“Invisible Immigrants” exhibit on Spanish emigration making U.S. debut at Tampa Bay History Center

“Invisible Immigrants: Spaniards in the U.S. (1868 – 1945),” an exhibit devoted to an underexplored chapter in the history of Spanish emigration to America, makes its U.S. debut March 1st at the Tampa Bay History Center.

Its curators chose the name “Invisible Immigrants’’ because people are largely unaware of the magnitude of Spanish participation in the great migration to the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Tens of thousands left their country for the U.S.

Even in Spain, where the exhibition has been touring since 2020, Spaniards didn’t realize how many of the country’s people emigrated, says James F. Fernández, a New York University professor who partnered with Spanish journalist and cinematographer Luis Argeo to create the exhibition. So far, more than 30,000 people have seen it in Spain.

“And when they walk into the exhibition and they see photos that remind them of ‘The Godfather,’ or all these images from their film imagination, and learn that these are Spaniards and not Irish or Italian or German, it blew their minds,” Fernández says. “And they were very excited about that.’’

The exhibit, which runs through August 3rd at the History Center, spotlights the Spanish diaspora through over 300 photographs, items, papers, and audiovisual materials. Fernández and Argeo spent more than a decade doing research for the project. They knocked on the doors of some 200 homes in 15 states to talk to mostly third and fourth-generation descendants of the early Spanish immigrants and drew from an extensive archive of more than 15,000 records, including family albums and personal memorabilia. Fernández says the individual families knew their own stories but didn’t realize they were part of a bigger story.

Tampa, where Spaniards, Cubans, and Italians of the era converged to work in the

booming cigar factories, is a fitting first stop on the U.S. tour, which is promoted by Fundación Consejo España – EE.UU., a Spanish private, not-for-profit organization whose board consists of major Spanish corporations, cultural and academic institutions, and members of the Spanish public administration.

“Tampa stands out from other cities because the story itself is still alive in a way,’’ Argeo says, “thanks to the preservation of the architecture and heritage and also those institutions that are making such an effort to consolidate the story of the Spaniards that settled there. Still today, the descendants of those immigrants are working hard to preserve their stories.’’

Spaniards in great numbers also settled in New York’s 14th Street neighborhood; St. Louis, Missouri; Canton, Ohio; San Leandro, California; the pastures of Idaho and Wyoming; the granite quarries of Vermont and Maine; and even the sugar plantations of Hawaii – wherever friends and relatives who had come before said jobs were available.

“The only city that might have had more Spaniards than Tampa was New York City,’’ says Fernández. “But the legacy of the Spanish immigration to New York is pretty much invisible. You would need Luis or me to take you around the city to make visible the vestiges of the Spanish presence.”

“Whereas in Tampa, if you walk around Ybor City or West Tampa, you run into it, you see it,” he continues. “You see the Columbia, you see the Centro Español. It’s visible. You see the cemeteries, and behind the buildings are the organizations. That, in New York, is not really the case.”

Several factors went into the immigrants’ decision to leave Spain, Fernández says, among them obligatory military service, lack of good jobs, and little opportunity for upward social mobility. So they acted on a human urge to improve their conditions.

“Whether it’s crossing the Mediterranean to get to southern Spain or crossing the U.S. southern border, If you know there’s more opportunity somewhere else, and you have a chance to go there, you’re going to go there,’’ Fernández says. “They can put up walls and barbed wire and pass laws, but you’re going to go.”

The Tampa Bay History Center and Tampa’s Spanish community are celebrating the exhibit’s U.S. debut with an “Invisible Immigrants Immersion Weekend” from Feb. 28th through March 2nd. Centro Ybor, Centro Asturiano de Tampa, Centro Español de Tampa, J.C. Newman Cigar Co., Catering by the Family, and Hotel Haya are sponsoring the weekend’s events.

At noon Friday, Feb. 28th, the weekend starts at J.C. Newman Cigar Factory, 2701 N. 16th Ave. in Ybor City, with La Bienvenida a Tampa. Guests will enjoy an iconic Tampa lunch and tour the country’s oldest family-owned premium cigar factory. The event will also feature a discussion exploring the significance of Tampa’s Spanish roots in the city’s identity.

At 3:30 p.m. that Friday, a tour of the historic Hotel Haya, 1412 E. Seventh Ave. in Ybor, will spotlight the history and significance of the notable Tampa landmark.  Named after the first president of Centro Español, the hotel occupies the former Las Novedades Restaurant building. 

From 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Centro Asturiano de Tampa, 1913 N. Nebraska Ave., Friday’s events wrap up with An Evening at the Centro Asturiano. This event at the historic Asturian Social Club of Ybor City features cocktails, dinner, and entertainment, set against the backdrop of a Spanish cultural celebration.

At 10 a.m. Saturday, March 1st, the Tampa Bay History Center, 801 Water St.,  hosts the opening reception  of “Invisible Immigrants” in the History Center’s TECO Hall. A curator-led gallery tour begins at 11:15 a.m. in the Wayne Thomas Gallery. The public is invited to attend.

From 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, An Evening at the Historic Centro Español Building, 1536 E. Seventh Ave. in Ybor City, blends Ybor City culture with food, cocktails, and thought-provoking discussions paying tribute to the area’s Spanish heritage.

From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday, March 2nd, the weekend wraps up with La Despedida, a farewell brunch at Centro Español West Tampa, 2306 N. Howard Ave. Guests will enjoy a delicious brunch while exploring the Centro Español in West Tampa.

For more information, go to Invisible Immigrants