The 5,500 acres tract of land that was to be known as Apollo Beach was first deeded to Paul Dickman in 1920 and used annually for farming and grazing pasture and considered uninhabitable. In the early 1950s, Dickman negotiated the sale of the land to three men from New York: Turner, Dean and Clark. They renamed the land “Tampa Beach” and construction began on the Flamingo Canal near U.S. 41 and proceeded to Fairway Blvd. In 1957 Francis Corr purchased the land from the N.Y. businessmen who ran out of money. Corr decided the area should be called “La Vida Beach”. Supposedly, in 1958, Corr’s wife Dorothy suggested a new name “Apollo Beach”. This was for the area’s greatest benefit – sunshine. Today Apollo Beach is a thriving waterfront community with year-round boating, fishing, and other water activities. The Big Bend Power Station provides power to the Tampa Bay Area and warm waters that attract the manatees and sting rays. The Big Bend Power Station and Manatee Viewing Center are both notable landmarks of Apollo Beach.