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Courthouse saw its share of drama

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BY RODNEY KITE-POWELL

Special correspondent

Published: July 10, 2011

Thousands of people have passed through the doors of Tampa's historic Federal Courthouse during its 100-year history. People filled the building's grand halls; federal employees have served people from every walk of life, from gamblers to bootleggers, tobacco buyers to inventors, taxpayers to bolita peddlers. They have all contributed to the lasting legacy of this landmark structure. Below are some of the cases, commissions and customers in the courthouse's history.

When the building first opened in 1904, the surrounding area was as much residential neighborhood as it was business district. The building served as post office, customs house and courthouse, as well as the home of the Internal Revenue Service, Department of Commerce and Labor, the U.S. regional engineering office and the U.S. weather bureau.

Postal employees congregated at the federal building, taking their payload of mail for distribution to area substations, including West Tampa, Ybor City and the rural delivery zones. This was all overseen by the postmaster and a number of postal clerks.

Tampa's largest industry, the cigar industry, kept the clerks at the customs and IRS offices very busy. Tobacco, which was mostly imported from Cuba, had to be checked at the docks of Port Tampa and the Port of Tampa. Bonded tobacco required special attention from the customs officials, and its own warehouse facilities, to ensure its quality was never compromised. Because of this, cigar manufacturers proudly included "Made in Bond" on their cigar labels, advertising to the buying public that the tobacco in Tampa's cigars had been carefully watched and inspected every step of the way.

With prohibition in the 1920s, customs agents had to work even harder. They were among the first line of defense against bootleggers and moonshiners, all looking to skirt the 18th Amendment's ban on the sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages.

The customs office was administered by the Collector of Customs. The position was a political appointment, coming directly from the president of the United States. The job usually came as the result of a political favor.

The IRS, too, was kept busy. Tobacco and cigars were taxed, and with 500 million cigars produced annually, there was a lot to look after.

Of course, among the most important facets of a courthouse are the court cases that occur within its walls. Tampa's Federal Courthouse is located in the Fifth U. S. Circuit and has jurisdiction over what is known as the Middle District of Florida. Some things have not changed since circuit judge J. W. Locke presided over cases when the building first opened. Lawsuits involving large corporations, governments, interstate commerce, bankruptcy and civil rights all go through the federal court system.

While generally not nearly as busy as county and state courts, the responsibilities involved in the federal court system make it a very important tenant of the courthouse. Some of the most important decisions made within the courtrooms involved the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and '60s. It was through the federal courts that efforts at defeating segregation and fulfilling the promise of equal protection under the law became realities.

One of the most important events to take place at the federal building was not a trial, at least in the traditional sense. In 1951, Tampa's Federal Courthouse hosted, the Kefauver Committee. The Senate Committee to Investigate Organized Crime in Interstate Commerce, as it was officially known, was chaired by Estes Kefauver, a U.S. senator from Tennessee in search of the roots of organized crime — and a possible presidential campaign. The commission held hearings across the country, stopping in Tampa to interview a number of people known to be associated with organized crime. While Kefauver himself was not present during Tampa's hearings, countless onlookers crowded the normally sedate courthouse, hoping for the chance to see Tampa's notorious gangsters up close. The Tampa Tribune and the Tribune-owned WFLA radio kept those unable to attend constantly updated with three newspaper reporters and one radio reporter, plus a live taping of the event that would be rebroadcast as quickly as the tape reels filled.

The famous and infamous were grilled over a two-day period. The biggest participant was noted kingpin Charlie Wall. Though far past his prime — he was 71 at the time — Wall still cut an inspiring presence. Law enforcement officials, including Hillsborough County Sheriff Hugh Culbreath (known as cabeza de melon , or melon head, by the Latin gangs), were accused of taking bribes in exchange for looking past the lawlessness that accompanied Tampa's underworld.

The price would be steep for some of those who spoke openly to the Senate committee. The biggest retaliation came against Wall, who was murdered by "unknown" assailants four years later. A copy of the Kefauver Committee's report was laid open in the retired gangster's Ybor City bedroom where the homicide took place.

Rodney Kite-Powell is the Saunders Foundation Curator of History at the Tampa Bay History Center. He encourages your questions and comments. He can be reached by email at rkp@tampabayhistorycenter.org, or by phone at (813) 228-0097.

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