Museum’s ‘Piers through the Years’ exhibit gives historic look at St. Pete's iconic structure

Piers through the years

An exhibit in St. Pete shows the history of the city’s iconic pier.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - St. Petersburg’s first pier dates back to the late 1800s with the railroad pier that was built by Peter Demens and visitors to the current pier can learn about that story and more in a special exhibit from the St. Petersburg History Museum.

"We wanted to tell the story of all of the piers," shared Rui Farias from the museum. "They've always been the iconic element of the city."

"Piers through the Years" is the exhibit showcasing the history of the downtown centerpiece.

"In the beginning, all of our piers were purely industrial and then someone came with the idea, 'Hey let's sit on this pier and fish' and next thing you know more people fished and they didn't want you to fish," said Farias.

Once the popularity of being out over the water caught on, the city and the public never returned to the old ways of a simple structure for transporting goods out to vessels in Tampa Bay.

The fishermen brought swimmers, which led the city to build a bathing pavilion.

St. Petersburg began to capitalize on the attention that the pier brought to the downtown area as a center for social activity.

PREVIOUS: From the Railroad Era to the inverted pyramid, St. Pete's piers took on many forms since the 1800s

"They've always been the gathering place, the entertainment venue," stated Farias.

It’s still center stage. The pier is a staging point for the city's New Year's Eve events and is the main viewing location for the Power Boat St. Pete Grand Prix.

The St. Pete History Museum is located at 335 2nd Avenue NE on the St. Pete Pier.