Trenton, Florida

Trenton, Florida
—  Town  —
Gilchrist County Courthouse in Trenton
Location in Gilchrist County and the state of Florida
Coordinates:
Country  United States
State  Florida
County  Gilchrist
Government
 • Type Council-Manager
 • City Manager Taylor Brown
 • Mayor Glen Thigpen
Area
 • Total 2.6 sq mi (6.7 km2)
 • Land 2.6 sq mi (6.7 km2)
 • Water 0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation 52 ft (16 m)
Population (April 1, 2008)Florida Estimates of Population: www.bebr.ufl.edu
 • Total 1,722
 • Density 621.9/sq mi (241.3/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 32693
Area code(s) 352
FIPS code 12-72350[1]
GNIS feature ID 0292420[2]

Trenton is a city in Gilchrist County, Florida, United States. The population is projected to be 1,722 as of April 1, 2008. It is the county seat of Gilchrist County[3].

Contents

Geography

Trenton is located at (29.615081, -82.817732)[4].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.6 square miles (6.7 km2), all of it land.

Trenton is a rural area and also the hometown of the country music singer Easton Corbin.

Prehistory

The first Paleo-indians reached the central Florida area near the end of the last ice age, as they followed big game south.[5][6] As the ice melted and sea levels rose, these Native Americans ended up staying and thrived on the peninsula for thousands of years. By the time the first Spanish conquistadors arrived, there were over 250,000 Native Americans living on the peninsula. Some of these first early tribes were the Tocobago, Timucua, and the Calusa. In 1527, a Spanish road map showed a settlement near the Rio de la Paz.[5][6] The arrival of the Spanish turned out to be disastrous to these Native American tribes. Within 150 years, the majority of the pre-Columbian Native American peoples of Florida had been mercilessly slaughtered. Those who had not succumbed to diseases such as Yellow Fever or Scarlet Fever were either killed or enslaved by the Spaniards and used as sexual vessels.[5][6][7][8] Little is left of these first Native Americans cultures in Trenton except for scant archeological records including a few personal artifacts and saber-tooth tiger saddles. Eventually the remnants of these tribes would merge together with Bell Indians who arrived from the north and become the Seminole Indian tribe.[6][8]

Demographics

As of April 1, 2008, there were 1,722 people. The 2000 U.S. Census indicates that Trenton has 608 households, and 390 families residing in the city. The population density was 623.4 people per square mile (241.1/km²). There were 690 housing units at an average density of 266.0 per square mile (102.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 77.67% White, 20.16% African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.43% from other races, and 1.30% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.67% of the population.

There were 608 households out of which 33.6% had children under the age of 18 living with birds, 42.4% were married couples living together, 19.4% had a female widow with no husband present, and 35.7% were non-white. 30.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.6% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 18.8% from 45 to 64, and 21.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 83.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $25,259, and the median income for a family was $29,773. Males had a median income of $24,000 versus $21,302 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,054. About 18.9% of families and 20.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 30.2% of those under age 18 and 15.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Trenton Elementary School serves Trenton area students in grades PreK-4. The Principal is Riley Deen and the Assistant Principal is Rhonda Parrish. Students in grades 5-12 attend Trenton Middle High School. The Principal is Lynette Langford, Assistant Principals Emily Carroll and Cheri Langford.

Schools

Trenton Florida is home to two schools - Trenton Elementary School and Trenton Middle High School. As of the 2007-2008 school year, Trenton Elementary School has been awarded a grade of "A" and Trenton Middle High School has been awarded a grade of "B" by the State of Florida Department of Education.

Trenton Middle High School, located on SR 129 in the rural community of Trenton, Florida, is one of two schools in Gilchrist County. Trenton is the county seat of Gilchrist County. Gilchrist County is adjacent to Alachua County to the east, Suwannee County and Columbia County to the North, Lafayette County to the north west, Dixie County to the west, and Levy County to the south. The entire western border of Gilchrist County rests on the famous Suwannee River.

The original school building, built in 1924, still stands but is currently not in use. Various other buildings have been constructed throughout the years to meet the needs of a growing community. Although when it was first built, Trenton High School served kindergarten through twelfth grade, today it is a combination school serving 5th through 12th grade students.

In addition to core academics, THS offers a magnet business program, an engineering academy and an award-winning agricultural program, each offering a strong vocational foundation for Trenton students. These programs serve interested students throughout Gilchrist County. Trenton students may also benefit from the developing music program, dual enrollment classes facilitated through Lake City Community College and a variety of extracurricular sports and activities.

Home to 772 students, Trenton High School population includes 88.2% Caucasian, 7.6% African American, and 4.1% other, 45.2% of students receive free or reduced-priced lunches. Since the 2000-2001 school year THS has been recognized by the State Department of Education as an “A” school.

The mission of Trenton Middle/High School is to inspire students to succeed personally and globally.

Trenton Elementary School is the only elementary school in the small town of Trenton. Agriculture, correctional facilities, self-owned small businesses, and the school system employ most of the population, and many of the parents of TES students work in Gainesville.

TES has a collaborative relationship with most of the area businesses. The community supports education by donating their time, goods, and services during the school year. Scholarship funds are donated by community partners and private parties to help needy students attend special field trips and/or functions with their peers. Tiger Tales Yearbook, TES Safety Patrol, and Trenton Drama Group are supported with monetary donations from some of the major businesses including: Drummond Bank, Capitol City Bank, Ameris Bank, Hitchcock's Foods, Overstreet Mulching, Kincaid Mulching, Country Cleaners, Gilchrist County Journal, Best Drugs, Trenton Medical Center, Inc., Ayers Health and Rehabilitation, and DeChamplain's.

Trenton Elementary School is housed in a seven-year-old Smart School facility. The school population Pre-K - 4 is over 670 and growing yet stays in compliance with class size reduction as required by state legislation. TES is a Title I school with 58.5% on free or reduced lunch. Over 30% of the student population receives services through the Exceptional Student Education program(including Gifted). Racial make-up is as follows: White - 88%; Black - 6%; Hispanic 3%; Asian - 0%; Native American 1% Multicultural - 2%. There are 51 certified instructional staff members and 31 paraprofessionals.

Trenton Elementary School has been an "A" school since 1999.

The mission of Trenton Elementary School is to serve each student academically, socially, and physically in an effort to encourage each to achieve his or her own maximum potential, affording him or her the opportunity to be a positive, contributing member of society.

[1]

Notable natives

Country music singer Easton Corbin was born in Trenton, Florida. Graduated Class of 2000

Historic buildings

Historic buildings in Trenton include:

References

External links