On May 15, 1819, the first U.S. Consular Agent was appointed to Florence. His name was James Ombrosi and he was tasked under mandate from the U.S. Consulate at Livorno. Nearly 200 years on, the U.S. Mission in Italy is gearing up to celebrate this special anniversary of American diplomatic presence in Florence in 2019. 

As the first event in the lead-up to the 200th anniversary, the U.S. Consulate General Florence held a competition for students called the #Together200 Photo Challenge. Students from nine different U.S. universities participated in the contest, submitting dozens of photos highlighting their appreciation of and contributions to the communities in Tuscany, Emilia-Romagna and San Marino in which they live and study.