Tampa Landmarks · Hwy 60 & Newport Ave. Rough Riders Procure a Coal TrainHow Roosevelt's regiment stopped an empty coal train at dawn and convinced the engineer to back it seven miles to Port Tampa — June 8, 1898 ✦ ✦ ✦When the midnight train that was supposed to carry the Rough Riders to Port Tampa never arrived, the men slept in the open field. At 6:00 a.m. on June 8, 1898, they stopped an empty coal train returning from the port — and talked the engineer into reversing course and backing the regiment seven miles to the ships. 🪧 Newest Marker in the Series — Erected June 8, 2023
The Night the Train Didn't ComeThe chaos of Tampa's embarkation period in June 1898 is legendary — thousands of soldiers, mountains of equipment, and a rail and port system completely overwhelmed by the demands of a nation suddenly going to war. For the Rough Riders, the final push to Port Tampa was no exception. On the evening of June 9, orders came to break camp at the encampment approximately one mile northwest of this location and proceed to Port Tampa. About 600 Rough Riders, led by Colonel Leonard Wood and Lieutenant Colonel Theodore Roosevelt, marched to a spur line in this vicinity and were told to wait for a train around midnight. The train never came. 🌙
Evening, June 9, 1898
Orders to Move OutThe Rough Riders receive orders to break camp at Vila Brothers and proceed to the rail spur near Newport Ave. — ordered to await a train at midnight that will carry them to Port Tampa. ⏳
Midnight, June 9–10
The Train That Never Came600 men wait in the dark at the spur line. Midnight passes. No train. With no suitable alternatives and orders to hold position, the regiment finds what ground they can and sleeps in the open field. 🚂
~6:00 A.M., June 8, 1898
Stopping the Coal TrainAt dawn, an empty coal train returning from Port Tampa passes by. The regiment stops it. Colonels Wood and Roosevelt approach the engineer and — after what the marker diplomatically calls "some discussion" — convince him to reverse course. ⚓
Morning, June 8, 1898
Seven Miles in Reverse to Port TampaThe men and equipment load into the empty coal cars. The train reverses approximately seven miles back to Port Tampa — delivering the regiment to the waiting transport ships and securing their place in the Cuba expedition. Historical Marker — Full InscriptionRough Riders Procure a Coal TrainOn the evening of June 9, 1898, the 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, "The Rough Riders," were ordered to leave their encampment (approximately one mile northwest of here) and proceed to Port Tampa (on the eastern shore of Old Tampa Bay) as part of the U.S. invasion force embarking for Cuba during the Spanish American War. Approximately 600 Rough Riders, led by Colonel Leonard P. Wood and Lieutenant Colonel Theodore Roosevelt, arrived in the early evening at a spur line in this vicinity with orders to await a train around midnight. When the train did not arrive, the Rough Riders found what suitable ground there was and slept. On June 8, 1898, at approximately 6:00 A.M., an empty coal train returning from Port Tampa was stopped by the Regiment. After some discussion, Colonels Wood and Roosevelt convinced the engineer to reverse course and transport the Rough Riders to the port. After the men and equipment were loaded into empty coal cars, the train traveled in reverse approximately seven miles, delivering the Regiment to Port Tampa. Erected June 8, 2023. Marker Location100 S. Newport Ave., Tampa, FL 33606
Located just west of the University of Tampa, at the intersection of Hwy 60 (Kennedy Blvd.) and Newport Avenue — the approximate site of the rail spur where the Rough Riders waited for their midnight train and stopped the coal train at dawn. |
