Lantana, Florida

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Lantana, Florida
settlement_type = Town
nickname =
motto =

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mapsize = 250x200px
map_caption = Location of Lantana in Palm Beach County


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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = flag|United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = flag|Florida
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = noflag|Palm Beach
government_footnotes =
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leader_title =
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established_date =

unit_pref = Imperial
area_footnotes =
area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 = 7.5
area_land_km2 = 5.9
area_water_km2 = 1.6
area_total_sq_mi = 2.9
area_land_sq_mi = 2.3
area_water_sq_mi = 0.6

population_as_of = 2000
population_footnotes =
population_total = 9437
population_density_km2 = 1596.5
population_density_sq_mi = 4134.9

timezone = Eastern (EST)
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = EDT
utc_offset_DST = -4
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 3
elevation_ft = 10
latd = 26 |latm = 34 |lats = 58 |latNS = N
longd = 80 |longm = 3 |longs = 27 |longEW = W

postal_code_type = ZIP codes
postal_code = 33460, 33462, 33465
area_code = 561
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 12-39375GR|2
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 0285344GR|3
website =
footnotes =

Lantana is a town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 9,437 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 10,389. [http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/tables/SUB-EST2004-04-12.xls]

History

The first settlers came to the area after Congress passed the "Armed Occupation Act of 1842" at the end of the Seminole Wars during the Administration of President John Tyler. The M.B. Lyman family is credited with founding the Town. Lyman arrived with his family in 1888 and within a year started several enterprises including a general store, Indian Trading Post and a post office. As postmaster, Lyman named the post office – "Lantana Point" – for the wild Lantana plant that grew in abundance in the area. The word "Point" was later dropped.cite web | title=Historical information from Town of Lantana official site | url=http://www.lantana.org]

One of the other Lyman businesses was the Lantana Fish Company. In the early 1900s the gathering and marketing of oysters became the Town's leading industry. The Town of Lantana was incorporated in 1921 with 22 residents voting in the first election. At the time of incorporation, the area of Lantana was one square mile with a population of 100 residents.

After World War II, Lantana, like the rest of South Florida experienced a tremendous building boom which continues to this day. Interstate Highway 95, which was completed through Lantana in the mid-1970s, brought a surge of commercial development to the Town.

For most of the 1970s and 1980s, Lantana was home to the tradition of hosting the largest Christmas Tree in the World. Every year, a huge tree would be shipped from the Pacific Northwest to Lantana by rail to the property of the National Enquirer, adjacent to the Florida East Coast Railway tracks. The event would attract thousands of visitors every night, and grew to be one of Palm Beach Counties most spectacular and celebrated events. The torch went out for this annual festivity with the death, at the age of 61, of National Enquirer founder Generoso Pope Jr. in the late 1980s.

Today, the Town of Lantana covers 2.25 square miles and boasts a year round population of about 10,000 residents. During the winter, the population swells to around 14,000 residents.

Geography

Lantana is located at coor dms|26|34|58|N|80|3|27|W (26.582797, -80.057587)GR|1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 7.5 km² (2.9 mi²). 5.9 km² (2.3 mi²) of it is land and 1.6 km² (0.6 mi²) of it (21.31%) is water.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 9,437 people, 3,850 households, and 2,294 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,598.1/km² (4,134.9/mi²). There were 4,432 housing units at an average density of 750.5/km² (1,941.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 80.33% White (69.8% were Non-Hispanic White,) [cite web |url=http://www.muninetguide.com/states/florida/municipality/Lantana.php |title=Demographics of Lantana, FL |publisher=MuniNetGuide.com |accessdate=2007-11-21] 10.72% African American, 0.37% Native American, 0.83% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 4.67% from other races, and 2.99% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 16.14% of the population. The ancestry of a portion of the population was 10.9% Irish, 10.7% German, 8.0% West Indian, 7.6% English, 7.0% Finnish, 6.9% American and 5.8% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000. Lantana has the largest Finnish population in Florida. [ [http://www.epodunk.com/ancestry/Finnish.html Finnish ancestry by city - ePodunk ] ]

There were 3,850 households out of which 28.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.4% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.4% were non-families. 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 3.06.

In the town the population was spread out with 23.7% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 33.5% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 104.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.4 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $35,645, and the median income for a family was $40,089. Males had a median income of $29,443 versus $25,050 for females. The per capita income for the town was $21,204. About 5.9% of families and 8.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.8% of those under age 18 and 12.6% of those age 65 or over.

As of 2000, English as a first language accounted for 73.24% of all residents, while Spanish comprised of 13.95, French Creole made up 6.82%, and Finnish was the mother tongue of 5.01% of the population (the highest percentage in Florida.) Also, French was spoken by 0.62% of residents and German was spoken by 0.34% of the populace. [cite web |url=http://www.mla.org/map_data_results&state_id=12&county_id=&mode=place&zip=&place_id=39375&cty_id=&ll=&a=&ea=&order=r |title=MLA Data Center Results for Lantana, Florida |publisher=Modern Language Association |accessdate=2007-11-21]

As of 2000, Lantana had the 111th highest percentage of Finns in the US, which accounted for 5.4% of all residents (tied with two US areas in Michigan,) [cite web |url=http://www.epodunk.com/ancestry/Finnish.html |title=Ancestry Map of Finnish Communities |publisher=Epodunk.com |accessdate=2007-11-21] while Haitians had the thirty-fifth highest percentage, with 5.20% of the population. [cite web |url=http://www.epodunk.com/ancestry/Haitian.html |title=Ancestry Map of Haitian Communities |publisher=Epodunk.com |accessdate=2007-11-21]

References

External links

* [http://www.lantana.org/ Lantana official website]