Flagler County, Florida

Infobox U.S. County
county = Flagler County
state = Florida




founded = 28 April 1917
seat = Bunnell | largest city = Palm Coast
area_total_sq_mi =571
area_water_sq_mi =86
area percentage = 15.03%
census yr = 2000
pop = 49832
density_km2 =19
web = www.flaglercounty.org
|

Flagler County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2000 census, the population was 49,832. The U.S. Census Bureau 2006 estimate for the county is 83,084 [http://www.census.gov/popest/counties/tables/CO-EST2006-01-12.xls] , its 66.7% growth since the 2000 Census making it the fastest-growing county in the United States by percentage of 2000 population. [http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/population/009756.html] Its county seat is Bunnell, FloridaGR|6. It comprises the Palm Coast, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Flagler County was created in 1917. It was named for Henry Morrison Flagler, a famous railroad builder who built the Florida East Coast Railway.

In 1974, Marco Polo Park, a theme park off Interstate 95 opened. It was never profitable and closed soon after.

In 1998, when two brush fires threatened to become one huge brush fire in Flagler County, a mandatory evacuation was ordered for the entire county. This was the first, and so far the only, time a whole county was evacuated in Florida. [http://www.news-journalonline.com/special/fire98/]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 571 square miles (1,478 km²), of which, 485 square miles (1,256 km²) of it is land and 86 square miles (222 km²) of it is water, much of it in the Atlantic Ocean. The total area is 15.03% water.

Adjacent counties

*St. Johns County, Florida - north
*Volusia County, Florida - south
*Putnam County, Florida - west

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 49,832 people, 21,294 households, and 15,672 families residing in the county. The population density was 103 people per square mile (40/km²). There were 24,452 housing units at an average density of 50 per square mile (19/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 87.27% White, 8.83% Black or African American, 0.27% Native American, 1.17% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.96% from other races, and 1.47% from two or more races. 5.09% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 90.1% spoke English, 5.0% Spanish and 1.2% German as their first language.

1.8% of the population identified themselves as being of non-Hispanic West Indian Ancestry. [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ThematicMapFramesetServlet?_bm=y&-context=tm&-tm_name=DEC_2000_SF3_U_M00139&-ds_name=DEC_2000_SF3_U&-CONTEXT=tm&-tree_id=403&-all_geo_types=N&-geo_id=04000US12&-format=&-_lang=en#?360,221]

In 2000 there were 21,294 households out of which 21.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.80% were married couples living together, 8.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.40% were non-families. 21.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.67.

In the county the population was spread out with 17.90% under the age of 18, 4.80% from 18 to 24, 20.30% from 25 to 44, 28.30% from 45 to 64, and 28.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 50 years. For every 100 females there were 92.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $40,214, and the median income for a family was $45,625. Males had a median income of $31,184 versus $24,865 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,879. About 6.70% of families and 8.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.70% of those under age 18 and 4.40% of those age 65 or over.

Flagler county was ranked the fastest-growing county in the nation by the US Census Bureau from 2000 to 2005, boasting a 53.3% change, with a July 1, 2005 population estimate at 76,410.

Cities and towns

Incorporated

* City of Bunnell
* City of Flagler Beach
* City of Palm Coast
* Town of Marineland
* Town of Beverly Beach

Unincorporated

*Flagler Estates (also in St. Johns County)
*Hammock
*Painters Hill
*Espanola
*Bimini
*Dupont
*Korona
*Cody's Corner
*Favoretta
*St. Johns Park
*Daytona North

Politics

Due in large part to its rapidly changing demographics, Flagler County is often an unpredictable county in presidential and other elections, although the general trend has been towards the Democratic party in recent years.

Education

The Flagler County Public School District enrolls about 12,650 students. [http://www.flagler.k12.fl.us/schools/] It includes two public high schools, Flagler Palm Coast and Matanzas High School. The county also has 5 elementary schools and 2 middle schools.Two of the elementary schools are soon going to become K-8 schools.

ee also

* Bike trails in Florida (paved)

References

External links

Government links/Constitutional offices

* [http://www.flaglercounty.org/ Flagler County Board of County Commissioners] official website
* [http://www.flaglerelections.com/ Flagler County Supervisor of Elections]
* [http://qpublic.net/flagler/ Flagler County Property Appraiser]
* [http://www.myfcso.com/ Flagler County Sheriff's Office]
* [http://www.flaglertax.com/ Flagler County Tax Collector]

pecial districts

* [http://www.flagler.k12.fl.us/ Flagler County Public Schools]
* [http://www.sjrwmd.com St. Johns River Water Management District]

Judicial branch

* [http://www.flaglerclerk.com/ Flagler County Clerk of Courts]
* [http://www.volusia.org/publicdefender/default.htm Public Defender, 7th Judicial Circuit of Florida] serving Flagler, Putnam, St. Johns, and Volusia counties
* [http://www.sao7.com/ Office of the State Attorney, 7th Judicial Circuit of Florida]
* [http://www.circuit7.org/ Circuit and County Court for the 7th Judicial Circuit of Florida]

Tourism links

* [http://www.visitflagler.org/ Flagler County Tourist Development Council]