Kissimmee, Florida

Kissimmee is a city in Osceola County, Florida, United States. As of 2006, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 60,894. It is the county seat of Osceola County.^[6] Kissimmee is a Principal City of the Orlando-Kissimmee, Florida, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which the census bureau estimated had a 2007 population of 2,032,496.^[7]

1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Transportation
5 Sports
6 Recreation
7 Education
8 References
9 External links

[edit] History

Kissimmee (pronounced /kɪˈsɪmi/, with the accent on the second syllable) is on the northwest shore of Lake Tohopekaliga (locally called "Lake Toho", "West Lake Toho" or simply "West Lake"). It was founded in the mid-19th century as Allendale. The name was changed when the city was incorporated in 1883. The growth of Kissimmee can be credited to Philadelphian Hamilton Disston, who based his two-million acre drainage operation out of the small town. Disston contracted with the financially wobbly state of Florida to drain its southern lands. Disston would own half of all the land he successfully drained. This deal made Disston the largest single landowner in the U.S.

Disston's dredging and land speculation activities required a small steamboat industry to transport people and goods along the new waterway. The Kissimmee shipyard was responsible for building most of these steamships, which were just one jump ahead of civilization--with Kissimmee as the jumping off point. Concurrently, the South Florida Railroad was growing and extended the end of its line from Sanford down to Kissimmee, making the town on Lake Tohopekaliga a transportation hub of central Florida.

The heyday of Kissimmee was short lived. Expanding railroads began to challenge the steamships for cargo and passengers. By 1885, the SF Railroad extended its tracks again to Tampa. The Panic of 1893 was the worst depression the U.S. had experienced crushing land speculation and unsound debt. Disston closed his Kissimmee land operation. Back to back freezes in 1894 and 95 wiped out the citrus industry. The freezes combined with South Florida's growth, steamship operations relocating to Lake Okeechobee left Kissimmee dependent on cattle once again.

Cattle ranching was an important part of the local economy before the opening of nearby Walt Disney World in 1971. After that, tourism and development supplanted cattle ranching to a large measure; however, cattle ranches still operate nearby, particularly in the southern part of Osceola County.

On August 13, 2004, Hurricane Charley passed through Kissimmee with winds in excess of 100 miles per hour, damaging homes and buildings, toppling trees and cutting electrical power to the entire city. Kissimmee Utility Authority restored power to 54 percent of the residents in the first 72 hours; 85 percent were restored within one week. Service was restored to all customers on August 28. Three weeks after Hurricane Charley, the area was struck by Hurricane Frances, followed by Hurricane Jeanne three weeks after Frances.

[edit] Geography

Kissimmee is located at 28°18′14″N, 81°24′46″W (28.303988, -81.412867).^[8] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 17.32 mi² (44.9 km²), of which 16.7 square miles (43 km²) is land and 0.6 square miles (2 km²) is water (3.7%). ^[1]

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there were 47,814 people, 17,121 households, and 11,813 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,866.6/mi² (1,106.8/km²). There were 19,642 housing units at an average density of 1,177.6/mi² (454.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 67.22% White, 9.99% African American, 0.52% Native American, 3.38% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 14.15% from other races, and 4.66% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 41.73% of the population. The majority of Hispanics residing in the city are Puerto Ricans. There are also small Colombian, Cuban, Dominican and Mexican communities residing in and/or around the city.

There were 17,121 households out of which 37.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.2% were married couples living together, 15.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.0% were non-families. 20.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.77 and the average family size was 3.21.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.0% under the age of 18, 12.0% from 18 to 24, 34.9% from 25 to 44, 18.5% from 45 to 64, and 7.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 98.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $33,949, and the median income for a family was $36,361. Males had a median income of $25,851 versus $21,025 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,071. About 12.3% of families and 15.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.0% of those under age 18 and 10.2% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Transportation

The downtown area lies near the intersection of US Highway 17/92 and US Highway 192.

Kissimmee has an Amtrak train station, which is projected to be a station stop on the proposed Central Florida Commuter Rail system. There is also a Greyhound bus station. Local bus service is provided by the Lynx network.

Kissimmee Gateway Airport offers nonstop service to 12 cities on DayJet.

[edit] Sports

Osceola County Stadium

The Houston Astros conduct spring training in Kissimmee, at Osceola County Stadium. The stadium also hosts numerous amateur baseball events throughout the remainder of the year in conjunction with; USSSA, Triple Crown Sports, World Baseball Federation and Promotion Sports. The Jim Evan's Academy of Professional Umpiring has also called Osceola County Stadium home since 1994.

Osceola County Softball Complex

The Osceola County Softball Complex is a facility of five (5) softball fields which are host to a variety of amateur sports events. It is the home of the USSSA 2005 Complex of the Year Award, the Rebel Spring Games, and numerous other fast-pitch softball, slow-pitch softball, and youth baseball events.

Austin-Tindall Regional Park is another athletic facility in the area that is host to a variety of annual events.

[edit] Recreation

Silver Spurs Arena

Osceola Heritage Park is an event facility featuring a concert arena (Silver Spurs Arena) and professional sports stadium (Osceola County Stadium). The Silver Spurs Arena has been host to many acts, ranging from Hillary Duff and Bob Dylan to an annual rodeo event. Jehovah's Witnesses also use The Silver Spurs Arena for their annual District Conventions. In 2008, a number of English and Spanish conventions will be held by the Witnesses, bringing thousands of delegates to the Kissimmee area for the three-day events.

Kissimmee is home to a 650-person capacity outdoor water park, in addition to multiple golf courses.

Kissimmee is also home to the Loop, a large outdoor shopping mall at John Young and Osceola Parkways on the Orange/Osceola County line. It features stores such as American Eagle, Kohls, and Best Buy. There is also a multi-plex theater.

[edit] Education

The School District of Osceola County, Florida serves Kissimmee. The following Osceola County public schools are located in Kissimmee:

Elementary Schools

Boggy Creek Elementary
Central Avenue Elementary
Chestnut Elementary School
Cypress Elementary
Deerwood Elementary
Highlands Elementary
Kissimmee Elementary
Mill Creek Elementary
Partin Settlement Elementary
Pleasant Hill Elementary
Reedy Creek Elementary
Sunrise Elementary School
Thacker Avenue Elementary
Ventura Elementary
Kissimmee Charter Academy

Middle Schools

Denn-John Middle School
Discovery Intermediate School
Horizon Middle School
Kissimmee Middle School
Neptune Middle School
Parkway Middle School
Kissimmee Charter Academy

High Schools

Gateway High School - The high school in the area that offers the International Baccalaureate Program.
Liberty High School
Osceola County School For The Arts
Osceola High School
PATHS@TECO
Poinciana High School

[edit] References

^ ^a ^b Florida by place Population, Housing Units, Area and Density:2000. US Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-07-24.
^ Kissimmee, United States Page. Falling Rain Genomics. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
^ Annual Estimates of the population for the Incorporated Places of Florida (XLS). US Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-07-23.
^ ^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.
^ 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, 2007 (XLS). U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-07-24.
^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.

http://www.osceola.k12.fl.us/pages_2004/01_02SchoolDetail.asp?fac=0862 http://www.osceola.k12.fl.us/pages_2004/01_02SchoolDetail.asp?fac=0601 http://www.osceola.k12.fl.us/pages_2004/01_02SchoolDetail.asp?fac=0842 http://www.osceola.k12.fl.us/pages_2004/01_02SchoolDetail.asp?fac=0081 http://www.osceola.k12.fl.us/pages_2004/01_02SchoolDetail.asp?fac=0921

[edit] External links

Kissimmee, Florida is at coordinates 28°18′14″N 81°24′46″W / 28.303988, -81.412867 (Kissimmee, Florida)Coordinates: 28°18′14″N 81°24′46″W / 28.303988, -81.412867 (Kissimmee, Florida)
Kissimmee Utility Authority Municipal utility serving Kissimmee and surrounding area since 1901

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

County seat: Kissimmee

Cities	Kissimmee \| St. Cloud

CDPs	Campbell \| Celebration \| Citrus Ridge \| Lake Buenaventura \| Poinciana

Unincorporated communities	Ashton \| Bull Creek \| Deer Park \| Harmony \| Holopaw \| Kenansville \| Intercession City \| Lake Marian Highlands \| Narcoosee \| Reedy Creek Improvement District \| Yeehaw Junction