| Alachua County, Florida | ||
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Location in the state of Florida |
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Florida's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | February 29, 1824 | |
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| Named for | Chua (Timucuan word for "sinkhole") | |
| Seat | Gainesville | |
| Largest city | Gainesville | |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
969.12 sq mi (2,510 km²) 874.25 sq mi (2,264 km²) 94.88 sq mi (246 km²), 9.8% |
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| Population - (2010) - Density |
247,336 282.91/sq mi (109.24/km²) |
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| Time zone | Eastern: UTC-5/-4 | |
| Website | www.alachuacounty.us | |
Alachua County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. The U.S. Census Bureau 2006 estimate for the county is 227,120.[1] Its county seat is Gainesville, Florida[2]. Alachua County is the home of the University of Florida and is also known for its diverse culture, local music, and artisans. Much of its economy revolves around the university.
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The Alachua area appears to have been the first area occupied by the immigrant Oconees, the original Seminoles, about 1740. Their first town was situated on or near the old Alachua plain, now called Payne's Prairie in homage to "King" Payne, chief of the Alachua settlements upon his death in 1812.
The meaning of Alachua is suggested by a passage in the journal of Lieutenant Diego Peña, who on his expedition to Apalachee and Apalachicola in 1716, traversed the region, and of the area between the Ichetucknee and Suwannee Rivers in southern Suwannee County remarks:
| “ | The 21st day I left the said site (adjacent to the Itchtucknee River) and camped at a place they call Aquilachua this day I marched five leagues. In this day's march no creeks were encountered but there are good springs of water, and the first (is) named Usichua, (and) the other Usiparachua, and another Afanochua. | ” |
That the springs without effluent streams were sinkholes is consistent with the area, which has many. The names of these watering places all possess the terminator chua, which suggests that chua is the Timucuan name for sinkhole. This inference is not inconsistent with the general opinion of residents of the county, that the name Alachua means sinkhole.[3]
Alachua County proper was created in 1824. The original county seat was Newnansville located near the current site of the city of Alachua. In 1853, the new railroad from Fernandina to Cedar Key bypassed Newnansville, and Gainesville, a new town that was located on the railroad, began to draw business and residents away from Newnansville. Gainesville became the county seat the following year.[4]
According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 969.12 square miles (2,510.0 km2), of which 874.25 square miles (2,264.3 km2) (or 90.21%) is land and 94.88 square miles (245.7 km2) (or 9.79%) is water.[5] Alachua County is part of the Gainesville Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Adjacent Counties
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1840 | 2,282 |
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| 1850 | 2,524 | 10.6% | |
| 1860 | 8,232 | 226.1% | |
| 1870 | 17,328 | 110.5% | |
| 1880 | 16,462 | −5.0% | |
| 1890 | 22,934 | 39.3% | |
| 1900 | 32,245 | 40.6% | |
| 1910 | 34,305 | 6.4% | |
| 1920 | 31,689 | −7.6% | |
| 1930 | 34,365 | 8.4% | |
| 1940 | 38,607 | 12.3% | |
| 1950 | 57,026 | 47.7% | |
| 1960 | 74,074 | 29.9% | |
| 1970 | 104,764 | 41.4% | |
| 1980 | 151,348 | 44.5% | |
| 1990 | 181,596 | 20.0% | |
| 2000 | 217,955 | 20.0% | |
| 2010 | 247,336 | 13.5% | |
| [6][7][8] | |||
As of the census[9] of 2000, there were 217,955 people, 87,509 households, and 47,779 families residing in the county. The population density was 249.31/sq mi (94.93/km²). There were 95,113 housing units at an average density of 108.79/sq mi (42.01/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 73.47% White, 19.30% Black or African American, 0.25% Native American, 3.54% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.40% from other races, and 2.02% from two or more races. 5.73% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 11.2% were of German, 9.8% English, 9.3% American, 9.1% Irish and 5.0% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000. 88.9% spoke English and 5.6% Spanish as their first language.
There were 87,509 households out of which 25.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.80% were married couples living together, 12.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.40% were non-families. 29.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.94.
In the county the population was spread out with 20.20% under the age of 18, 23.20% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 19.30% from 45 to 64, and 9.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 95.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.20 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $31,426, and the median income for a family was $46,587. Males had a median income of $31,971 versus $26,059 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,465. About 12.20% of families and 22.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.40% of those under age 18 and 9.70% of those age 65 or over.
The entire county of Alachua is served by the Alachua County School District, which has some 47 different institutions in the county. Alachua county is also home to the University of Florida and Santa Fe College.
Like many other counties containing large state universities, Alachua County regularly supports the Democratic Party. It has voted for the Democratic candidate for president in the past five elections. The county last supported a Republican presidential candidate in 1988, when it narrowly went for George H. W. Bush in his landslide election.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Other |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 38.5% | 60.0% | 1.5 % |
| 2004 | 42.9% | 56.1% | 1.0 % |
| 2000 | 39.8% | 55.2% | 5.0% |
| 1996 | 34.0% | 53.9% | 12.1% |
| 1992 | 29.9% | 49.6% | 20.5% |
| 1988 | 50.1% | 48.8% | 1.1% |
Alachua County is the site of five closed landfills—Southwest Landfill, Southeast Landfill, Northwest Landfill, Northeast Landfill, and Northeast Auxiliary Landfill.[10] Since 1999, all solid waste from Alachua County has been hauled to the New River Solid Waste Facility in Raiford, in neighboring Union County.[11]
| Columbia County | Bradford County and Union County | |||
| Gilchrist County | Putnam County | |||
| Alachua County, Florida | ||||
| Levy County | Marion County |
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