ashley says this while trying to keep one of her four dogs from yipping and jumping; the couple have three miniature Pomeranians and a one-eyed Yorkie with a big personality.… Read More

Last year, three major hurricanes – Debbie, Helene, and Milton – had a huge impact on our city. Debby was a near 100-year storm event, dropping almost 12 inches of rain in parts of the city in 30 hours, and generating a 3.4-foot surge. While Hurricane Helene landed 172 miles north of St. Petersburg, it generated a surge as high as 7.2 feet in some areas. Hurricane Milton was predicted to generate a devastating surge of as much as 10 to 15 feet.  Fortunately, Milton wobbled to the south, and Tampa Bay instead experienced a 3-foot negative surge rather than total devastation. Nevertheless, our city experienced a record “1,000-year” rainfall event with 18.75 inches of rain falling in parts of the city in 24 hours.… Read More

As St. Pete grows, so does the interest in our culture and history. Currently, there are many popular and informative tours of downtown and beyond, but only one examines one of the most important times in our city’s history: Civil Rights Era. 

The St. Petersburg Museum of History’s Historic Civil Rights Trolley Tour invites passengers on a compelling ride into the city’s often overlooked past. Winding through streets of St. Petersburg once marked by segregation, the trolley takes passengers through neighborhoods and by landmarks that once stood at the center of the city’s local civil rights movement. 

Lead by Museum Director Rui Farias, the tour immerses passengers in powerful stories about pivotal moments and courageous individuals who helped shape the area’s fight for racial equality.… Read More

One of our city’s leading environmentalists and preservationists was Mayor Charlie Schuh. Charles E. Schuh served on the city council from 1971 to 1974, and then as mayor from 1975 to 1977. At that time, the city had what is known as the “weak mayor” form of government. While the mayor held the title, he really served as a “first among equals” on the council, and true executive power was invested in a paid city manager. The mayor’s salary in 1975 was $5,000 per year, about $30,000 adjusted for inflation. As Schuh said later about the job: “You preside over council meetings, and you have a couple of other ceremonial functions and that’s it.”… Read More

You’re probably familiar with the “little ditty” about Jack and Diane, the bittersweet love story immortalized by John Cougar Mellencamp. But what about St. Petersburg’s own homegrown Jack-and-Diane romance – not of two kids growing up in the heartland, but of two ospreys growing up at a local credit union? 

It all started in 2016, when the two lovebirds attempted to build their first nest atop the large sign at Achieva Credit Union off 4th Street North. It is not unusual to observe ospreys’ nests in such unlikely places; these highly adaptable raptors naturally nest atop dead trees, but will readily adapt to nesting on utility poles, channel markers, and other tall, man-made structures.… Read More

It’s the Old Northeast’s best-kept secret that’s not really a secret. The Historic Old Northeast Neighborhood Association’s (HONNA) Garden Tour was a smash from its start in 2023, when it sold out its 500 tickets almost immediately. 

This year’s tour on Saturday, April 12, from 11 am to 3 pm, returns to its popular roots as it winds through home gardens in the ONE, with each stop featuring local artists in the makeshift outdoor galleries. In total, 15 artists will participate as a part of this biannual grassroots fundraising event. 

The $50 ticket price benefits the HONNA Street Tree Replenishment Program, a local effort to keep the neighborhood’s tree canopy strong by planting trees, maintaining existing trees, and educating residents about tree care. It’s… Read More

Babe Ruth Day and the centennial of Ruth’s first year of spring training in St. Petersburg was celebrated with great gusto last month. George Herman “Babe” Ruth, Jr. played baseball during spring training in St. Pete with the New York Yankees from 1925 to 1934, and again with the Boston Braves in 1935.

Festivities began with Mayor Ken Welch issuing a proclamation at the city council meeting on February 6 declaring Saturday, February 8, “Babe Ruth Day,” honoring how Ruth’s presence in our city greatly magnified St. Petersburg’s profile as a town of sport, outdoor leisure, “and just plain fun,” and greatly contributed to the city’s sense of place.… Read More

Feature photo: Julia Ruth Stevens and her son Tom remembering her father’s famous “call shot” at Wrigley Field in Chicago, 1932. Courtesy of Julia Ruth Stevens Family

The year 2025 is the Centennial of Babe Ruth playing baseball in St. Petersburg. It was in 1925 that the New York Yankees relocated their spring training headquarters to Florida and St. Petersburg, and along with the deal came Babe Ruth, the world’s foremost baseball athlete. To celebrate the occasion, the Kids and Kubs Senior Softball Club and the “City Hall Stars,” led by Mayor Ken Welch, will dedicate their annual Mayor’s Game to Babe Ruth, and Ruth’s grandson, Tom Stevens, will throw out the first pitch.… Read More