Holmes County, Florida

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


founded = 8 January 1848
seat = Bonifay | area_total_sq_mi =489
area_water_sq_mi =6
area percentage = 1.28%
census yr = 2000
pop = 18564
density_km2 =15
web = www.myholmescounty.com
|

Holmes County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2000, the population was 18,564. The U.S. Census Bureau 2005 estimate for the county is 19,264 [http://www.census.gov/popest/counties/tables/CO-EST2005-01-12.xls] . Its county seat is Bonifay, FloridaGR|6.

History

Holmes County was created in 1848. It was named for Thomas J. Holmes, Fact|date=February 2008 who came from North Carolina to settle in the area about 1830.

Holmes County had been chosen as the site for a theme park developed by Jim Fowler, to be known as Jim Fowler's Life in the Wild. Located near Bonifay at the corner of Interstate 10 and Hwy 79, it was to be a wilderness education and preservation park [http://www.wtvynews4.com/home/headlines/3330871.html] . As of August 3, 2006, the project has been halted due to the termination of the agreement by the Holmes County Development Commission to sell the convert|790|acre|km2|sing=on site to Jim Fowler. [http://www.wjhg.com/home/headlines/3494766.html]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 489 square miles (1,266 km²), of which, 482 square miles (1,250 km²) of it is land and 6 square miles (16 km²) of it (1.28%) is water.

Adjacent counties

*Geneva County, Alabama - north
*Jackson County, Florida - east
*Washington County, Florida - south
*Walton County, Florida - west

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 18,564 people, 6,921 households, and 4,893 families residing in the county. The population density was 38 people per square mile (15/km²). There were 7,998 housing units at an average density of 17 per square mile (6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 89.79% White, 6.51% Black or African American, 1.01% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.79% from other races, and 1.48% from two or more races. 1.93% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 6,921 households out of which 30.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.60% were married couples living together, 10.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.30% were non-families. 26.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.92.

In the county the population was spread out with 23.10% under the age of 18, 8.80% from 18 to 24, 29.30% from 25 to 44, 24.00% from 45 to 64, and 14.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 112.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 113.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $27,923, and the median income for a family was $34,286. Males had a median income of $25,982 versus $19,991 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,135. About 15.40% of families and 19.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.70% of those under age 18 and 17.90% of those age 65 or over.

Triracial people

The so-called "Dominickers," a number of related mixed-race (white, black, and Euchee Indian) families, lived for decades after the Civil War and well into the twentieth century in a rural area near Ponce de Leon, with a separate church and segregated public elementary school. Although considered a separate ethnicity from both whites and blacks, many Dominickers married into local white families, so that group boundaries blurred; some descendants still live in the area. The 1950 federal census identified 60 members of this group living in Holmes County at that time.cite web|url=http://www.melungeon.org/index.cgi?&CONTEXT=cat&cat=10056|title="Estimated Population of Reputed Indian-White-Negro Racial Isolates of the Eastern United States, by State and County, 1950"|accessdate=2006-09-01] Few facts are known about their origins, and little has been published about them.

Municipalities

Incorporated

# City of Bonifay
# Town of Esto
# Town of Noma
# Town of Ponce de Leon
# Town of Westville

Newspaper

* [http://www.HolmesCountyFlorida.com The Investigator OnLine Newspaper]
* [http://www.chipleypaper.com The Holmes County Advertiser] NOTE: Holmes County no longer has a locally owned print newspaper in publication!

ee also

* USS "Holmes County" (LST-836)

External links

Government links/Constitutional offices

* [http://www.myholmescounty.com/ Holmes County Board of County Commissioners]
* [http://election.dos.state.fl.us/county/countyInfo.asp?county=HOL Holmes County Supervisor of Elections]
* [http://qpublic.net/holmes Holmes County Property Appraiser]
* [http://www.flsheriffs.org/sheriffs/holmes.htm Holmes County Sheriff's Office]
* [http://www.holmescountytaxcollector.com/ Holmes County Tax Collector]

pecial districts

* [http://www.firn.edu/schools/holmes/holmessb/ Holmes District School Board]
* [http://sun6.dms.state.fl.us/nwfwmd/ Northwest Florida Water Management District]

Judicial branch

* [http://www.holmesclerk.com/ Holmes County Clerk of Courts]
* [http://www.jud14.flcourts.org/ Circuit and County Court for the 14th Judicial Circuit of Florida] serving Bay, Calhoun, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson and Washington counties

Tourism links

* [http://www.holmescountyonline.com/ Holmes County Online and Chamber of Commerce]

Notes