The University is the principal employer, and it is also involved in the most profitable business of the area-agriculture. At least since the sixteenth century, when the Spanish made the area the hub of their cattle ranching, Alachua County has been a main center for agriculture in Florida. Cattle and dairy products, poultry, vegetables, tobacco, com, and timber produce the greatest revenue. Several state and federal agricultural agencies have headquarters in Gainesville, and the whole state is served by the University's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences through its research and education centers. Many of the pleasures of living in the Gainesville area are water-related.
Many springs are within easy reach of Gainesville.
Other springs are virtually undiscovered. Many afford opportunities for camping, swimming, canoeing, and underwater exploration. It is not uncommon for divers to find fossils or Indian artifacts. There is a 280-acre wildlife sanctuary within Gainesville itself. The Morningside Nature Center has a permanent staff of naturalists and a varied program of activities, from natural history, farm, and folklife courses to nature walks, craft workshops, and special events such as an old-fashioned Fourth of July.