Dixie County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

located in the Big Bend region of the northern part of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 16,759. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

is Cross City.

History

Dixie County was created in 1921 from the southern portion of Lafayette County and named for " Dixie", the common nickname for the southern United States.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (18.4%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Taylor County - northwest * Lafayette County - north * Gilchrist County - east * Levy County - southeast

National protected area

Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge The Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge (LSNWR) is part of the United States National Wildlife Refuge System. It is located in southeastern Dixie County, Florida, Dixie and northwestern Levy County, Florida, Levy counties on the western coast ...

(part)

Demographics

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, there were 16,759 people, 6,233 households, and 4,320 families residing in the county. As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2008, there were 14,957 people. In 2000 there were an estimated 5,205 households and 3,659 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was 20 people per square mile (8/km²). There were 7,362 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 88.80%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 8.98%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.46% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.03%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.45% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.03% from two or more races. 1.80% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

or Latino of any race. In terms of ancestry, 39.7% were English, 15.2% were

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

, 14.7% were American, and 5.2% were German. There were 5,205 households, out of which 27.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.90% were married couples living together, 10.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.70% were non-families. 23.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.87. In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.10% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 26.60% from 25 to 44, 26.20% from 45 to 64, and 17.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 113.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 117.20 males. The median income for a household in the county was $26,082, and the median income for a family was $31,157. Males had a median income of $26,694 versus $17,863 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $13,559. About 14.50% of families and 19.10% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 23.90% of those under age 18 and 16.10% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Voter registration

According to the Secretary of State's office, Democrats maintain a plurality among registered voters in Dixie County.

Statewide elections

Democrats hold a plurality of registered voters in the county, but have not carried a majority of votes in a Presidential election since before 1992 (and last carried a plurality in 1996), nor have they carried a majority in a gubernatorial election since 1994. The county has rapidly and steadily shifted Republican since the 1990s; by 2016, the Republican candidate earned over 80% of the vote in the Presidential election.

Points of interest

* '' City of Hawkinsville'' - sunken steamboat in the Suwannee River near Old Town, one of the Florida Underwater Archaeological Preserves. * Old Town Elementary School, now the Dixie County Cultural Center. *

Old Town Methodist Church The original Old Town Methodist Church, built in 1890, is an historic wooden Methodist church building now situated behind the Old Town United Methodist Church built in 1983 a short distance west of the intersection of U.S. 19 and Road 349 in O ...

built in 1890 located behind the 1983 church building. * Putnam Lodge in Cross City, Florida built by the Putnam Lumber Company for its nearby lumber town of Shamrock

Library

The Dixie County Library is part of th
Three Rivers Regional Library System
which also serves Gilchrist,

Lafayette Lafayette or La Fayette may refer to: People * Lafayette (name), a list of people with the surname Lafayette or La Fayette or the given name Lafayette * House of La Fayette, a French noble family ** Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757� ...

, and Taylor counties. It is located at 16328 SE 19th Highway in Cross City, Florida. The branch is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. The current library director is Cindy Bellot.

Communities

Towns

* Cross City * Horseshoe Beach * Old Town

Unincorporated communities

Clara Clara may refer to: Organizations * CLARA, Latin American academic computer network organization * Clara.Net, a European ISP * Consolidated Land and Rail Australia, a property development consortium People * Clara (given name), a feminine gi ...

(partly in Taylor County) * Eugene * Hines *

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a po ...

* Jonesboro * Old Town * Shamrock * Shired Island * Suwannee *

Yellow Jacket Yellowjacket or yellowjacket is the common name in North America for predatory social wasps of the genera ''Vespula'' and ''Dolichovespula''. Members of these genera are known simply as "wasps" in other English-speaking countries. Most of these ...

Transportation

Airports

* Dixie County Airport

Notes

References

External links

HardisonInk.com
Online daily news website for Dixie, Gilchrist and Levy counties.
Dixie County Advocate
local newspaper available in full-text for free from the Florida Digital Newspaper Library
Dixie County Times
A recently started local newspaper managed by the former editor of the Dixie County Advocate.
WZCC-AM 1240
Cross City's Community Radio Station.