Tarpon Springs, city, Pinellas County, western Florida, on the Gulf of Mexico; incorporated as a city 1887. It is a resort city and a leading center of the U.S. sponge-fishing industry. The community, settled in 1882, is named for the tarpon, a fish found in abundance off the coast. Many Greek immigrants came here after 1905 to continue their traditional trade of sponge diving. The Epiphany ceremony, an old Greek Orthodox rite, is a colorful event each January 6. Population 13,251 (1980); 17,906 (1990); 21,003 (2000).
