Editing Riverview, Florida (section)

== History ==
Riverview was founded in 1885 on the [[Alafia River]]'s north shore. However, in the 1830s settlers arrived on the south side of the river at an area formerly known as [[Peru, Florida|Peru]] (pronounced "Pe-Roo") because ''Peru'' was an indigenous name for "straight part of the river". Peru existed for nearly 100 years and was one of the oldest settlements in central Florida.<ref>''Sunland Tribune: Journal of the Tampa Historical Society'', November 1992</ref> It wasn't until the 1940s that Riverview absorbed Peru, and now claims the south side of the Alafia River. The Peruvian Mining Company, which mined [[phosphate]] from the Alafia, took its name from the settlement. The term "Alafia" is translated as "River of Fire" due to the [[phosphorus]] on the early riverbottom glowing at night.

The area's first school was built in 1893, inside the Peru Baptist Church. The area called Riverview began to be populated on the north side of the river. The two communities were connected by a river ferry. Soon after, a bridge was constructed from sections of a bridge that once spanned the [[Hillsborough River (Florida)|Hillsborough River]] in downtown Tampa. The post office periodically was moved from the Riverview side to the Peru side of the river and back, causing much tension. The Riverview name eventually came into usage in the early 1940s by the post office to relieve just such confusion with the mail.  Peru has disappeared from all but the earliest maps. Some of Peru's or Riverview's settlers include the Barnes, Bourgees, Boyettes, Brandons, Buzbees, Hackneys, Hancocks, Hartleys, Mansfields, Moodys, Simmons, Scotts, Symmes, Topes, Thompsons, Whitts, and the Yeomans. The area founded by the Boyette family is now the community of [[Boyette, Florida|Boyette]], located in the eastern part of the Riverview CDP.

The first commercial [[poultry farm]] in Florida was established by Emmet and Myrtle Tope in Riverview in 1921.

In 2004, an estimated {{convert|65|e6gal|e6l}} of acidic process water was released from the Mosaic Fertilizer storage containment system into Archie Creek Canal, [[Hillsborough Bay (Florida)|Hillsborough Bay]], and surrounding wetlands, during [[Hurricane Frances]]. The spill harmed [[seagrass]] beds and wetland habitats, and killed thousands of fish, crabs, and bottom-dwelling organisms. The [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration|NOAA]] developed restoration options, and in 2013 and 2014, Mosaic implemented a restoration plan.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mosaic {{!}} Hazardous Waste {{!}} Damage Assessment, Remediation, and Restoration Program |url=https://darrp.noaa.gov/hazardous-waste/mosaic |access-date=2025-03-11 |website=darrp.noaa.gov}}</ref>