The New Student's Reference Work/Tampa Bay

Tam′pa Bay, an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico on the western coast of Florida, south of Cedar Keys and north of Charlotte Harbor, on which the city of Tampa is situated. The bay, known also by its old Spanish name of Espiritu Santo, is divided in its upper waters by a peninsula into Old Tampa Bay and Hillsboro Bay. Its length is between 35 and 40 miles, while in breadth it varies from six to 14, with a depth of 22 feet at its main entrance, which is protected from the Gulf by a number of keys or low islets.