FLORIDA'S THREE KINGS TRADITION: DIVING FOR THE WHITE CROSS
It doesn't always have to be carolers - on Florida's Gulf Coast, January 6 is all about a lucky cross.
16 December 2020
All over the world there are traditions and customs that at first seem curious or unexpected. The St. Pete/Clearwater region on the Gulf Coast, for example, surprises us. Florida's with an old Greek tradition: In the small town of Tarpon Springs, the former world capital of sponge diving, diving for the white cross is celebrated annually as part of the Epiphany festival on January 6.
Learn more about the Greek tradition that made it to the US.
Florida meets Greece
The city of Tarpon Springs, population 20,000, stands out for several things. Most impressive, however, is the fact that the small town has a higher percentage of Greek residents than anywhere else in the US. Accordingly, old customs are coming back to life here - including the Epiphany festival. Normally, 50,000 visitors are drawn to the small community of Tarpon Springs each year for this festivity, including many Greek Americans from all over the country. The festival centers around a diving contest in which young men must retrieve a white cross from the bottom of the local Spring Bayou River. According to legend, this cross gives the finder full luck for a year.
The procedure is the same every year: after the morning mass in the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of St. Nicholas, a procession follows to Spring Bayou, into which the white cross is thrown. The young men run from the church to the river, climb their boats, and plunge headfirst from them into the water. Now the contestants must hurry: For only the fastest diver will be able to grab the infamous cross. The finder is then blessed by the clergy present and celebrated by the community with live music and a big feast. The Epiphany Festival, also known as the Feast of the Epiphany, with its spiritual and entertaining program elements, lasts a total of three days.
Tarpon Springs - The Sponge Diving Capital of the World
During Epiphany, visitors can experience the community's deep Greek roots in a special way. Most of Tarpon Springs' 20,000 residents have at least some ancestry from Greece. As a result, the town is the community with the highest percentage of Greek-born residents in the United States. This is largely due to the former farming of bath sponges. Beginning in 1890, sponge divers began arriving in Tarpon Springs from the Dodecanese Islands of Greece and from Halkidiki. Thus, in the early 20th century, the small community became the sponge fishing capital of the world. Every second natural sponge sold in Europe came from Tarpon Springs.
Since then, the city's main attraction has been the famous Sponge Docks on the Anclote River. Although many lush sponge fields perished in 1947 due to a disease infestation, so that the associated business collapsed, the industry got a new boost with the help of synthetic sponge fields. Although the industry has not regained its former prominence, sponge diving is now a special highlight, especially for tourists. At the Spongeorama Sponge Factory, visitors can grab sponges, bath products and souvenirs of all kinds, and watch sponge divers at work in their impressive suits.
Picture Credits: visitstpeteclearwater.com
