Hialeah, Florida

Hialeah is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 226,419. As of 2004, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau is 224,522,^[3] making it the fifth largest city in the state. Hialeah is part of the Miami metropolitan area and the Greater South Florida metropolitan area.

The city's name is most commonly attributed to Muskogee origin, "Haiyakpo" (prairie) and "hili" (pretty) combining in "Hialeah" to mean "pretty prairie". Alternatively, the word is of Seminole origin meaning "Upland Prairie". The city is located upon a large prairie between Biscayne Bay and the Everglades.

Hialeah is a large city with a well established cultural character. A diverse population from all over Latin America and the Caribbean. A working class city, with quiet, safe, suburban neighborhoods and bustling gritty commercial and industrial sectors. The city has been well known for its Cuban community since the late 60's and early 70's. Today the city is more diverse and known for its multi-cultural population from not only Cuba but all over the Caribbean, north and south America, and other smaller communities from around the world.

In 2007 Hialeah was named one of the most Livable Suburbs in the nation by Forbes.^[4]^[5]

[edit] Geography

Hialeah is located at 25°51′38″N, 80°17′38″W (25.860474, -80.293971).^[6]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 19.7 mi² (51.1 km²). 19.2 mi² (49.8 km²) of it is land and 0.5 mi² (1.3 km²) of it (2.53%) is water.

[edit] History

Downtown Hialeah in 1923

The Seminole interpretation of its name, "High Prairie", evokes a picture of the grassy plains used by the native Indians coming from the everglades to dock their canoes and display their wares for the new comers of Miami. This "high prairie" caught the eye of pioneer aviator Glenn Curtiss and Missouri cattleman James H. Bright who saw its great potential in 1921.^[7]^[8]

In the early "Roaring 20’s", Hialeah could have been considered a party city. Entertainment was plentiful. Sporting included the Spanish sport of jai-alai and greyhound racing, and media included silent movies like D.W. Griffith’s The White Rose which was made at the Miami Movie Studios located in Hialeah. Although the great hurricane of 1926 brought to an end many things, it could not quench the spirit of those who knew what Hialeah could be.^[7]^[8]

Group of tour buses sponsored by real estate developers in Hialeah in 1921.

In the years since its incorporation in 1925, many historical events and people have been linked with Hialeah. The opening of Hialeah Park in 1925 (which was nicknamed the "Grand Dame") as a horse track received more coverage in the Miami media than any other sporting event in the history of Miami up to that time and since then there have been countless horseracing histories played out at the world famous 220-acre (0.89 km²) park.^[7] It opened as one of the most grand of thoroughbred horse racing parks with its majestic Mediterranean style architecture and was considered the Jewel of Hialeah at the time.^[8]^[9]

The Park’s grandeur has attracted millions, included among them are names known around the world such as; the Kennedy family, Harry Truman, General Omar Bradley, Winston Churchill, and J.P. Morgan. Hialeah Park also holds the dual distinction of being an Audubon Bird Sanctuary due to its famous pink flamingoes and being listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The famous aviatrix Amelia Earhart in 1937 said her final good-byes to the continental U.S. from Hialeah as she left on her ill-fated flight around the world in 1937.^[7]^[8]

Intersection of Palm Avenue and Okeechobee Road in the 1920's

It was once envisioned as a playground for the rich, but Cuban exiles, fleeing Fidel Castro's 1959 revolution, finished the work started by World War II Veterans and city planners and turned it into a working-class community. Hialeah historian Fernandez-Kelly explained "It became an affordable Eden." She further describes the city as "...a place where different groups have left their imprint while trying to create a sample of what life should be like." Several waves of Cuban exiles, beginning right after Castro's takeover in 1959 and continuing through to the Freedom Flights from 1965-1973, the Mariel boatlift in 1980, and the "balseros" or boat people of the late 1990s, have created the most economically successful immigrant enclave in U.S. history as Hialeah is the only American industrial city that continues to grow.^[9]

From a population of 1,500 in 1925, Hialeah has grown at a rate faster than most of the ten largest cities in the State of Florida since the 1960’s and holds the rank of Florida’s fifth-largest city, with more than 236,000 residents. The city is also one of the largest employers in Dade County. Predominantly Hispanic, Hialeah residents have assimilated their cultural heritage and traditions into a hard-working, diverse community proud of its ethnicity, as well as its family oriented neighborhoods.^[7]^[8]

[edit] Demographics

Population History
1950	19,676
1960	66,972
1970	102,452
1980	145,254
1990	188,004
2000	226,419

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 226,419 people, 70,704 households, and 57,482 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,543.7/km² (11,767.3/mi²). There were 72,142 housing units at an average density of 1,447.7/km² (3,749.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.01% White (8.1% were Non-Hispanic White,)^[10] 2.41% African American, 0.13% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 5.47% from other races, and 3.55% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 85.17% of the population.

There were 70,704 households out of which 36.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.4% were married couples living together, 17.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.7% were non-families. 14.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.15 and the average family size was 3.39.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.0% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $29,492, and the median income for a family was $31,621. Males had a median income of $23,133 versus $17,886 for females. The per capita income for the city was $12,402. About 16.0% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.2% of those under age 18 and 22.4% of those age 65 or over.

As of 2000, Hialeah had the second highest percentage of Cuban and Cuban American residents in the US, with 62.12% of the US populace (with Westchester, Florida at 65.69%, the highest in the US.)^[11] It had the forty-third highest percentage of Colombian and Colombian American residents in the US, at 3.16% of the city's population,^[12] and the eighty-fifth highest percentage of Dominican residents in the US, at 1.81% of the it's population.^[13] It also had the thirty-eighth highest percentage of Hondurans in the US, at 1.15%,^[14] while it had the eighth highest percentage of Nicaraguans, at 4.07% of all residents.^[15]

Hialeah ranks #2 (nearby Hialeah Gardens ranks as #1) in the list of cities in the United States where Spanish is most spoken. As of 2000, speakers of Spanish as a first language accounted for 92.14%, while English made up 7.37% of the population. All other languages spoken were below 1% of the population.^[16]

Other large pressence in its population are other Central American countries and South American countries as well. Hialeah has a historicaly Black population in neigborhoods like Seminola and the eastern edge of the city. Asians also have a small but growing presence in the city along with other smaller present ethnicities from around the world.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Transportation

"All Ways Lead to Hialeah" was one of the city’s first slogans. At the time, Glenn Curtiss and James Bright could not have imagined the important link in the transportation chain provided by Hialeah’s location. Sitting in the heart of northwest Dade, Hialeah has access to every major thoroughfare linked by:

I-75
the Palmetto
Florida Turnpike
US 27
Hialeah also provides direct economical access to both Opa-Locka Airport and Miami International Airport
Amtrak
Tri-Rail
Metro-Rail 3 stations located in the city^[7]

[edit] Major Thoroughfares

These are the major thoroughfares for Hialeah, Florida. In parenthesis are the names or numbers for the thoroughfares these streets may coincide with in Miami-Dade County, as Hialeah has its own numbering and naming system for streets.

[edit] North

68 St
60 St
49 St (NW 103rd Street)
44 St
37 St
33 St
29 St
25 St (NW 79th Street)
21 St (NW 74th Street)

[edit] East

E 8 Ave (42nd Ave, Le Jeune Road)
E 4 Ave
Palm Avenue (separates East Hialeah from West Hialeah)

[edit] West

Palm Avenue (separates East Hialeah from West Hialeah)
W 4 Av (57th Ave, Red Road)
W 8 Av
W 12 Av (67th Ave, Ludlam Road)
W 16 Av
W 28 Av (Galloway Road)

[edit] South

Okeechobee Road (US 27)
Hialeah Drive (NW 54th Street, separates South Hialeah from North Hialeah)
9 St

[edit] Education

Miami-Dade County Public Schools serves Hialeah. Two high schools serving the Hialeah community, Mater Academy Charter High School and Miami Lakes Educational Center, were named as "Silver" award winners in U.S. News & World Report's "Best High Schools 2008 Search".^[17]

[edit] High schools

[edit] Middle schools

Henry H Filer Middle School
Hialeah Middle School
Jose Marti Middle School
Palm Springs Middle School

[edit] Elementary schools

Amelia Earhart Elementary School
Ben Sheppard Elementary School
Ernest R Graham Elementary
Flamingo Elementary Middle School
Hialeah Elementary School
J.W Johnson Elementary School
James H Bright Elementary School
John G Dupuis Elementary School
Mae M Walters Elementary School
Mater Academy Charter Elementary School
Meadowlane Elementary School
North Twin Lakes Elementary School
Palm Lakes Elementary School
Palm Springs North Elementary School
South Hialeah Elementary School
Twin Lakes Elementary School

[edit] K-8 centers

M.A. Milam K-8 Center

[edit] Charter schools

[edit] Private schools

Edison Private School

[edit] Baptist

Dade Christian School - the largest private school in the area (unincorporated Miami-Dade with a Hialeah zip code).^[18] It is a ministry of New Testament Baptist Church.

[edit] Catholic

[edit] Secondary

Monsignor Edward Pace High School - the main Catholic high school serving the area (although it is technically located in adjoining Opa Locka). Alumni include actress Catherine Keener and baseball pitcher Alex Fernandez.

[edit] Primary

St. John the Apostle School^[19] serves mainly southern and south-central Hialeah
Immaculate Conception School^[20] serves mainly north-central and northern Hialeah

[edit] Colleges

Miami-Dade College Hialeah Campus^[21] has served as the city's academic center since 1980. Besides its academic mission, the campus also sponsors numerous cultural and community events.

[edit] Religion

Hialeah is the headquarters of the Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye, a Santería church. Hialeah contains the largest Santero Community outside of Cuba. A city ordinance restricting the Santería practice of animal sacrifice was ruled unconstitutional in Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah. Roman Catholicism is overwhelmingly the majority religion of city residents.

Please help improve this section by expanding it.
Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.

[edit] Facts

Telemundo, The second largest Spanish language TV network is headquartered in Hialeah and has several studios where its programming is taped along with its talk shows, news program, and telenovelas.
Hialeah is also ranked as the most dense city in the United States without a skyscraper. The city's tallest building is 14 floors and is only considered a mid-rise building.

[edit] Famous residents

Find more about Hialeah on Wikipedia's sister projects:
	Dictionary definitions
	Textbooks
	Quotations
	Source texts
	Images and media
	News stories
	Learning resources

Bobby Allison, former NASCAR driver
Jimmy Brown, former tennis player
John Cangelosi, former Major League Outfielder
Harry Wayne Casey, KC of KC and the Sunshine Band
Bucky Dent, former Major League Baseball player
Red Farmer, former NASCAR driver
Alex Fernandez, former Major League Baseball pitcher
Ted Hendricks, former National Football League star
Angel Hernandez, Major League Baseball umpire
Lauryn Hill, singer and former member of The Fugees
Charlie Hough, former Major League Baseball star
Catherine Keener, actress
Ken Mattingly, astronaut
Rick Sanchez, CNN news reporter and former news reporter for WSVN
Jon Secada, singer/song writer
Pedro Zamora, AIDS activist and cast member from The Real World: San Francisco

[edit] References

^ ^a ^b 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.
^ http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/tables/SUB-EST2004-04-12.xls
^ In Pictures: Most Livable Metro-Area Suburbs - Forbes.com
^ Most Livable Metro-Area Suburbs - Forbes.com
^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Hialeah History
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Hialeah History at Hello Hialeah
^ ^a ^b Hialeah Historian
^ Demographics of Hialeah, FL. MuniNetGuide.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-30.
^ Ancestry Map of Cuban Communities. Epodunk.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-30.
^ Ancestry Map of Colombian Communities. Epodunk.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-30.
^ Ancestry Map of Dominican Communities. Epodunk.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-30.
^ Ancestry Map of Honduran Communities. Epodunk.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-30.
^ Ancestry Map of Nicaraguan Communities. Epodunk.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-30.
^ MLA Data Center Results of Hialeah, FL. Modern Language Association. Retrieved on 2007-10-30.
^ Best High Schools 2008 Search
^ Miami Education and Schools
^ Home
^ ICS Miami
^ MDC Hialeah Campus

[edit] External links

City of Hialeah official site

Hialeah, Florida is at coordinates 25°51′38″N 80°17′38″W / 25.860474, -80.293971 (Hialeah, Florida)Coordinates: 25°51′38″N 80°17′38″W / 25.860474, -80.293971 (Hialeah, Florida)

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Miami-Dade County, Florida

County seat: Miami

Cities	Aventura \| Coral Gables \| Doral \| Florida City \| Hialeah \| Hialeah Gardens \| Homestead \| Islandia \| Miami \| Miami Beach \| Miami Gardens \| Miami Springs \| North Bay Village \| North Miami \| North Miami Beach \| Opa-locka \| South Miami \| Sunny Isles Beach \| Sweetwater \| West Miami

Towns	Bay Harbor Islands \| Cutler Bay \| Golden Beach \| Medley \| Miami Lakes \| Surfside

Villages	Bal Harbour \| Biscayne Park \| El Portal \| Indian Creek \| Key Biscayne \| Miami Shores \| Palmetto Bay \| Pinecrest \| Virginia Gardens

CDPs	Brownsville \| Coral Terrace \| Country Club \| Country Walk \| Fisher Island \| Fountainbleau \| Gladeview \| Glenvar Heights \| Golden Glades \| Goulds \| Homestead Base \| Ives Estates \| Kendale Lakes \| Kendall \| Kendall West \| Lakes by the Bay \| Leisure City \| Naranja \| Ojus \| Olympia Heights \| Palm Springs North \| Palmetto Estates \| Pinewood \| Princeton \| Richmond Heights \| Richmond West \| South Miami Heights \| Sunset \| Tamiami \| The Crossings \| The Hammocks \| Three Lakes \| University Park \| West Little River \| West Perrine \| Westchester \| Westview \| Westwood Lakes

Former CDPs	Miami: Allapattah \| Bay Point Estates \| Brickell \| Coconut Grove \| Dinner Key \| Liberty City \| Little Havana \| Little Haiti \| Overtown Miami Gardens: Andover \| Bunche Park \| Carol City \| Lake Lucerne \| Norland \| Opa-locka North \| Scott Lake Palmetto Bay: Cutler \| East Perrine

Communities	Fairlawn \| West Kendall

v • d • e South Florida metropolitan area
Counties	Miami-Dade County \| Broward County \| Palm Beach County
200,000–500,000	Miami^† \| Hialeah
100,000–200,000	Fort Lauderdale^† \| Pembroke Pines \| Hollywood \| Coral Springs \| West Palm Beach^† \| Miramar \| Miami Gardens \| Pompano Beach
50,000–100,000	Sunrise \| Miami Beach \| Boca Raton \| Plantation \| Davie \| Kendall \| Deerfield Beach \| Boynton Beach \| Delray Beach \| Weston \| Fountainbleau \| Lauderhill \| Tamarac \| North Miami \| Kendale Lakes \| Wellington \| Margate \| Tamiami \| Jupiter
10,000–50,000	Aventura \| Belle Glade \| Boca Del Mar \| Brownsville \| Coconut Creek \| Cooper City \| Coral Gables \| Coral Terrace \| Country Club \| Country Walk \| Dania Beach \| Doral \| Gladeview \| Glenvar Heights \| Greenacres \| Hallandale Beach \| Hamptons at Boca Raton \| Homestead \| Ives Estates \| Kendall West \| Key Biscayne \| Kings Point \| Lake Worth \| Lake Worth Corridor \| Lauderdale Lakes \| Leisure City \| Lighthouse Point \| Miami Lakes \| Miami Springs \| North Lauderdale \| North Palm Beach \| Oakland Park \|Olympia Heights \| Opa-Locka \| Ojus \| Palm Beach Gardens \| Palmetto Bay \| Palm Springs \|Palmetto Estates \| Parkland \| Pinecrest \| Pinewood \| Princeton \| Richmond West \| Riviera Beach \| Royal Palm Beach \| Sandalfoot Cove \| South Miami \| South Miami Heights \| Sunny Isles Beach \| Sunset \| Sweetwater \| The Crossings \| The Hammocks \| University Park \| Vero Beach \| West Little River \| Westchester \| West Park, Florida \| Westwood Lakes \| Wilton Manors
Sports	Florida Marlins (baseball) \| Miami Heat (basketball) \| Miami Dolphins (football) \| Florida Panthers (ice hockey)
Airports	Miami International Airport (Miami-Dade) \| Kendall-Tamiami Executive Airport (Miami-Dade) \| Opa-locka Airport (Miami-Dade) \| Opa-locka Executive Airport (Miami-Dade) \| Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (Broward) \| Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport (Broward) \| Pompano Beach Airpark (Broward) \| Palm Beach International Airport (Palm Beach) \| Boca Raton Airport (Palm Beach) \| Palm Beach County Park Airport (Palm Beach) \| North Palm Beach County Airport (Palm Beach)
† - County Seat A list of cities under 10,000 is available here.