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The following profile tells the story of Andrew J. Knight, a founding father of the city's first daily newspaper—The Tampa Daily Times—and an entrepreneur of note in numerous ventures of import.
For more information on the life and career of this important boomtown figure is available by clicking the following links: photos, bios, articles, documents, timelines, milestones, Weblinks.
On February 2, 1893, Andrew J. Knight was elected to serve as secretary of a newly formed syndicate—a The Tampa Publishing Company.
Organized by Board of Trade President, Col. Silas Armistead Jones, the company was launched with the help of A.J. Knight to counter what was viewed as newspapering "detrimental to the progress of Tampa" and her growth.
The next day, A.J. and his fellow power-brokers orchestrated one of Tampa's first hostile takeovers--they purchased the town's two weekly newspapers. That done, on February 7, the city's first daily newspaper with AP Wire news service hit the pavement--The Tampa Daily Times.
As Bentley Orrick and Harry L. Crumpacker write in The Tampa Tribune: A Century of Florida Journalism, "The men behind [The Times] were savvy, politically connected, or wealthy, and in some cases all three…[They were] a group of like-minded businessmen" who intended that their paper reflect their commercial and political interests and attract the attention of Northern industry and settlers.
The newspaper continued to be a voice of influence in Tampa for 89 years, until in 1982 it was folded into the Tampa Tribune. Today its legacy can be seen on the cover of the Trib's morning masthead, as a sub-banner reading, "The Tampa Times."
But before--and after--his significant work with Col. Jones' newspaper, A.J. Knight was a formidable force in Tampa's boom town history.
Born at Knight's Station in Hillsborough County, December 20, 1857, A.J. was the son of Joel and Virginia (Mitchell) Knight and grandson of Samuel and Nancy (Robert) Knight who arrived in Florida in the 1830s.
By today's standards, he was part of a large family, one of nine children (Thomas Samuel; George W.; Mary Elizabeth who married Matthew Franklin Giddens; Frances Jane who died in childhood; Andrew J.; Henry Laurens; Charles L. who married Daisy Wall; Francis J. who married Bertha Wilson; and Eugene C. who married Haulie Stephens). But compared to his uncle Jesse's tribe of 15, A.J.'s baseball team of a family was small time.
Raised the son and nephew of two of Florida's most influential cattle barons, A.J. attended public school and went on to study law. He was admitted to practice, but his thirst for business drove him in a different direction--that of civic leadership.
The first noted real estate endeavor A.J. embarked on was Fort Brooke, the military reservation where Tampa essentially began. The garrison was located on prime waterfront real estate and included the territory south of Whiting Street.
After the Seminole War in 1842, settlers flocked to Tampa and the village began to spring up outside the fort. Because of this, and the diminished Indian threat, Fort Brooke was downsized to around 148 acres, January 22, 1877, and the section east of East Street and south of Sixth Avenue was put given back to the public. All the land held by the government beyond the new reservation's boundaries was sold.
A.J. Knight, then 20 years of age, saw his chance. Along with John T. Lesley and Stephen M. Sparkman, he purchased a large tract for $1.25 an acre.
But real estate development wasn't what it is today. In 1877, young A.J. may have been a landholder, but his sleepy, sandy hometown was hardly a destination location. The railroad had yet to arrive in Tampa, so settlers and land speculators were still years away. So in the early 1880s, Andrew Knight looked elsewhere to make a living.
He eventually found work with E.A. Clarke, a prominent merchant, learned the basics of accounting and customer service. Over time, young A.J. learned the ropes and became a partner with Clarke, proudly hanging a sign on their Washington Street shop that read Clarke & Knight: Wholesale & Retail Hardware. The partnership thrived, becoming a prominent and successful venture in a bustling part of the downtown.
Most likely, young A.J. was also learning that relationships underpin business success. As an engaging merchant, he was forming friendships across the town. One of those acquaintances would significantly impact the young man's future prospects. It was with a a fellow Washington Street businessman, one S.A. Jones--a prominent contractor and builder who founded Tampa's first board of trade in 1878. By 1885, Clarke & Knight would share advertising space with S.A. Jones, in Jones' 100-page promotional pamphlet on Hillsborough County, mailed across the nation in 1885. And A.J. would serve as a member of Jones' company, The Hillsborough County Real Estate Agency.
As his prominence in Tampa's business community grew, so too did the young man's concern with Tampa's future. Naturally, when A.J. saw a problem, he stepped forward to volunteer. His "can do" spirit is best illustrated by his participation in organizing the boomtown's first fire fighting group.
In the winter of 1884-85, a series of disastrous fires wiped out a portion of the town, making citizens disgruntled and eager for a dependable water supply. With the completion of Tampa's first water system, an effective fire fighting organization could be rallied.
Hook & Ladder Company No. 1 rolled onto Tampa streets, June 2, 1884. It was a rudimentary affair, largely powered by the hearts and courage of participants. As Karl Grismer writes in his informative book on the history of Tampa, "The only equipment these fireman had consisted of twenty buckets, two scaling ladders, and some axes. Needles to say, more than a little difficulty was encountered in battling serious conflagrations."
But the bonds that were formed and tempered as burning buildings were battled, were strong enough to last a lifetime in Tampa.
Tampa 's first board of trade was organized in 1878; it remained active for a few years--claiming the recruitment of Henry Bradley Plant and his railroad among its many accomplishments. But for reasons unknown, it folded.
It was reorganized on May 7, 1885, in Branch's Opera House during a meeting of the town's supporters. A.J. was one of the first members, as the organization was comprised of most of Tampa's progressive citizens.
Early on, as one of Tampa's young movers-and-shakers, A.J. found himself associated with numerous causes and campaigns of import. One of these was a need for ice, in the bustling port town.
By summer of 1885, Tampa's population was swelling and sweltering; the demand for ice was growing. On July 15, 1885, the newly organized board took action, advertising in New York, Boston, and Chicago newspapers for a company to bring operations to Tampa, because local companies couldn't keep up with the demand. J.M. Long, of Newburgh, NY, responded to the ad, and on May 7, 1886, the plant started operations. The result was ice for Port Tampa's thriving fishing industry, among other necessities, like ice cream and lemonade.
Without a doubt, A.J.'s most significant contribution in his early years to Tampa's growth was as a board of trade member involved in bringing the cigar industry to Tampa.
In late September 1885, Spanish cigar manufacturer Vincente Martinez Ybor arrived in Tampa and was impressed with the town's potential. He set his sights on a tract of land, 40 acres northeast of town, owned by John T. Lesley, for his factories and homes for workers. The land was about $5,000 more than Ybor anticipated, as he was only willing to pay $4,000.
In negotiations with board of trade members Ybor came to an agreement on October 5. He vowed that if Tampa pledged $4,000 to offset his construction costs, he would relocate his plant in Hillsborough County, along with the firm of Sanchez & Haya. Determined to commence the cigar industry in Tampa, the board of trade guaranteed Ybor the money he needed. A.J. Knight served on the committee to raise the funds.
Once Henry Bradley Plant's railroad arrived in Tampa, the town's population exploded. In 1876 the population was 720 souls; by 1886, there were more than 5,000 boomtowners; by 1896 there were more than 10,000--and more were arriving with each incoming train. That extremely rapid growth during the late 1880s and early 90s made land more valuable than ever.
The flow of industrial goods from Northern markets, bound for newly-arrived settlers and markets in Central and South America, also increased, becoming big business. Goods arrived by train in Tampa; from there they went to settlement towns or were transferred to sail and steamship to reach international markets. The flow of goods, tobacco in particular, from Cuba, was ever-increasing.
Naturally, A.J. Knight had no intention of missing out on this flow of goods. With his contacts across Hillsborough County tied to his early days as a merchant and his relationships across the nation with Northern industrial leaders as a board of trade representative, he was in a position to find a niche in the import-export business.
By 1898, A.J. had made an opportunity a business: As the Tampa Tribune's Midwinter Edition reported in 1900, "About one year ago, the firm of Hendry, Knight & Co., was formed: the object of this co-partnership being the sale of marketable sugar, tobacco, orange and vegetable lands in Cuba.
Inevitably, that ever-increasing import-export volume taxed Tampa's small port. Soon it became clear to A.J. Knight and his ilk that a deep and wide harbor on the Hillsborough River would be necessary.
Not coincidentally, A.J. had been sitting on Fort Brooke acreage, dating back almost 20 years. Moreover, his experience and relationships with the Hillsborough County Real Estate Agency bode well. He could smell an opportunity and in the 1890s he sought to broaden his relationships and holdings.
Banking on the chance that the further Fort Brooke acreage would open to homesteaders, he joined forces in 1895 with Edward M. Hendry, a real estate speculator who had been in business since 1892.
Hendry & Knight immediately set about purchasing the rights to 59 acres of the old Fort Brooke military reservation (land embroiled in a long legal dispute, slowly winding its way to the Supreme Court). They subdivided the land into small lots and filed the plans August 16, 1895. By the time the Fort Brooke homesteader's claims were upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court on January 3, 1905, the firm had acquired possession of a large part of the land. Immediately A.J.'s workers proceeded to dredge the channel and build terminals along the waterfront. This land became Tampa's first real harbor, later referred to as Mallory Channel.
Construction of the Ybor Channel, one of the main projects in Tampa's harbor development, was made possible by a Federal appropriation, June 25, 1910. The channel was dredged in a marsh that was once part of Fort Brooke, and was then owned by A.J. Knight among others.
During WWI, shipbuilding was a booming industry in Tampa. In 1923, The Tampa Dock Company, located on the Ybor Channel, built The United States Shipping Board eight 286-foot, 3,500-ton wooden cargo ships. The company was headed by A.J. Knight, J.L. McGucken and C.J. Hyer.
Andrew J. Knight was more than a Tampa pioneer in commerce, real estate, civil involvement, harbor leadership. He was also a friend to many--evidenced by a lifetime of wide ranging business ties and his record as one who glimpsed a need and quickly partnered with others more knowledgeable than himself to seize opportunity.
But his relationship extended beyond business relationships and friendships. He was also a husband and father. A.J. married Flossie Clarke, the only child of Edward A. and Sarah (Wall) Clarke. Together, they raised seven children--Clarke, Esli, Vida Clare, Aldine Jewel, Jules, Flossie, and Sarah.
Flossie died in 1910. Eight years later, on September 18, 1918, he married Ruby Leon Marcum. A.J. Knight died September 28, 1926.
NOTE: More information about the founders and key backers of The Tampa Daily Times can be found online and in private and collections. If you happen across a Webpage or document that may describe the lives and times of a founder, please e-mail the link for possible posting by the Reclaiming Our Heritage staff. Remember, you help tell the story! |
