Thonotosassa, Florida

Thonotosassa is a census-designated place (CDP) in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The population was 13,014 at the 2010 census.

History

The name Thonotosassa comes from the Seminole-Creek words thlonto and sasse, meaning the place was a source of valuable flint. Following the establishment of Fort Brooke in 1824 in what is now Tampa, a road that ran northwest of Lake Thonotosassa was built between Fort Brooke and Fort King in Ocala. Nevertheless, the presence of a Seminole village largely discouraged whites from moving into the area. After the Second Seminole War ended in 1842, whites began to settle.

In 1893, the Tampa and Thonotosassa Railroad opened a 13-mile route between the two growing communities. This line today no longer extends into Thonotosassa, its northern tracks having been removed along with the town depot by the 1980s; but its southern portion remains a busy industrial spur, joining with the CSX main line at Neve Wye.

Among other areas for recreation for the youth is the Morris Bridge Road area and its Nature's Classroom.

Action News

Action News is a local television newscast format in the United States. First conceived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, it is characterized by a tight format with strict time limits on set packages, a focus on surrounding suburbs, and a focus on young talent. It was a competitor to the "Eyewitness News" format.

History

The "Action News" format was conceived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at WFIL-TV (now WPVI-TV) by news director Mel Kampmann in 1970 as a response to the "Eyewitness News" format that was used on rival station KYW-TV. At this time, WFIL-TV was said to be "#4 in a three-station market."

The main difference between Action News and Eyewitness News was that the former was far more tightly formatted. Time limits were placed on packages – for instance, a reporter package could be no longer than 90 seconds. This difference enabled the station to cover more stories than its competitors. Another key difference was the focus on the surrounding Philadelphia suburban areas – a response to the movement of residents from the city to the suburbs. Finally, WPVI placed more emphasis on young talent – while WCAU-TV and KYW-TV used older, respected news anchors such as Vince Leonard, Tom Snyder, and John Facenda, WPVI had a young Larry Kane as its top anchor. Later, the station would add the very popular Jim O'Brien as its main weathercaster.

WFTS-TV

WFTS-TV, virtual channel 28 (UHF digital channel 29), is an ABC-affiliated television station located in Tampa, Florida, United States and also serving the nearby city of St. Petersburg. The station is owned by the E. W. Scripps Company. The station's studios are located on North Himes Avenue on the city's northwest side (across the street from Raymond James Stadium), and its transmitter is located in Riverview, Florida.

History

The channel 28 allocation in Tampa Bay was to have been used by WTSS-TV, an affiliate of the DuMont Television Network in the 1950s. It is very unlikely that WTSS ever made it to air.

As an independent station

WFTS first signed on the air on December 14, 1981, operating as an independent station. As the flagship of the locally based Family Group Broadcasting, the station programmed a family-oriented general entertainment format with cartoons, off-network dramas, classic movies and religious programs. Its call letters originally stood for "Family Television Station". Family Group Broadcasting sold the station to Capital Cities Communications on April 22, 1984, becoming Capital Cities' first station in Florida, the group's first (and only) independent station, and the last station to be acquired by the group prior to its merger with ABC. Under Capital Cities, the station added more off-network sitcoms and reduced the number of religious programs and drama series on its schedule.

Lake Thonotosassa

Lake Thonotosassa is an 942 acres (381 ha) lake that is named after the census-designated place (CDP) that it is in, which is Thonotosassa, Florida. Residential development surrounds the lake. There are no roads that cross it, but the four roads that go around it are: Taylor Road/Fort King Highway (west), Thonotosassa Road (south), McIntosh Road, (east), and Knights-Griffin Road (north). U.S. Route 301 is about a quarter-mile northeast of the lake. The lake is owned and maintained by the Tampa Port Authority.

See also

Thonotosassa, Florida

References

Coordinates: 28°03′39″N 82°16′45″W / 28.06083°N 82.27917°W / 28.06083; -82.27917

Tampa Bay

Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsboro Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The surrounding area is home to about 4 million residents, making it a heavily used commercial and recreational waterway but putting much stress on the bay's ecosystem, which once teemed with enough wildlife to easily support an extensive indigenous culture. Much greater care has been taken in recent decades to mitigate the effects of human habitation on Tampa Bay, and water quality has slowly improved over time.

The term "Tampa Bay" is sometimes used as shorthand to refer to all or parts of the Tampa Bay area, which comprises many towns and cities in several counties surrounding the large body of water. Local marketing and branding efforts (including several professional sports teams, tourist boards, and chambers of commerce) commonly use the moniker "Tampa Bay", furthering the misconception that it is the name of a particular municipality when this is not the case.