Gainesville, Florida

The U.S. Census Bureau estimated a 2006 population of 108,143.^[3] The Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which includes Alachua and Gilchrist counties, has a population of 243,985, according to 2006 Census Bureau estimates.^[7] The Gainesville MSA was ranked as the #1 place to live in the 2007 edition of Cities Ranked and Rated.^[8] Gainesville was also ranked as one of the "best places to live and play" in 2007 by National Geographic Adventure.^[9]

1 History
2 Geography and Climate
- 2.1 Climate
- 2.2 Cityscape
3 Demographics
4 Economy
5 Education
6 Transportation
7 Culture
8 Media
9 Points of interest
10 See also
11 References
12 External links

[edit] History

Gainesville, c. 1900.

Confederate Statue in downtown Gainesville

Gainesville's original inhabitants were the Timucua Indians. Spanish colonists began cattle ranching in the Payne's Prairie area using Timucua labor and the largest ranch became known as LaChua. Though the ranch was eventually destroyed by British raiders, it nevertheless gave its name to the Alachua band of the Seminole tribe who settled in the region in the 1700s under the leadership of the great chief Ahaya the Cowkeeper.

Gainesville was originally formed along the Florida Railroad Company's line stretching from Cedar Key to Fernandina Beach as part of a route eventually carrying cargo from New Orleans to New York. In 1854 Gainesville became the new Alachua County seat (moving from the more populated but inconveniently located Newnansville). The city is named for General Edmund P. Gaines, commander of U.S. Army troops in Florida during the Second Seminole War.

Gainesville was the scene of small-scale fighting in the Civil War. On February 14, 1864, a skirmish erupted when about 50 Union troops entered the city intending to capture two trains. A portion of the Second Florida Cavalry unsuccessfully attempted to repulse this raid and was itself defeated in a street battle . The raiding party was associated with a larger invasion of Florida that was defeated at the Battle of Olustee six days later. Later that year, the Battle of Gainesville took place on August 17, 1864. Three-hundred Union troops occupying the city were attacked by the Florida Cavalry. The Federals were driven out of town and suffered significant casualties.

Following the civil war, the city prospered as a major citrus growing center, with direct rail access to ports on the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. However, this prosperity ended when the great freezes of 1894 and 1899 destroyed the entire crops, and citrus growing moved permanently south to the Orlando area. Other attempts to replace this lost industry included phosphate mining, turpentine production and tung oil, each of which met with only moderate success.

Gainesville experienced many changes when the University of Florida was created by the Florida Legislature in 1905. Gainesville was chosen, beating out other cities who saw their colleges close, such as Lake City and Bartow. The city had the foresight to construct a modern municipal water, sewer and electric system, and was able to offer these services to a new university location for free. A site was selected at a location then considered about a mile west of town. The first classes were held at Buckman Hall in the fall of 1906.

Over the past century, the university has brought the town a youthful population, cultural opportunities, and world-class medical facilities. The sports drink Gatorade was invented in Gainesville as a means of refreshing the UF football team and UF still receives a share of the profits from the beverage. However, Gatorade's headquarters are now located in Chicago, Illinois.

In April 2003, Gainesville became known as the healthiest community in the United States when it achieved the first and only “Gold Well City” award given by the Wellness Councils of America (WELCOA)^[10]. Headed up by Gainesville Health & Fitness Centers, and with the support of Shands HealthCare and the Gainesville-area Chamber of Commerce, 21 businesses comprising 60 percent of the city’s workforce became involved in the “Gold Well City” effort. As of March 2008, Gainesville remained the only city in the country to reach the achievement.

[edit] Geography and Climate

Gainesville is located at 29°39'55" North, 82°20'10" West (29.665245, -82.336097),^[11]which is roughly the same latitude as Houston, Texas. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 49.1 square miles (127 km²), of which 48.2 square miles (125 km²) is land and 0.9 square miles (2 km²) is water. The total area is 1.87% water.

Gainesville is one of the southernmost cities in the United States where deciduous trees predominate, and has been recognized every year since 1982 as a "Tree City, USA". There are deciduous trees farther south, but they are not as abundant as they are from Alachua County northward. The city is also an important way station for automobile travelers, as it is located nearly midway between Atlanta and Miami, five hours from each.

Gainesville is the only city with more than 10,000 residents in either Alachua or Gilchrist County (the two counties in the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area), and it is surrounded by rural area, including the 21,000-acre (85 km²) wilderness of Paynes Prairie on its southern edge. The city is characterized by its medium size, semi-rural location (about 90 minutes driving time away from Jacksonville or Orlando), and is dominated by the presence of the University of Florida, the nation's third largest university.^[12] Gainesville is informally called "Hogtown" by many residents, after Hogtown Creek, which runs through the city and was the original name of a town nearby, which was eventually incorporated into the growing city.

[edit] Climate

Gainesville's climate is defined as humid subtropical. Due to its inland location, Gainesville experiences wide temperature fluctuation for Florida. During the summer season, roughly from May 15 to September 30, the city's climate is the same as the rest of the state, with frequent downpours and high humidity. Temperatures range from the low 70s at night to around 90 °F (32 °C) during the day on average.^[13] From mid-October through late April, however, the Gainesville area has a climate distinct from peninsular Florida with occasional freezing temperatures at night and sustained freezes occurring every few years. The all time record low of 10 °F (-12 °C) was reached on January 21, 1985,^[14] and the city was struck by a substantial snow and ice storm on Christmas Eve, 1989. In winter, highs average between 66 and 69 °F (19–21 °C), and lows average between 42 and 45 °F (6–7 °C).^[13] In average winters, Gainesville will see temperatures drop below 30 °F (-1 °C). ^[15] In Gainesville, cold temperatures are almost always accompanied by clear skies and high pressure systems; snow is therefore rare.

The city's flora and fauna are also more distinct from coastal regions of the state, and include many deciduous species, such as dogwood, maple, hickory and sweet gum, alongside palm trees, live oaks, and other evergreens. Due to this, the city enjoys brief periods of fall color in late November and December, and a noticeable and prolonged spring from late February through early April. This is a generally pleasant period, as colorful blooms of azalea and redbud complement a cloudless blue sky, for this is also the period of low precipitation and lowest humidity. The city averages 48.36 inches (1,228 mm) of precipitation per year. Summer is the wettest season, with 19.51 inches (496 mm), while fall is the driest season, with only 9.04 inches (230 mm) of precipitation.^[13]

Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures
Rec High °F	86	91	91	95	99	103	101	100	97	95	89	86
Norm High °F	67	69	75	80	87	91	91	91	89	82	75	69
Norm Low °F	44	46	51	56	63	70	72	71	69	61	53	46
Rec Low °F	10	18	22	29	44	48	61	62	49	34	20	12
Precip (in)	4.13	3.90	3.94	3.03	3.70	5.87	5.34	6.69	5.33	1.89	2.58	3.05
^[16]

[edit] Cityscape

Alachua County Courthouse Family and Civil Justice Center

Gainesville's Downtown

Hippodrome State Theater

The North Florida area in which Gainesville is located is known to natives as the "end of the South." This is most likely due to the fact that south of Alachua County, starting somewhere north of Orlando, there are fewer native Floridians (and effectively native Southerners) and the sprawling development that defines South and Central Florida begins.

Suburban sprawl has, as of late, become a concern for the city commissioners. However, the "New Urbanization" plan to gentrify the area between historic Downtown and the University of Florida may slow the growth of suburban sectors and spark a migration toward upper-level apartments in the inner city. The area immediately north of the University of Florida is also seeing active redevelopment.

The east side of Gainesville houses the majority of the African-American community within the city, while the west side consists of the mainly white student and resident population. There are also large-scale planned communities on the far west side, most notably Haile Plantation, which was built on the site of a former plantation.

The destruction of the city's landmark Victorian courthouse in the 1960s, which some considered unnecessary, brought the idea of historic preservation to the attention of the community. The bland county building which replaced the grand courthouse became known to some locals as the "air conditioner." Additional destruction of other historic buildings in the downtown followed, diminishing the city's historic charm. Only a small handful of older buildings are left, like the Hippodrome State Theater, at one time a federal building. After many years of little progress, revitalization of the city's core has picked up, and many parking lots and underutilized buildings are being replaced with infill development and near-campus housing which blend in with existing historic structures. There is talk of rebuilding a replica of the old courthouse on a parking lot one block from the original location.

Helping in this effort are the number of areas and buildings which have been added to the National Register of Historic Places. Dozens of examples of restored Victorian and Queen Anne style residences constructed in the city's agricultural heyday of the 1880s and 1890s can be found in the following districts:

Historic structures on the Register in and around downtown are:

Bailey Plantation House (1854)
Matheson Center Home (1867)
Thomas Hotel (1928)
The Old Post Office (now the Hippodrome State Theatre) (1913)
Masonic Temple (1913)
Seagle Building (1937), thirteen stories, downtown's only "skyscraper."
Baird Hardware Company Warehouse (1910)
Cox Furniture Store (1887)
Cox Furniture Warehouse (c. 1890)
Epworth Hall (1884)
Old Gainesville Depot (1850s)
Mary Phifer McKenzie House (1895)
Star Garage (1903)

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there are 95,447 people living within the city limits, 37,279 households, and 18,341 families residing in the city. The population of the metropolitan area as of the census^[4] of 2000 was 217,955. The population density is 1,981.0/mi² (764.9/km²). There are 40,105 housing units at an average density of 832.4/mi² (321.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city is 68.36% White, 23.24% African American, 0.25% Native American, 4.49% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.46% from other races, and 2.18% from two or more races. 6.40% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 37,279 households out of which 22.3% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.5% are married couples living together, 13.3% have a female householder with no husband present, and 50.8% are non-families. 32.6% of all households are made up of individuals and 7.9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.25 and the average family size is 2.90.

In the city the population is spread out with 17.8% under the age of 18, 29.4% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 16.4% from 45 to 64, and 9.8% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 26 years. For every 100 females there are 95.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 94.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $28,164, and the median income for a family is $44,263. Males have a median income of $31,090 versus $25,653 for females. The per capita income for the city is $16,779. 26.7% of the population and 15.3% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 24.7% of those under the age of 18 and 9.5% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line, making Gainesville one of the poorest cities with a large public university.^[17]

[edit] Economy

Numerous guides such as the 2004 book Cities Ranked and Rated: More than 400 Metropolitan Areas Evaluated in the U.S. and Canada have mentioned Gainesville's low cost of living. The restaurants near the University of Florida also tend to be inexpensive. The property taxes are high to offset the cost of the university, as the university's land is tax-exempt. However, the median home cost remains slightly below the national average, and Gainesville residents, like all Floridians, do not pay state income taxes.

This city's job market scored only 6 points out of a possible 100 in the Cities Ranked and Rated guide, as the downside to the low cost of living is an extremely weak local job market that is oversupplied with college-educated residents. The University of Florida, the Shands Healthcare system (a private-public-university partnership), and the city government are the only major employers for the city. The median income in Gainesville is slightly below the U.S. average.

[edit] Education

All of the Gainesville urban area is served by the School Board of Alachua County, which has some 75 different institutions in the county, most of which are in the Gainesville area. Gainesville is also home to the University of Florida and Santa Fe Community College. The University of Florida is a major financial boost to the community, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional revenues are created by the athletic events that occur at UF, including SEC football games.

Other educational institutions include: City College/Gainesville Campus, P.K. Yonge Developmental Research School, Gainesville High School, Eastside High School, Buchholz High School,Oak Hall School, Santa Fe High School and Saint Francis Catholic High School.

The Alachua County Library District provides public library service to a county-wide population of approximately 190,655. The Library District has reciprocal borrowing agreements with the surrounding counties of Baker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Lafayette, Levy, Marion, Putnam and Union. These agreements are designed to facilitate access to the most conveniently located library facility regardless of an individual's county of residence.

[edit] Transportation

Heading east on University Avenue, approaching 13th Street (US 441) intersection

Gainesville has an extensive road system, which is served by Interstate 75, and several Florida State Routes, including State routes 20, 24, and 26, among others. Gainesville is also served by US 441 and nearby US 301, which gives a direct route to Jacksonville, Ocala, and Orlando.

The city's streets are set up on a grid system with four quadrants (NW, NE, SW and SE). All streets are numbered, except for a few major thoroughfares which are often named for the towns to which they lead (such as Waldo Road (SR 24), Hawthorne Road (SR 20), Williston Road (SR 121), Archer Road (also SR 24) and Newberry Road (SR 26). Daily Amtrak service to and from Waldo, 12 miles (19 km) NE of the city, has been replaced with Amtrak shuttle buses which re-connect with the rail system further south. Full Amtrak service is available at Palatka, 32 miles (51 km) to the east.

In addition to its extensive road network, Gainesville is also served by Gainesville Regional Transit System, or RTS, which is the fourth largest mass transit system in the state. The area is also served by Gainesville Regional Airport in the northeast part of the city, with daily service to Miami, Tampa, Atlanta, and Charlotte.

[edit] Culture

This section needs additional citations for verification.
Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2007)

Gainesville has a fairly well-known punk and ska music scene and has spawned a number of bands including Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Less Than Jake, The Draft (previously Hot Water Music), The Know How, Against Me!, Sister Hazel, I Hate Myself, and For Squirrels. It is also the location of the independent label No Idea Records and the annual rock festival known as The Fest, which is co-operated by No Idea. Fellow punk label Plan It X Records formerly of Bloomington, Indiana, also relocated to Gainesville in 2006. Between 1987 and 1992 Gainesville was a big rock scene, with Hollywood star River Phoenix having the local Hardback Cafe as his main base. Together with N-Dolphin, Tone Unknown and many others, River's band Aleka's Attic was a constant feature of the rock scene.

Gainesville's reputation as an independent music mecca can be traced back to October 1984 when a local music video station was brought on the air. The station was called TV-69, broadcast on UHF 69 and was owned by Cozzin Communications. The channel drew a lot of local media attention thanks in part to its promotion by famous comedian Bill Cosby, who was part-owner of that station when it started. TV-69 featured many videos by punk and indy-label bands and even had several locally produced videos ("Clone Love" by a local parody band, and a Dinosaur Jr song).

Cultural facilities include the Florida Museum of Natural History, Harn Museum of Art, the Hippodrome State Theatre, Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, and The Civic Media Center. Smaller theaters include the Acrosstown Repertory Theatre (ART) and the Gainesville Community Playhouse (GCP). GCP is the oldest community theater group in Florida; in 2006, it christened a new theater building.

The city was the center of the Gainesville Eight case in the 1970s, and is known to some as the Berkeley of the South. This nickname was probably afforded to Gainesville because of the presence of a relatively prestigious university, and the liberal tendencies of its voting base. All of the counties surrounding Alachua County vote heavily Republican, while Gainesville votes strongly Democratic. In the 2000 election there was a 15% gap in votes in Alachua county between Gore and Bush, while Nader received under 4%. This liberal lean is attributed to the presence of the University in tandem with the presence of a large black community that consistently votes Democratic.

The National Coalition for the Homeless cited Gainesville in 2004 as the 5th meanest city for their criminalization of homelessness.^[18] The city of Gainesville has a number of ordinances that target the homeless, including an anti-panhandling measure, restrictions on groups that give free meals, and a measure making it illegal to sleep outside on public property. In response, the Gainesville City Commission wrote a 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness.^[19]

Gainesville is renowned in the recreational drug culture for "Gainesville Green", a particularly potent strain of marijuana. Orange and Blue magazine published a full-length article in Fall of 2003 about the history of Gainesville Green and the local marijuana culture in general.^[20] In the mid-1990s there were several Gainesville Hemp Festivals which took place outside of the Alachua county courthouse.

[edit] Media

[edit] Television

See also: List of television stations in Florida

Gainesville is the 162nd-largest television market in the nation, as measured by Nielsen Media Research.^[21] Broadcast television stations in the Gainesville market consist of WCJB, an ABC affiliate in Gainesville, WGFL, a CBS affiliate broadcasting from High Springs, WOGX, a FOX affiliate from Ocala, and WUFT, the PBS station affiliated with the University of Florida in Gainesville. There is no NBC station broadcasting in the Gainesville market; local cable and satellite television services provide Orlando's WESH for NBC coverage.

[edit] Radio

See also: List of radio stations in Florida

Arbitron ranks the Gainesville-Ocala market as the nation's 83rd-largest.^[22] Thirteen radio stations are licensed to operate in the city of Gainesville—five AM stations, six commercial FM stations, and two low-power non-commercial FM stations. Three of the stations (WRUF-AM, WRUF-FM, and WUFT-FM) are operated by broadcasting students at the University of Florida. WUFT-FM is the city's NPR member station, while the WRUF stations are operated as commercial stations.

[edit] Print

Gainesville is served by the following Newspapers:

The Gainesville Sun
The Independent Florida Alligator
Satellite Magazine
The Gainesville Iguana

[edit] Points of interest

Boardwalk at The Devil's Millhopper

Florida Museum of Natural History (including the Butterfly Rainforest exhibit)
Harn Museum of Art
Kanapaha Botanical Gardens
The Devil's Millhopper
Payne's Prairie
Civic Media Center
San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park
Lake Alice
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at Florida Field
Stephen C. O'Connell Center
Newnan's Lake
Santa Fe Community College Teaching Zoo

[edit] See also

[edit] References

^ Florida by Place. Population, Housing, Area, and Density: 2000. US Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-07-21.
^ Gainesville, Florida. Weather Underground. Retrieved on 2007-07-22.
^ ^a ^b Annual Estimates of the population for the Incorporated Places of Florida (XLS). US Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-09-06.
^ ^a ^b ^c American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ Find a County. National Association of Counties. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ Annual Estimates of the Population of Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2006 (XLS). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-07-21.
^ Tugend, Alina. "The Guy Who Picks the Best Places to Live", The New York Times, 6 May 2007. Retrieved on 2007-07-22.
^ "The Best Places to Live + Play: Cities", National Geographic. Retrieved on 2008-04-16.
^ Gainesville Goes Gold!. The Wellness Councils of America (May 2003). Retrieved on 2008-04-21.
^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ Largest Enrollments in Fall 2006 (PDF). University of Florida. Retrieved on 2007-09-03.
^ ^a ^b ^c Monthly Averages for Gainesville, FL. The Weather Channel. Retrieved on 2007-07-22.
^ Gainesville Records for January]. National Weather Service. Retrieved on 2007-07-21.
^ USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, Southeast US. The United States National Arboretum, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved on 2007-07-21.
^ Monthly Averages for Gainesville, FL (32601). The Weather Channel. Retrieved on 2007-08-04.
^ Peer Cities (PDF). City of Gainesville, Economic Development Department (23 August 2004).
^ Illegal to be Homeless. National Coalition for the Homeless (November 2004). Retrieved on 2007-07-22.
^ Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness (PDF). Alachua County Commission. Retrieved on 2007-07-22.
^ Battey, Brandon (Fall 2003). "Gainesville Green isn't just a color". Orange and Blue".
^ Local Television Market Universe Estimates. The Nielsen Company. Retrieved on 6 September 2007.
^ Market Ranks and Schedule. Arbitron, Inc.. Retrieved on 2007-09-06.

History of Gainesville, Florida, 1854–1979. By Charles H. Hildreth and Merlin G. Cox. published by the Alachua County Historical Society, 1981. ISBN 0-9672788-4-8

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Gainesville, Florida

City of Gainesville - official site
Visit Gainesville - official tourism site
Gainesville Area Chamber of Commerce - official site
University of Florida Digital Collections including vast materials from and about Gainesville, FL

Gainesville, Florida is at coordinates 29°39′55″N 82°20′10″W / 29.665245, -82.336097 (Gainesville, Florida)Coordinates: 29°39′55″N 82°20′10″W / 29.665245, -82.336097 (Gainesville, Florida)

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Alachua County, Florida

County seat: Gainesville

Cities	Alachua \| Archer \| Gainesville \| Hawthorne \| High Springs \| Newberry \| Waldo

Towns	La Crosse \| Micanopy

Unincorporated communities	Cross Creek \| Evinston \| Haile Plantation \| Jonesville \| Rochelle \| Windsor