On the evening of June 9, 1898, the 1st U.S.  Volunteer Calvary 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 order 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.