The first trees were cleared for streets in Ybor City by workers under the direction of civil engineer Gavino Gutierrez. The initial 40 acre tract of land was purchased by cigar manufacturer Vicente Martinez Ybor, with help from the Tampa Board of Trade who was looking to expand his operation outside of Key West. Thousands of immigrants from Cuba, Spain and Italy flocked to Ybor over the next few decades working in the cigar industry, until the decline of the industry in the 1920s and 1930s.