Tampa Smokers
A century ago, Tampa was known as the Fine Cigar Capital of the World. At its peak, Tampa’s 200 cigar factories in Tampa handcrafted more than 700 million cigars per year. In 1919, Tampa’s local baseball team was named the Tampa Smokers to celebrate its place as Cigar City. Many famous athletes played for the Tampa Smokers, including Al Lopez, who was the son of cigar workers and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Tampa Smokers cigars celebrate two of America’s historic traditions: baseball and cigars. Tampa Smokers cigars are hand rolled in J.C. Newman’s iconic El Reloj cigar factory in Tampa in two sizes, a 6″x 52 toro and a 7″ baseball bat. A single master cigar roller hand rolls only 80 Tampa Smokers cigars per day with an Ecuadorian Shade wrapper, Connecticut Broadleaf binder, and filler tobaccos from Latin America where baseball continues to be a favorite pastime.
This historic 1947 team photo of the Tampa Smokers, part of the Florida Baseball League, captures a defining era in Tampa’s rich sports and cigar heritage. The Tampa Smokers were a beloved minor league team, deeply tied to the city’s identity as the Cigar City, where baseball and cigars went hand in hand.
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Tampa baseball museum
In this home, 89 professional players and baseball greats from Tampa are honored, along with the people and places who shaped them: the early leagues and spring training, sun-soaked fields in West Tampa and Ybor City, World Series-winning Little League teams, and coaches with deep rosters.
Address: 2003 N. 19th Street Tampa, Florida 33605
Website: www.tampabaseballmuseum.org
7″ Baseball Bat
Toro
6″ x 52 Toro
WRAPPER: Ecuador Shade
BINDER:Connecticut Broadleaf
FILLER: Latin America
FACTORY: J.C. Newman El Reloj, Tampa, FL
WRAPPER: Ecuador Shade
BINDER: Connecticut Broadleaf
FILLER: Latin America
FACTORY: J.C. Newman El Reloj, Tampa, FL
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