Field Trip Info

A group of people standing in line outside a building on a sidewalk under trees during the WHAT IT WAS WALKING TOUR in Tampa.

Some history makes more sense when you can stand where it happened.

What It Was offers educational field trips that bring students into Downtown Tampa to explore the Black people, places, businesses, neighborhoods, and events that helped shape our city.

Students do more than hear stories. They visit historic locations, examine evidence from the past, and consider how Tampa has changed over time. Along the way, they connect local history to larger topics including slavery, Reconstruction, segregation, Black entrepreneurship, community building, and urban development.

What It Was field trips give teachers an opportunity to extend classroom learning into the community and help students understand that the history they study did not only happen somewhere else.

Field trip resources are available to help educators connect the experience to Florida social studies standards and continue the learning before and after the tour. We'll work with you to determine the best option for your group and answer any questions about scheduling, logistics, and the educational experience.

Every school and student group is a little different, so we ask educators to reach out here:

Your students may have driven past it. Walked past it. Or lived near it their entire lives.

Give them the opportunity to discover what was here before them.

You know what it is. Let your students discover What It Was.

We meet at Perry Harvey Park,
1000 E Harrison St, Tampa, FL 33602