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Buyers examine sponge lots during a large sale at the Sponge Exchange on June 19, 1978. Unlike sponge sales in Greece, sales at the Sponge Exchange were generally conducted through silent auctions. Each potential buyer submitted his bid on a piece of…

In 1921, dozens of Greek boats in the sponge fleet line the wooden docks where men work and an anchor lies. Along with the lone horse-drawn buggy are the Sponge Exchange jitney and cars that are probably owned by the more affluent sponge merchants.

In this view looking north from the Sponge Exchange to the boats lining the Sponge Docks, men examine enormous piles of strung sponges harvested on recent trips. When the photograph was taken in 1921, the old wooden buildings had been replaced with…

Vasile G. Faklis (1892-1982) left Symi for Tarpon Springs, where he founded Faklis Department Store and Shoe Repair in 1912. He proudly served in the U.S. army during World War I and is shown here in his military uniform in 1917. His sons, George and…

Vasile Faklis fits his granddaughter, Andea Faklis Kopacz, with a shoe as her mother Katie Faklis watches in 1966. Faklis' Department Store and Shoe Repair specialized then as today in shoes that are both stylish and healthy. The store still displays…

Gus Tsourakis and a crew member unload strings of cleaned sponges on June 27, 1969. Tsourakis owned a hooking boat, which was smaller than the larger diving boats. On this trip they harvested more than 5000 sponges, primarily wool.

On a beautiful day in 1924, the Tulumaris family is ready to venture out for a drive in their car. Before strip malls and extensive development, Tarpon Springs was considered a place of great natural beauty, attracting artists and wealthy snowbirds…

In 1943, Tarpon Springs High School’s annual Prom was celebrated at The Manor on Country Club Drive. Those attending included Lula Christodoulou, Mary Stavropoulos, Pete Tsourakis, and Augustine Paskalakis.