YBOR CITY / TAMPA, FL – J. C. Newman Cigar Co. got its start in 1895 and is the oldest family-owned premium cigar maker in the U.S. and the last cigar factory in the historic Ybor City neighbourhood, also known as Cigar City, in Tampa, FL.
There were hundreds of cigar factories during Tampa’s cigar boom that started with one man, a visionary named Vicente Martinez Ybor that came to Tampa in 1885 in search of land to build a cigar factory.
Vicente ended up purchasing 40 acres of undeveloped land just outside of Tampa for $5000, his first plot of land among many. He built his cigar factory in 1886, the biggest in the world for its time.
Other cigar producers soon followed creating a cigar boon that goes unmatched to this day. Vicente Ybor’s humble endeavours created a city that was later coined:
The Cigar Capitol of the World
Over the years, cigar factories ended up closing their doors due to either going out of business or moving to cheaper places such as Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic.
The Newman facility is the last cigar factory in Ybor with about 130 employees that produce around 80,000 cigars a day. These hand-and-machine-made cigars get distributed and sold around the globe in more than 80 countries.
The factory has a history museum that represents the gilded age of cigar manufacturing to present times on the first floor. The have scheduled tours and self guided tours as well.
The in-house store sells cigars from around $5 on up depending on which brand and quality you choose.
There is a smalller cigar company called Tabanero Cigars of Ybor but it’s not considered a factory since it only produces around 500 cigars per day. However, it has been said that the hand-made cigars are are as good as Cuban cigars.
Cigar Brands produced by J.C. Newman
Home of Cuesta-Rey Cigars
Diamond Crown, Diamond Crown Maximus, Diamond Crown Julius Caeser, La Unica, Rigoletto, Arturo Fuente
Honduran Cigars
Don Jose, Trader Jacks
Nicaraguan Cigars
El Baton, Brick House, Alcazar, Quorum, Quorum Shade, Perdomo, Perla Del Mar
United States Cigars
Rigoletto, Tampa Trolleys, Factory Throwouts
Read more history at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._C._Newman_Cigar_Company
J C Newman Cigar Co
2701 N 16th St, Tampa, FL 33605
(813) 248-2124
savecigarcity.com | Google Maps
