LaBelle, Florida

LaBelle, Florida
—  City  —
Old Hendry County Courthouse

Seal
Motto: The Belle of the Caloosahatchee
Location in Hendry County and the state of Florida
Coordinates:
Country  United States
State  Florida
County  Hendry
Government
 • Mayor Paul Puletti[1]
Area
 • Total 3.6 sq mi (9.2 km2)
 • Land 3.5 sq mi (9 km2)
 • Water 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km2)
Elevation 13 ft (4 m)
Population (2000)
 • Total 4,210
 • Density 1,169.4/sq mi (457.6/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes 33935, 33975
Area code(s) 863
FIPS code 12-37225[2]
GNIS feature ID 0285188[3]
Website www.citylabelle.com

LaBelle is a city in and the county seat of Hendry County, Florida, United States. The population was 4,210 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 4,480 [1]. It was named for Laura and Belle Hendry, daughters of pioneer cattleman Francis A. Hendry.

LaBelle hosts the annual Swamp Cabbage Festival, which is held in honor of the Florida state tree during the last full weekend of February.

Contents

Geography

LaBelle is located at (26.760591, -81.439104)[4].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.5 square miles (9.2 km²), of which, 3.5 square miles (9.0 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (2.54%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 4,210 people, 1,440 households, and 995 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,214.0 people per square mile (468.4/km²). There were 1,739 housing units at an average density of 501.4 per square mile (193.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 73.28% White, 11.26% African American, 0.62% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 12.47% from other races, and 2.04% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 31.35% of the population.

There were 1,440 households out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.2% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.9% were non-families. 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.26.

In the city the population was spread out with 26.8% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 18.3% from 45 to 64, and 20.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 102.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $31,642, and the median income for a family was $39,550. Males had a median income of $26,327 versus $21,979 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,652. About 12.9% of families and 18.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.1% of those under age 18 and 15.4% of those age 65 or over.

In 2010 LaBelle had a population of 4,640. The racial and ethnic makeup of the population was 43.8% non-Hispanic white, 8.1% African American, 0.6% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.2% non-Hispanic from some other race, 1.6% from two or more races, and 47.0% Hispanic or Latino.[5]

History

LaBelle began as a settlement on the Caloosahatchee River around the time of Hamilton Disston's efforts to drain the Everglades with the hope of promoting growth. The settlement, which laid on the western edge of Captain Francis A. Hendry's large Monroe County's land, was initially populated with cattle drovers and trappers. By 1891, LaBelle had constructed its first school. In 1909, Captain Hendry subdivided his land to be sold. The majority land holding stake was bought by E. E. Goodno, which increased the size of LaBelle almost twenty times its original size.[6]

In 1925, the Florida Legislature chartered the City of LaBelle, which replaced the Town of LaBelle. D. A. Mitchell was named the first mayor.

Education

LaBelle's education system is made up of three elementary schools (LaBelle Elementary, Country Oaks Elementary, Edward A. Upthegrove Elementary), one middle school (LaBelle Middle) and one high school, LaBelle High.

Swamp Cabbage Festival

The city of LaBelle holds an annual Festival celebrating the state tree, the cabbage palm. The festival includes activities throughout the town including a 5K walk/run, beauty pageant and rodeo among others with the peak of celebration existing at LaBelle's Barron Park.

Notable people

References

  1. ^ "City of LaBelle - LaBelle, Florida". http://www.citylabelle.com/contact.html. Retrieved 2010-04-21. 
  2. ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  3. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  4. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
  5. ^ 2010 general demographic report for LaBelle
  6. ^ City of LaBelle website
  7. ^ "Swamp Cabbage Festival Grand Marshals, 1967-2008". Archived from the original on 2008-03-08. http://web.archive.org/web/20080308234901/http://www.swampcabbagefestival.org/former_grand_marshals.htm. 
  8. ^ "Swamp Cabbage Festival Queens". http://www.swampcabbagefestival.org/2008_Festival_queens.htm. Retrieved 2009-08-14. 
  9. ^ "Grand Marshall Charles Humphries Stands For Community". http://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00027799/00255/3j?search=caloosa+%3dbelle. 
  10. ^ "Swamp Cabbage Festival 2010". http://swampcabbagefestival.org/page1.html. Retrieved 2010-04-21. 
  11. ^ "Caloosa Belle, Thursday, February 25, 2010". http://ufdcimages.uflib.ufl.edu/UF/00/02/77/99/00192/22510_Page_01.jpg. Retrieved 2011-03-30. 
  12. ^ "Swamp Cabbage Festival 2009 Grand Marshal". Archived from the original on 2008-03-04. http://web.archive.org/web/20080304003448/http://www.swampcabbagefestival.org/grand_marshal.htm. 
  13. ^ "Caloosa Belle, Thursday, February 26, 2009". http://ufdcimages.uflib.ufl.edu/UF/00/02/77/99/00140/00001.jpg. Retrieved 2011-03-30. 
  14. ^ "Swamp Cabbage Festival Queen, 1968". http://oldmanriggs.com/swampcab.html. Retrieved 2009-08-14. 

External links

Municipalities and communities of Hendry County, Florida, USA
County seat: LaBelle
Cities
CDPs
Unincorporated
community
Indian reservations