Florida Keys' population shrinks as Florida grows | KeysNews.com Florida Keys' population shrinks as Florida grows BY ROBERT SILK FLORIDA KEYS -- As the rest of Florida grew over the last decade, the number of Monroe County residents shrank. According to recently released Census 2010 figures, Monroe's population was 73,090 in 2010, down 8.2 percent from 79,589 in 2000. The numbers contrast with the statewide trend, which saw Florida's population grow 15 percent, from 15.98 million to 18.8 million, over the same period. Monroe was one of just two Florida counties to lose people over the past decade, and the other, St. Petersburg's Pinellas County, contracted by just 0.5 percent. The Keys strict building regulations, cost of living and small number of high-paying jobs are the reasons for the decline, analysts have long said. The diminished population likely will mean a smaller share of federal dollars for the Keys. Each year Washington distributes more than $400 billion to states, counties and cities based upon the census count.

The money goes to everything from Medicaid to roads and schools. "Anything that is going to come out of the federal government, the VA or whatever, comes out of the census," County Commissioner Sylvia Murphy said. Aside from dollars and cents, the census is also used to redraw congressional and legislative districts. With Florida growing and the Monroe County shrinking, the lone state House of Representatives seat that has traditionally belonged to the Keys could be at risk. In 2000, Florida House districts averaged 133,000 people. The Keys shares its district with portions of south Miami-Dade County. Ten years ago the Keys population of nearly 80,000 was enough to leave the Conch Republic with 60 percent of the district. But due to Florida's growing population, House districts are expected to increase in size to approximately 165,000 people before the 2012 election. If that happens, the Keys population of 73,000 would comprise less than half of the new district. "I can't find a time in Florida where Monroe County did not have someone in the Legislature," said state Rep. Ron Saunders, D-Key West.

"With this new census and the population it's a greater possibility that someone from Miami-Dade County will win the seat." Like the rest of the archipelago, Upper Keys communities lost people over the past decade. Key Largo's population took the biggest hit, dropping more than 12 percent, from 11,886 to 10,433, according to the Census Bureau. Islamorada lost 10.6 percent of its residents as the population of the village's four islands shrank from 6,846 to 6,119. In Tavernier, the drop was barely noticeable, from 2,173 residents to 2,136. However, North Key Largo, which mainly comprises the private Ocean Reef community, grew 18 percent, from 1,049 residents to 1,244. As in other parts of the country, the past decade saw an influx of Latinos to the Keys. Countywide, Latinos comprise 20.6 percent of the population, up from 15.8 percent in 2000.

In Key Largo, where 23.7 percent of the residents are Latino, the population increased from 1,979 to 2,471. Islamorada has 589 Latinos, up from 460 in 2000. rsilk@keysnews.com Key West KEY WEST By Jerry Wilkinson If you are not familiar with the general area, click HERE for a basic Lower Keys area map. - Prologue - Key West, like the other Florida Keys, began as a coral forest under the sea water - marine life was its population. As the polar ice caps reformed and the sea level dropped, terrestrial plant and animal life found its way. Soil was formed by decaying organic matter and storm actions. For millenniums the ocean continued to drop and the ocean currents, wind currents, birds, etc. continued to propagate the islands. Eventually human life forms found their way. This pyramiding of trillions of life cells, along with the forces of nature, produced an island called Cayo Hueso by early Spanish travelers. A note on the word "Key" used to identify an island. Its origin is not well established except by usage.

Most believe that it began by the Spanish adapting the word "cayo' from the Taino Indians of Hispanola and Cuba referring to small islands. The Spanish normally used "isla" for island and "islet" for small island. At least in the New World, they appear to use "cayo" and "cayuelo" for a very small island. The English used "Cay" or "Kay" such as Cay Sal Banks. Cay is pronounced by Americans as the letter "K," but by Englishmen as the word 'Key.' I am not certain if the written and the pronounced versions made any difference. Anyway, English maps of the Keys made just prior to the Revolutionary War of 1776 used the word "Key." A Colonial American court record of the "Libel of Dennis and Allen vs the snow St. Fermin alias Britanis" in 1744 used the word "Keys" referring to the Florida Keys. This is one case where an American court reporter might write ''Key' when an Englishmen prounced 'Cay.' See the Admiralty Papers, Vol. 2, 1743 -1744.

The native aborigines and subsequent native groups were the first settlers of Key West. The Europeans were tourists for its first 300 odd years of historic existence. Europeans stopped for fresh water on these islands, which stood as silent as the martyrs for which they were first named. The silence was broken occasionally by those seeking refuge from being shipwrecked, to fish, to lumber, to salvage, etc. Other than the Native Americans, apparently no one settled permanently until about the time Florida became a United States territory in 1821. There are scattered references, but no specifics, to New Englanders and Bahamians as permanent settlers before the early 1800s. The history of Key West is much like the rest of the Keys until 1821. Its natural deep water port was the deepest port between New Orleans and Norfolk, Virginia. Key West quickly became an economic center, was settled rapidly and became Florida's largest populated city. It had professional residents such as doctors, lawyers, insurance representatives, politicians, military personnel, journalists, publishers, etc. most of whom by vocation made some written documentation. These documentation's have made Key West history easier to be 'history', not fable.

Politically, Key West was Monroe County. In population alone it overwhelmed all the remaining Keys for about a century and a half. Therefore, the following is nowhere a complete outline of its history. Genesis From a historian's point of view, Key West has an interesting beginning. To be considered is the island's ownership as private property, ownership by the Territory of Florida, ownership by the U.S. Government and finally as a local incorporated entity. John W. Simonton purchased the island on January 19, 1822 from Juan Pablo Salas, who had acquired it as a Spanish Land Grant in 1815 from Don Juan de Estrata, but as a new U.S. Territory the original Don Juan de Estrata Land Grant to Salas had to the confirmed - no U.S. deed could be granted. In reality it went round and round with claims and counter claims. Attempts to follow these look like a spider web. John Simonton soon took on three northern partners: John Whitehead, John Fleeming and Pardon Greene. On the scene arrived General John Geddes of Charleston who had also purchased Key West.

It was discovered that Don Juan Salas had sold it twice, first to John Strong, a lawyer no less, and then to Simonton. As if this were not bad enough, Strong had also previously sold Key West to George Murray before John Geddes. In summary, Salas sold it twice, Strong and Simonton, and Strong twice, Murray and Geddes. Simonton had already divided it up amongst three others: Whitehead, Fleeming and Greene. Greene made several strategic moves by buying up claims in his name. On May 23, 1828, Congress acknowledged the land grant of Salas was confirmed. Simonton as the legal owner. We might surmise that this was Florida's first land scam. Amazing as it legally appears, the Territory of Florida with an Act of Incorporation incorporated the City of Key West on January 8, 1828. I have never fully researched this, but my understanding with Monroe County's Territorial Representative Richard Fitzpatrick changed its name to the Town of Key West on November 28, 1828. This was probably repealed? Fitzpatrick was the one who made Indian Key the County Seat of Dade County.

Here Comes the Navy When England possessed Florida in 1763, the Spanish contended that the Keys was North Havana. On March 25, 1822, Navy Lt. Commandant Matthew C. Perry sailed the Navy schooner Shark to Key West, surveyed and planted the U.S. flag, physically claiming the Keys as United States property. There were no protests so the Keys were United States property. The same year the president authorized a custom house at Key West. Mr. Joel Yancy was the first collector of customs. For history purposes, Lt. Perry did cause a minor confusion. He renamed Cayo Hueso (Key West) to "Thompson's Island" for the Secretary of the Navy Smith Thompson and the harbor "Port Rogers" for the president of the Board of Navy Commissioners. As to the name Key West, there is little doubt that it was some form of translation from the Spanish 'Cayo' (Key) and 'Hueso', if indeed the name was Hueso. The Spanish word Hueso [Way-so] means bone in English. A few believe that it came from the seven-year apple tree found in the Keys, which was also called hueso by the Spanish.

Regardless of its origin, the name Key West prevailed with time. Piracy was a problem in the West Indies open waters and Congress decided to protect US shipping. The task was given to the Navy. Partly on reports by Lt. Perry, the Navy on February 1, 1823, ordered Commodore David Porter to establish a depot in Key West to end piracy. Slave ships were included as an act of piracy. The aforementioned civilians preceded the military into Key West. However, they were having problems deciding who was the rightful owner. Commodore David Porter arrived in April 1823 with his West Indies Squadron to establish the depot. Commodore Porter had no problem knowing who owned Thompson's Island, the United States did, and he simply took charge. He supported the name of Thompson's Island and Port Rogers; and further named the naval depot 'Allenton' after Lt. William Allen who was killed by pirates. For some it was difficult to determine who disliked Commodore Porter more, the pirates or the residents of 'Thompson's Island.' It should be noted that the civilian residents knew that their success totally depended on the military defending the island.

Porter lost his command in 1825 and in 1826 the Navy moved the Navy base to Pensacola. A coal and supply facility remained at Key West. In October 1824 one of Porter's officers heard stolen goods were stored in Fajardo, Puerto Rico. When he landed without permission, he was seized, imprisoned as a pirate and later released. Enraged, Porter marched ashore with 200 men and compelled the Spanish to make atonement for their actions. It is a long story but it was deemed that he exceeded his authority and was suspended by court-martial. In August 1826 he resigned and became the General of Marine for Mexico's navy. In this capacity he also haunted the residents of Key West in the years to come. However, Commodore Porter was extremely successful in protecting Key West from pirates, but he could not protect it from yellow fever, lack of fresh water and the 'wrecking' industry. (See the General History page on wrecking.) Key West was a 'natural' for the relatively new US industry of salvaging wrecked ships.

It had a natural deep water seaport, was situated on the primary shipping route and had a natural resource in its front yard - the Florida Reefs. The Gulf Stream route was irresistible as a shipping route and in many cases practically unavoidable. Some of the richest cargoes passed and wrecked in its front yard. All they had to do was sit back and wait. - Legalizing Wrecking - Location, location, location is the cry of any good businessman. Then, in 1825 the Federal Wrecking Act prescribed that all property wrecked in US waters be taken to a US Port of Entry. Commodore Porter left the same year for Pensacola. 1828 was a pivotal year. In 1828 Key West was designated a Port of Entry. Key West grew from a desolated island into a bustling city within a few years. Congress acknowledged Simonton as the owner and Key West incorporated twice, once as a city on January 8, 1928, then as a town on Novmber 28, 1928. Congress created the 'Superior Court of the Southern District' with admiralty power.

Judge James Webb was its first judge, but his successor, William Marvin, will be the most remembered. He authored the Law of Wreck and Salvage and later was provisional governor of Florida at the close of the Civil War. In 1832, Key West reverted to a charter type city government. During this time John Whitehead's brother, William, surveyed the city in 1829. Southard was the Secretary of the Navy, hence Southard Street and Eaton was Secretary of the Army, hence Eaton Street. William Duval was the first Territorial Governor of Florida, hence Duval Street. Wrecking could provide quick monetary rewards. One of the early Charleston settlers in Key West was Richard Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick was 30-years old when he arrived in Key West. He became the only authorized auctioneer for wrecking property before the 1828 law. Reportedly in one year he made around $10,000 in fees alone. This would be equivalent to about $280,000 today. We will read of his name later.

Two years after the aforementioned 1828 events, the census of 1830 revealed Key West's population was 517. The year before, 258 acres were mapped as a town with 64 blocks. These early settlers were primarily from the New England states, not the Bahamas. Key West grew as a maritime, a military and a county seat community. By 1850 there were 2,645 and in 1890 there were 18,080 residents. The following from the United States "Enumeration's" provides an insight into the early population growth of Key West.

1860 2,302 160 451 2,913 1870 4,631 1,026 --- 5,675 For reference some later decades of population are: 1880 = 9,890; 1890 = 18,080; 1900 = 17,114; 1910 = 19,945; 1920 = 20,000; 1930 = 12,831; 1940 = 12,927; and 1950 = 21,792 (excluding military). Key West had its first newspaper, the Register, in 1829. The Key West Gazette followed in 1831, then the Enquirer in 1834. The present day Key West Citizen began as The Citizen in 1904 and consolidated with The Inter-Ocean. Around 1830, salt production began in the present day airport's general area.

There was a large need for salt for food preservation. About 50,000 bushels of salt was usual, however an early rainy season could 'wash' away the profits. William Whitehead and Richard Fitzpatrick were prominent salt producers. Wrecking remained the economy of Key West of which Fitzpatrick owned several wrecking ships. The military history continued with the arrival of the US Army in 1831. Major James Glassel commanded two companies camped on North Beach. This was good timing as the Second Seminole War was approaching. The Army was to be a larger influence that originally expected. Wrecking however was the real industry of the Keys. A sad but curious wreck occurred in 1831. In December, the ship Maria wrecked on the reef and the wreckers save all of its 250 passengers and crew. They were brought to Key West which according to the 1830 census had a total population of only 517. Somehow, the residents took care of all the survivors until arrangements could be made.

Jacob Housman, also a wrecker, did not get along well with the Key West wrecking courts, so he sought to establish a port of entry on Indian Key. He did not succeed; however, he upset the tranquility, such as it was, of Monroe County. He was not alone in this feat as by now Richard Fitzpatrick had been elected several times to Florida's Legislative Council. Housman and 56 others had petitioned for the division of Monroe County. One of the main stated objections was traveling to Key West for jury duty. One reason for presenting this history is our current tendency of thinking of Monroe County only as it exists today. Fitzpatrick had become Monroe County's Territorial Council Representative at Tallahassee. In 1836 he was elected the council president and easily pushed through a bill dividing Monroe County. This established the entire eastern section of former Monroe County as Dade County on February 4, 1836. The size of Monroe County was reduced by about half with Key West as its major settlement. Fitzpatrick had since the 1830s acquired extensive land holdings in the new county of Dade. Indian Key was the county seat.

In December 1835 the Second Seminole War commenced with the killing of Major Francis Dade. (See web page on the Seminoles.) Throughout the entire Florida War, Key West was never attacked. However, on August 7, 1840, Indian Key was attacked and burned except for one house. (See web page on Indian Key.) One of the outcomes of the War of 1812 was a coastal defense system. Extensive plans followed developing usually brick fortifications. Construction of Fort Taylor by the US Army began in 1845 only to experience major destruction the next year by the Hurricane of 1846. Work continued on the brick structure in time to be a major influence at the outbreak of the Civil War. Another 1845 brick structure was the completion of the two-story Marine Hospital on August 2, 1845. Originally built for the U.S. Merchant Marine the 40-bed hospital served many until its closure in February 1943. A new industry was looming for Key West - the sponge industry. The value of processed sponges was realized in the 1840s.

The Bahamians were well adapted for this occupation and came to Key West in droves. Key West quickly became a sponge center and this industry helped Key West when the wrecking industry slowed down. It was also an alternate job while the wreckers were awaiting a wreck to occur. As the 1850 census records indicate, Key West rebuilt after the destruction of the 1846 hurricane. The construction of Fort Taylor, the sponge industry and the highly successful wrecking industry contributed to Keys West's rapid growth. Key West began to lose the sponge monopoly to Florida's west coast around 1870. Some experts estimate that if today's measuring devices had been available, the Great Hurricane of 1846 (October 11 and 12) would have been a category-5 hurricane. The collector of customs, Steven Mallory, wrote that of 600 houses all but eight were destroyed or damaged. The offshore Sand Key and harbor lighthouses were destroyed. Water rose to about 8-feet in the lower streets. Did this discourage the residents? Evidently not as the above enumeration's indicate about a 300 percent growth between 1840 and 1850.

In May 1859 Key West experienced the first of its large fires. A fire in the L.M. Shaefer warehouse burned all but two houses in the two blocks formed by Green, Front, Simonton and Whitehead streets. - The Civil War Looms - The work at Fort Taylor was the first federal permanent building in Key West since Commodore Porter. At the outset of the Civil War, Florida was a confederate state. It was expected that Key West would be also. The Union had a considerable force in Key West because of the construction of Fort Taylor under Captain E. B. Hunt (Corps of Engineers). Key West was taken easily when at night on January 13, 1861, Captain James Brannan took possession of the city while it slept. Key West played a major role during the war because of it strategic location. A special city election was conducted to replace all the previously elected officers. Alexander Patterson was elected mayor. The Civil War was largely responsible for Key West becoming Florida's largest city. Competing cities in size were to the north and some, as Jacksonville, suffered considerably.

Key West was the center of the Union's Gulf and East Gulf blockading forces and profited economically. Many ships from many nations were seized and brought into Key West's harbor for disposition. Work finally began on the two Martello Towers. Key West also was the support base for Fort Jefferson. How the city government of Key West functioned is not clear. On December 8, 1866, Monroe County got part of its original land back when its present boundary was established starting "at the mouth of Broad Creek, a stream separating Cayo Largo from Old Roads [sic] Key, extending thence in a direct line to Mudd Point." This places the north boundary at about Mile Marker 114. Shipping lanes connected Key West with the world, but in 1866 another step was taken. Key West became the hub for the International Ocean Telegraph Company (IOTC) underwater cable line. The line connected Havana, Cuba to Punta Rassa on Monroe County's west coast to the United States. On August 21, 1867 the mayor of Key West exchanged telegrams with Cuban Captain-General Joaquin Manzanos.

It paid a huge role for the United States to have communications with Cuba in the Spanish American War (1898). The Key West cable manager, Martin Hellings, operated an intelligence office for the U.S. government. After a half century of settling, the 1870 census shows Key West's population as 5,675. In the same half century the total Upper Keys for five islands population was 133. No one lived on Lower Matecumbe Key, the sixth principal island. - The Key West Cigar - One should not overlook the influence of the Cuban population. They had continually grown since William Wall, an Englishman, started a Key West cigar factory in 1831. The Cuban Independence War of 1868 (Ten Years War) assured Key West of becoming a cigar capital. Spanish became the second language. The El Republicano newspaper was printed in Spanish is 1870. It went farther than this; in 1875 Carlos Cespedes was elected mayor. The economic timing of this new force was great as lighthouses were being built and the wrecking industry was destined to decline.

The coming of the steam ship also greatly reduced the number of ships that wrecked. Cuban cigar workers were accustomed to unions, but they were weak at first. As labor union membership grew, their power grew. In 1885 there was a major cigar worker's strike which lasted for months and Vicente Ybor, a principal manufacturer, moved to Tampa. Of course, Tampa offered a variety of 'good deals' and other cigar companies or individual workers followed. Fire was no stranger in Key West and Key Westers were always vigilant for fire in their mostly wooded city. Recorded in 1843 was the burning of a waterfront warehouse. The simple fire fighting equipment proved almost useless and was thrown into the water in disgust. Again in 1859 the city was tested by flames which took out a small section. One person intentionally blew up his house to make a fire gap. Then in 1886 a fire destroyed the entire downtown section in the early morning hours of April 1. This was not April fools. The fire started at 2 a.m. in the San Carlos Hall on Duval Street between Fleming and Southard streets.

High winds fanned the flames while an inadequate fire fighting system fought almost in vain - the primary steam operated fire engine was in New York for repairs. Again, blowing up buildings was done, but three people died in the process. Twelve hours later over 50 buildings, one the cigar box manufacturer, and six wharves were destroyed. Four lost their lives. When one sees a historic red brick building in Key West, most likely it was constructed after 1886. One example was the red brick Key West Customs House at the end of Whitehead Street which has been wonderfully restored today. The contract for its construction was let in December 1888 and was occupied three years later. Its total cost was $107,955.96. - Public Transportation - The cigar industry also led Key West into the twentieth century in transportation. Eduardo Hidalgo Gato introduced a mule powered streetcar system to connect "Gatoville" to the downtown area in the 1880s. I am not certain of the exact date. Signs on the streetcars exhibited in early photos denotes it as the "K-W St Car Association." The cigar industry was fraught with strikes.

It was during one, or the threat of one, that Gato was more or less forces to sell mule driven system during a boycott of the line in 1894. A Cincinnati company purchased it and converted it to electric streetcars. The name Stone and Webster comes to my mind. The electric streetcars were removed from service in 1927 and the tracks removed. - Florida | history - geography - state, United States | Britannica.com state, United States (2010) 18,801,310; (2016 est.) 20,612,439 Total area (sq mi) Seats in U.S. House of Representatives 25 (of 435) 1Excluding military abroad. 2The coreopsis is the state wildflower; no species was designated. Florida, constituent state of the United States of America. Admitted as the 27th state in 1845, it is the most populous of the Southeastern states and the second most populous Southern state after Texas . The capital is Tallahassee , located in the northwestern panhandle. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Geographic location has been the key factor in Florida’s long and colourful development, and it helps explain the striking contemporary character of the state. The greater part of Florida lies on a peninsula that protrudes southeastward from the North American continent, separating the waters of the Atlantic Ocean from those of the Gulf of Mexico and pointing toward Cuba and the Caribbean Sea beyond. Florida shares a land border with only two other states, both along its northern boundary: Georgia (east) and Alabama (west). The nearest foreign territory is the island of Bimini in the Bahamas , some 50 miles (80 km) to the east of the state’s southern tip. Florida is the southernmost of the 48 conterminous United States, its northernmost point lying about 100 miles (160 km) farther south than California ’s southern border. The Florida Keys , a crescent of islands that forms the state’s southernmost portion, extend to within about 75 miles (120 km) of the Tropic of Cancer .

Florida’s marine shoreline totals more than 8,400 miles (13,500 km), including some 5,100 miles (8,200 km) along the gulf; among U.S. states, only Alaska has a longer coastline. The Intracoastal Waterway (right) at Fort Lauderdale, Florida. © Joe Viesti/Viesti Associates, Inc. The state lies close to both the geographic and population centres of the Western Hemisphere , in a position that not only commands one entrance to the Gulf of Mexico but also overlooks a strategic crossroads between North and South America and historic routes to the European and Mediterranean worlds. The Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León landed there in 1513, named the territory La Florida (meaning “The Flower” in Spanish), and claimed it for Spain . Florida played a prominent role in the historic struggles of European powers to control the Americas and the Caribbean. St. Augustine , founded in 1565 on Florida’s northeastern coast, is the oldest European settlement within what were to become the boundaries of the continental United States. Related People Gary Barnett The climate and scenery of the “Sunshine State” have long attracted enormous numbers of visitors.

Tourism has surpassed agriculture and manufacturing as the main component of Florida’s economy, and the prospect of employment in the state’s rapidly growing service sector has simultaneously drawn many immigrants, mostly from Latin America . Consequently, Florida has regularly ranked among the states with the fastest-growing immigrant population. Area 65,757 square miles (170,311 square km). Population (2010) 18,801,310; (2016 est.) 20,612,439. Land Relief Florida is a geologically young, low-lying plain, mostly less than 100 feet (30 metres) above sea level. The highest point is near the Alabama border in Walton county, a mere 345 feet (105 metres) above sea level. Sedimentary deposits of sand and limestone cover most of the state, with areas of peat and muck marking locations where freshwater bodies once stood. The contemporary topography has been largely molded by running water, waves, ocean currents, winds, changes in sea level, and the wearing away of limestone rocks by solution.

These forces have produced enough variation in the state’s surface to permit classification into seven basic physiographic regions: the coastal lowlands, the Lake Okeechobee – Everglades basin, the Kissimmee lowlands, the Marianna lowlands, the central highlands, the Tallahassee hills, and the western highlands, though these divisions are scarcely apparent to the naked eye. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. People Population composition Native Americans, the original inhabitants of Florida, now constitute only a small portion of the population. In the early 21st century about 2,500 Seminole, largely descendents of those who successfully resisted U.S. government-enforced relocation in the 19th century, were living on several reservations in the southern part of the state. Aerial view of a reconstructed Seminole encampment at the Big Cypress Reservation in the … Robert Kippenberger, Seminole Tribe of Florida, Billie Swamp Safari, Big Cypress Reservation, Everglades, Florida A significant population of European ancestry (white) began to develop when the United States established effective civil control in 1822.

Immigrants from northern Spain came to Tampa about the time of World War I , attracted especially by the expanding cigar industry and by the prospect of living in a Spanish-speaking community . Italians also came in large numbers after World War I. Tarpon Springs was settled about 1880, and by 1905 Greek immigrants, drawing on the traditions of their homeland, had established a sponge industry there. Other ethnic contributions lending character to the overall population of the state range from a large Jewish community at Miami–Miami Beach to a Slovak settlement at Masaryktown. White people of non-Hispanic origin have come to constitute the largest segment of the state’s population. It is not known when the first people of African descent arrived in Florida, but it is known that some accompanied the first Spanish expeditions. A few runaway slaves came to live with the Seminoles, but it was only with U.S. rule that the black population began to increase. By 1830 there were as many African slaves as there were white residents (about 11,000). The increase of the black population coincided with the development of the Southern plantation system, mainly in northern Florida.

The American Civil War ended slavery, but the agricultural patterns remained, and not until the end of the 19th century did an influx of new settlers cause the white population to increase faster than the black. The black proportion of the state’s population has continued to decline in the early 21st century, to less than one-fifth of the total; however, larger percentages are still found in the old plantation belt (north-central Florida) and in the Everglades truck-farming region. Cubans came to Key West after 1868 when, as a result of revolutionary turmoil in Cuba, Vicente Martínez Ybor moved his cigar factories there from Havana . Labour troubles and a disastrous fire encouraged Ybor to move again in 1886, this time to Tampa, and again many Cubans followed the factories. A similar influx occurred in the early 1960s after the Cuban Revolution, when more than 350,000 Cubans fled their homeland. Some one-third of these settled in Florida (mostly in the Miami area) during the decade.

Still another wave of Cubans arrived in Florida in 1980, and about 80,000 were integrated (albeit uneasily) into the Cuban community around Miami. Latinos as a whole make up nearly two-fifths of the state’s population, and some areas, particularly in the southern part of the state, are primarily Spanish-speaking. Street sign in English and Spanish in Little Havana, a mainly Cuban area of Miami, Fla. Tony Arruza/Corbis Settlement patterns and demographic trends Northern and southern Florida are often distinguished as separate regions. Northern Florida is generally a cooler, historically older, rural, and hilly area, oriented toward field agriculture and forestry. Southern Florida is a warmer, flat, urban area, the more recently settled region of the state, with an economy based on tourism, citrus fruits, vegetables, and livestock. Two well-known parts of the state are the Gold Coast , the Miami–West Palm Beach metropolitan sprawl in the southeast, and the Suncoast (or Sun Coast), which stretches along the gulf from the Tampa Bay area southward to the vicinity of Fort Myers . Riverfront and skyline of Jacksonville, Fla. Jeremy Woodhouse/Getty Images West Palm Beach, Fla.

Andyxox The great majority of the population lives in urban areas, and only a tiny percentage lives on farms. The densest concentration is along the extensive Miami– Fort Lauderdale – Boca Raton –West Palm Beach urban complex in the southeast. This area appears to many observers to be duplicating the less desirable aspects of the great urban belts burgeoning in other parts of the country. On the west coast the Tampa– St. Petersburg metropolitan area contains another concentration of population. Farther north the Daytona Beach – Cape Canaveral – Orlando triangle is central Florida’s dominant urban area, Jacksonville is the major hub of the upper east coast and southeastern Georgia, and Pensacola dominates the western panhandle and part of southern Alabama. Lesser metropolitan areas—including Tallahassee, Gainesville , and Fort Myers—are hubs of local influence. Tampa, Fla. Mike Halterman Florida’s favourable climate and geographic position have led to two major types of migration: retirement-age people who come to Florida from the North and political and economic refugees who enter the state from Latin America. Both of these movements have severely taxed the state’s ability to support the needy. A significant proportion of the state’s population is over 65 years of age.

However, there is also a burgeoning young population that has resulted largely from the mass immigration of people from Latin America. Economy By the late 1800s, citrus farming for shipment to the national market, phosphate mining, the lumber industry, and cigar manufacturing were of growing importance in Florida’s economy. About the same time, tourism started to develop during the winter months. The tourism sector grew consistently over the subsequent decades, and by the early 21st century it accounted for the largest single portion of the state’s economy. A land boom in the early 20th century focused entrepreneurs on real estate and construction, though sustained prosperity from those activities came only after World War II. Since then, Florida’s economic growth has been among the fastest of all U.S. states, driven largely by services (including retail trade), transportation, and construction—all of which reflect the expanding role of tourism and the rise in population. Manufacturing, on the contrary, constitutes a relatively small part of the economy. Once centred on the processing of citrus products, it has come to include the fabrication of computers and electronic devices and the production of transportation equipment—both now key industries in Florida.

Agriculture, forestry, and fishing To a stranger entering the state from the north, the Florida landscape may appear devoid of human imprint. It is being used, but the use is of a type unfamiliar to many visitors. About half of Florida’s area consists of commercial, national, and state forests, state and federal parks, lakes, beaches, and military reservations. About two-fifths of the state is farmland, and much of this is in either pasture or timber. Only a small fraction of Florida’s total land is used for harvested crops. Farmsteads are common in northern Florida, where field crops are important, but even there timber covers vast areas. Citrus groves occupy much of central Florida and the east coast, while vast expanses of cattle land spread along the west coast and north and south of the citrus belt. In the southern part of the state, the cultivation of sugarcane and vegetables around Lake Okeechobee has produced the present-day equivalent of plantation agriculture. The small, private farm has little place in these systems, having been superseded by mechanization and the use of migratory labour.

The adverse social conditions of migrant workers, which have occasionally given rise to national concern, remain one of the negative aspects of a generally affluent state. The rise of corporate agriculture has led to an inevitable increase in farm size and a corresponding reduction in farm numbers. Florida, famous especially for its oranges, produces the bulk of the country’s citrus fruit and is second only to California in vegetable production. Citrus fruits account for a significant portion of farm receipts, and Florida’s grapefruit production not only is the highest in the country but also represents a large proportion of the world total. Tomatoes are the leading vegetable crop. Sugarcane is the primary Florida field crop, and the state produces roughly half of the country’s total. Forestry activities are supported by about half of the state (mostly in the north), and livestock raising is practiced on the state’s large grasslands (mostly in the central and southern areas). Commerical fishing long has been an important element of the state’s economy, although productivity started to decline in the 1990s. Aquaculture is also significant and includes the raising of aquatic plants and tropical fish for aquariums as well as various shellfish and finfish for human consumption .

Cooperatives exist to help market fish and other aquatic products. Resources Directly or indirectly, Florida’s tropical and subtropical climate affects nearly every aspect of the local economy, and it can be quite justifiably considered the state’s chief resource. Together with land and water—both of which have contributed to economic development—climate forms the basis of the state’s wealth. The water resources, important to the fishing industry and tourism alike, include not only a vast expanse of fresh inland water but also a large area of adjacent salt water. Florida yields several important minerals. Phosphate, which is used in fertilizer and livestock feed and by the chemical industry, is found in the west-central portion of the state. Although production began to decline in the early 21st century, Florida continues to contribute a major portion of the national and global phosphate supply. Ores of titanium, zircon, and such other important heavy minerals as thorium and cerium are mined near Jacksonville, Starke, and Vero Beach and in west-central Florida. Petroleum is produced in the northwest and the southwest.

Kaolin (china clay) is mined in Putnam county; fuller’s earth comes from the Tallahassee region; and clay, sand, and gravel are mined in numerous locations, with pure silica sand extracted mostly in areas around the 100-foot (30-metre) contour line. Limestone, from the northern portion of the peninsula, is used as building stone and road-surfacing material and in cement, concrete, and fertilizer; peat, used as a soil conditioner, is dug in many areas. The versatility of the marine resources of Florida is indicated by a plant at Port St. Joe on the Gulf Coast for the recovery of magnesium from seawater. Manufacturing Manufacturing is less significant to Florida’s economy than it is to most states in the South. Florida never developed the textile industry that was so vital to its northern neighbours. The processing of food products was surpassed as Florida’s largest industry by the manufacture of computers, electronic supplies, and transportation equipment in the early 21st century. Other important industries have included printing and publishing and the manufacture of machinery, chemicals, and wood products. Together the manufacturing industries employ only a fraction of the labour force.

The state was initially somewhat slow to develop high-technology industries, but activity in this area has been increasing rapidly. Construction is also an important industry in the state. The steady growth in population since the 1950s, combined with the periodic need to rebuild following devastating storms, has created great demand for housing and numerous jobs in the construction industry. Services and taxation Tourism is the largest income-producing activity in the state. In the early 20th century Florida attracted tourists mainly in the winter months, but since that time tourism has developed into a year-round business. The Atlantic and Gulf Coast beaches that form the basis of the state’s popular “vacationland” image are seldom the only destination for the Florida visitor. Other attractions include the large theme parks, professional and collegiate sporting events, golf, hunting and fishing, and an abundance of parkland, including three national parks, two national seashores, a national preserve, as well as several national monuments and memorials and numerous state parks. Other major service activities in Florida include trade, finance, insurance, real estate, government, information technology, and transportation. Florida has no state income tax on individuals but does tax corporate income, which produces about 5 percent of the total tax revenue.

More than half of the total comes from the general sales and use tax. The remainder derives from special taxes on a wide range of items, including unemployment compensation, gasoline, motor vehicles and mobile homes, alcoholic beverages, cigarettes, utilities, insurance premiums, pari-mutuel wagering, and inheritances. A state lottery, established in 1988, offers an additional source of revenue. Transportation Florida’s transportation system is comprehensive , covering the entire state except for certain isolated areas in the Everglades. In general, highway arteries run across the north of the state, from Jacksonville to Pensacola ; down the east coast, from Jacksonville to Miami; diagonally across the state, from Jacksonville to Tampa–St. Petersburg on the west coast, bisecting the state from Tampa–St. Petersburg to Daytona Beach; and through the southwestern portion, linking Tampa–St. Petersburg to Miami. Rail and air traffic also follow these patterns. Although there is no direct rail link between Miami and Tampa, there is a heavily traveled air route between the two cities. The primary throughways are the interstate and state turnpike systems that connect all major cities.

There are several airports with regularly scheduled flights and numerous private airfields; the international terminals at Tampa, Orlando, and Miami are among the busiest in the country. An extensive rail network provides passenger and freight service to most areas. An integrated system for domestic and foreign shipping is provided by more than a dozen deepwater ports and several lesser ports and harbours, while more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of navigable coastal and inland channels are maintained by the federal government. A swing bridge swiveled open to allow boats to pass through the Okeechobee Waterway, Florida. FL Stock/Alamy Florida is home to the country’s major spaceport, the John F. Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, which occupies some 220 square miles (570 square km). This spaceport is not only a major Florida industry but has also become a prime tourist attraction. Liftoff of the New Horizons spacecraft aboard an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force … NASA/KSC Florida - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up) The U.S.

state of Florida is a playground for millions of sunseekers-snowbirds, beachcombers, college students on spring break, sports fans who watch and play outdoor games. Its low-lying peninsula probes deep into warm southern seas. Along its coasts, seemingly endless white-sand beaches meet the incoming surf. Inland, thousands of freshwater lakes nestle in semitropical settings. Everglades National Park-a haven of rare plants, birds, and animals-is the largest subtropical wilderness in the United States. Heading farther south from the glades, the Overseas Highway hops for miles over the 60-island chain of Florida Keys. Article Contributors Threats to the Keys :: Florida Museum of Natural History Threats to the Florida Keys Upper Matecumbe Key. Photo courtesy South Florida Water Management District The native habitats and communities of the Florida Keys are being severely impacted directly and indirectly by human activity. The Keys and south Florida are the only locations in the U.S. to support tropical flora with over 120 species of trees in the hardwood hammock alone! Along with this rich diversity of native plant life, the Keys are also home to many species of terrestrial and marine wildlife.

The habitats of the Keys include mangroves, coral reefs, seagrasses, pinelands, and hardwood hammocks, making this area quite diverse in flora and fauna. However, due to the small land area of the Keys, these sensitive habitats are easily impacted. Water Pollution Divers clean the reef of monofilament and debris. Photo courtesy Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Water quality is deteriorating in nearshore and confined waters of the Florida Keys. Nutrient-rich wastewater is released from cesspits, septic tanks and sewage treatment plants. Other sources of water pollution are stormwater runoff containing fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, petroleum products, and heavy metals all of which may be affecting marine communities including coral reefs, seagrasses, and mangroves. Urban Development Man-made canal in Marathon Key. Photo courtesy South Florida Water Management District Ever-increasing human population growth as well as heavy tourism in the Florida Keys has resulted in the development of large tracts of land, destroying natural habitats and deteriorating the surrounding natural environments. Introduced Species Oscar. Photo courtesy U.S. Geological Survey/Howard Jelks The Florida Keys is home to a variety of introduced species.

Introduced species are those organisms that are native to somewhere else that have been introduced through human activities. Many of these species have detrimental effects on native flora and fauna due to lack of population controls such as predators and disease. As population numbers grow out of control, introduced species are often referred to as invasive species. Fishing boat. Photo courtesy Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Overfishing Along with human population growth, the harvest of resources from the sea is ever-increasing. This holds true for south Florida where commercial fishing is the fourth largest industry and recreational fishing is the primary tourist-related activity. Areas in the Upper Keys that are heavily fished contain smaller fish and fewer species than outlying areas where fishing activity is much less. Overfishing has changed the ecological dynamics of marine communities, allowing some organisms to dominate reefs that once were kept in check by large reef fish populations. Recently, the largest No-Fishing Zone in U.S. waters was established in the Dry Tortugas, 70 miles west of Key West. This protected area will help restore depleted fish stocks in the keys and beyond as well as protect the coral reefs. Seagrass scar caused by boat propeller.

Photo courtesy Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Boating In south Florida, over 30,000 acres (121 square km) of seagrass have been scarred by boat propellers. Scarring is caused primarily by large numbers of small boats, although larger boats cause a much greater impact when they run aground. Damage occurs when boats enter shallow waters, causing the propeller to come into contact with seagrasses. Boats also cause damage by running aground on coral reefs, crushing and killing corals on impact. Most noted are the groundings of large ships, however small recreational boat groundings can be just as destructive with over 500 groundings reported in a single year in the Keys. Anchor damage also adds to the destruction. Key Colony Beach photographed by NASA's Landsat 7 Spacecraft. Photo courtesy NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio Global Climate Change Global climate change may cause increases in sea temperature and sea level as well as ocean current patterns, all of which can cause damage to the Florida Keys and associated reefs. The elevation of the Keys ranges from sea level to three feet above sea level, not leaving much room for rising waters.

Over the next 100 years, it is expected that sea level will rise 8-16" with average temperature rising 4-10 degrees Fahrenheit. Learn 10 Facts about the Florida Keys Islands Geography Expert By Amanda Briney The Florida Keys are an island archipelago extending from the southeastern tip of the United States ' state of Florida . They begin about 15 miles (24 km) south of Miami and extend out toward the southwest and then west toward the Gulf of Mexico and the uninhabited Dry Tortugas islands. Most of the islands making up the Florida Keys are within the Florida Straits, a strait between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. The most populated city in the Florida Keys is Key West and many other areas within the islands are sparsely populated. The following is a list of ten facts to know about the Florida Keys: 1) The first inhabitants of the Florida Keys were the Native American tribes Calusa and Tequesta. Juan Ponce de Leon was later one of the first Europeans to find and explore the islands. Shortly thereafter Key West began to grow into Florida's largest town due its proximity to Cuba and the Bahamas and a trade route with New Orleans .

In their early days Key West and the Florida Keys were a major part of the area's wrecking industry - an industry associated with the frequent shipwrecks in the area. continue reading below our video 10 Facts About the Titanic That You Don't Know By the early 1900s however Key West's prosperity began to decline as better navigational techniques reduced area shipwrecks. 2) In 1935 the Florida Keys were struck by one of the worst hurricanes to ever hit the United States. On September 2nd of that year the hurricane winds of over 200 miles per hour (320 km/hr) hit the islands and a storm surge of over 17.5 feet (5.3 m) quickly flooded them. The hurricane killed over 500 people and the Overseas Railway (constructed in the 1910's to connect the islands) was damaged and service stopped. A highway, called the Overseas Highway later replaced the railway as the main form of transportation in the area. 3) Beginning in the late 1970s construction began on a new bridge to connect the Florida Keys.

This bridge is known today as the Seven Mile Bridge and it connects Knights Key in the Middle Keys to Little Duck Key in the Lower. In March 2008 however this bridge was closed to traffic as it was deemed unsafe and construction later began on a new bridge. 4) Throughout much of their modern history the Florida Keys have been an important area for drug smugglers and illegal immigration . As a result these problems the U.S. Border Patrol began a series of roadblocks on the bridge from the keys to search cars returning to Florida's mainland for illegal drugs and immigrants in 1982. This roadblock later began to hurt the economy of the Florida Keys as it delayed tourists going to and from the islands. Because of the resultant economic struggles the mayor of Key West, Dennis Wardlow, declared the city as independent and renamed it the Conch Republic on April 23, 1982. The city's secession lasted only a short time however and Wardlow eventually surrendered. Key West also still remains a part of the U.S.

5) Today the total land area of the Florida Keys is 137.3 square miles (356 sq km) and in total there are over 1700 islands in the archipelago. However, very few of these are populated and most are very small. Only 43 of the islands are connected via bridges. In total there are 42 bridges connecting the islands but the Seven Mile Bridge is still the longest. 6) Because there are so many islands within the Florida Keys they are often divided into several different groups. These groups are the Upper Keys, the Middle Keys, the Lower Keys and the Outlying Islands. The Upper Keys are those located the farthest north and closest to Florida's mainland and the groups extend out from there. The city of Key West is located in the Lower Keys. The Outer Keys consist of islands that are accessible by boat. 7) Geologically the Florida Keys are main the exposed parts of coral reefs . Some of the islands have been exposed for so long that sand has built up around them, creating barrier islands while other smaller islands remain as coral atolls . In addition, there is also still a large coral reef offshore of the Florida Keys in the Florida Straits.

This reef is called the Florida Reef and it is the world's coral reef. 8) The climate of the Florida Keys is tropical, as is the southern part of the state of Florida. However, because of the islands' location between the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, they are very prone to hurricanes. Hurricanes are a problem in the area because the islands have very low elevations, are surrounded by water and flooding from the storm's surges can easily affect large areas of the Keys. As a result of flooding threats, evacuation orders are regularly put into place when hurricanes threaten the area. 9) The Florida Keys are a highly biodiverse area because of the presence of coral reefs as well as undeveloped forested areas. Dry Tortugas National Park is located about 70 miles (110 km) from Key West and since those islands are uninhabited, they are some of the most well preserved and protected areas in the world. In addition, the waters around the islands of the Florida Keys are home to the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. 10) Because of its biodiversity, ecotourism is becoming a large part of the economy of the Florida Keys.

In addition, other forms of tourism and fishing are the major industries of the islands. To learn more about the Florida Keys, visit their official website . References

Question: Which of the Florida Keys has the highest population?
Answer: Key West