Apalachicola ( ) is a city and the
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
of
Franklin County, Florida
Franklin County is a County (United States), county along the Gulf of Mexico in the Florida Panhandle, panhandle of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 12,451, making it the third-leas ...
, United States,
on the shore of
Apalachicola Bay, an inlet of the
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...
. The population was 2,341 at the 2020 census.
History
The
Apalachicola Province, after whom the river and, ultimately the city, are named, was located along the lower part of the
Chattahoochee River in Alabama and Georgia in the 17th century, when the Spanish included the Chattahoochee as part of the Apalachicola River. The name is a combination of the
Hitchiti words ''apalahchi'', meaning "on the other side", and ''okli'', meaning "people". In original reference to the settlement, it probably meant "people on the other side of the river".
Between the years 1513 and 1763, the area that now includes the city of Apalachicola was under Spanish jurisdiction as part of
Spanish Florida
Spanish Florida () was the first major European land-claim and attempted settlement-area in northern America during the European Age of Discovery. ''La Florida'' formed part of the Captaincy General of Cuba in the Viceroyalty of New Spain, and th ...
. While the Spanish established
missions with the
Apalachee people to the northeast of the city of Apalachicola (centered around Tallahassee), and with the
Chatot people to the north in the upper Apalachicola River valley and the
Chipola River valley, the Spanish did not establish any missions in the area of the lower Apalachicola River during the duration of Spain's first occupation of Florida. The earliest-known settlement by non-indigenous people was in 1705, when the Spanish built a fort in the area.
In the 1750s, during the
French and Indian War, the British captured the Spanish colony of
Cuba
Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
; however, because Cuba was a prized possession for the Spanish, and Florida was mostly unused backwater, the Spanish traded Florida to the British in return for regaining Cuba. Between the years 1763 and 1783, the area that is now Apalachicola fell under the jurisdiction of
British West Florida. A British trading post called "Cottonton" was founded at this site on the mouth of the
Apalachicola River
The Apalachicola River is a river, approximately long, in the state of Florida. The river's large drainage basin, watershed, known as the ACF River Basin, Apalachicola, Chattahoochee and Flint (ACF) River Basin, drains an area of approximately ...
. In 1783,
British West Florida was transferred to Spain; however, the trading post (and its British inhabitants) remained and continued facilitating trade along the
Apalachicola River
The Apalachicola River is a river, approximately long, in the state of Florida. The river's large drainage basin, watershed, known as the ACF River Basin, Apalachicola, Chattahoochee and Flint (ACF) River Basin, drains an area of approximately ...
(which was connected to the trading network along the
Chattahoochee River). Gradually, after acquisition by the United States and related development in
Alabama
Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
and
Georgia, it attracted more permanent European-American residents. In 1827, the town was incorporated as "West Point". Apalachicola received its current name in 1831, by an act of the
Legislative Council of the Territory of Florida.
Trinity Episcopal Church was incorporated by an act of the Legislative Council of the Territory of Florida on February 11, 1837. The building was one of the earliest
prefabricated buildings in the United States. The framework was shipped by schooner from New York City and assembled in Apalachicola with wooden pegs.
In 1837, a newspaper at Apalachicola boasted that the town's business street along the waterfront "had of continuous brick stores, three stories high, deep, and all equipped with granite pillars."
Botanist
Alvan Wentworth Chapman settled in Apalachicola in 1847. In 1860, he published his major work, ''Flora of the Southern United States''. An elementary school was later named in his honor.
On April 3, 1862, during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
, the
gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.
History Pre-steam ...
and the steamer (relieving the ) captured Apalachicola.
Union forces that occupied
west Florida during much of the war moved here.
In 1849, Apalachicola physician
John Gorrie discovered the cold-air process of
refrigeration
Refrigeration is any of various types of cooling of a space, substance, or system to lower and/or maintain its temperature below the ambient one (while the removed heat is ejected to a place of higher temperature).IIR International Dictionary of ...
and patented an
ice machine in 1850. He had experimented to find ways to lower the
body temperature of fever patients.
His patent laid the groundwork for development of modern refrigeration and
air conditioning
Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C (US) or air con (UK), is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior temperature, and in some cases, also controlling the humidity of internal air. Air c ...
, making Florida and the
South more livable year-round. The city has a monument to him, and a replica of his ice machine is on display in the
John Gorrie Museum. The
John Gorrie Memorial Bridge, carrying the main road out of Apalachicola,
U.S. 98, is named for him.
Before railroads reached the region in the later 19th century, Apalachicola was the third-busiest port on the Gulf of Mexico (behind
New Orleans
New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
and
Mobile).
Scheduled boats transported passengers and goods up and down the
Apalachicola,
Chattahoochee, and
Flint rivers to
Albany and
Columbus, Georgia
Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee ...
. A
paddle steamer
A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine driving paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, whereby the first uses were wh ...
, the ''Crescent City'', made a daily round trip to Carrabelle, carrying the mail as well as passengers and freight.
The
AN Railway, formerly the
Apalachicola Northern Railroad, serves the city.
Originally built in 1935 and rebuilt in 1988, the
John Gorrie Memorial Bridge carries
U.S. 98 across Apalachicola Bay to
Eastpoint.
Geography
The approximate coordinates for the City of Apalachicola is located at .
Apalachicola is located in the northwestern part of the state on
Apalachicola Bay and at the mouth of the
Apalachicola River
The Apalachicola River is a river, approximately long, in the state of Florida. The river's large drainage basin, watershed, known as the ACF River Basin, Apalachicola, Chattahoochee and Flint (ACF) River Basin, drains an area of approximately ...
.
U.S. 98 is the main highway through town, leading east across the bay to
Eastpoint and northwest to
Panama City
Panama City, also known as Panama, is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has a total population of 1,086,990, with over 2,100,000 in its metropolitan area. The city is located at the Pacific Ocean, Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, i ...
.
Tallahassee, the state capital, is to the northeast via U.S. 98 and
U.S. 319.
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , of which is land and , or 26.67%, is water.
Climate
The climate of Apalachicola is
humid subtropical (
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
''Cfa''), with short, mild winters and hot, humid summers. The hottest temperature ever recorded in the city was on August 15, 1995, and the coldest temperature ever recorded was on January 21, 1985.
Demographics
2010 and 2020 census
As of the
2020 United States census, there were 2,341 people, 1,272 households, and 669 families residing in the city.
As of the
2010 United States census, there were 2,231 people, 1,123 households, and 644 families residing in the city.
2000 census
As of the
census
A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 2,334 people, 1,006 households, and 608 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,207 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 63.41%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 34.92%
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.17%
Native American, 0.39%
Asian, 0.47% from
other races, and 0.64% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or
Latino of any race were 1.67% of the population.
In 2000, there were 1,006 households, out of which 23.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.8% were
married couples
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 15.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.5% were non-families. Of all households, 34.7% were made up of individuals, and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.87.
In 2000, in the city, the population was spread out, with 21.9% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 24.0% from 25 to 44, 26.7% from 45 to 64, and 20.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.3 males.
In 2000, the median income for a household in the city was $23,073, and the median income for a family was $28,464. Males had a median income of $22,500 versus $18,750 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year.
In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $12,227. About 19.9% of families and 25.3% 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 ...
, including 32.4% of those under age 18 and 15.0% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
Apalachicola is still the home port for a variety of seafood workers, including
recreational fishing
Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is occupational fishing activities done for profit; or subsistence fishing, ...
and
shrimpers. More than 90% of Florida's oyster production was harvested from Apalachicola Bay in past years. Today the oyster industry has completely collapsed due to pollution and lack of water flow in the Apalachicola River. Every year the town hosts the
Florida Seafood Festival. The bay is well protected by
St. Vincent Island, Flag Island, Sand Island,
St. George Island, and
Cape St. George Island.

In 1979,
Exxon relocated their experimental subsea production system from offshore
Louisiana
Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...
to a permitted
artificial reef
An artificial reef (AR) is a human-created freshwater or marine benthic structure.
Typically built in areas with a generally featureless bottom to promote Marine biology#Reefs, marine life, it may be intended to control #Erosion prevention, erosio ...
site off Apalachicola. This was the first effort to turn an
oil platform into an artificial reef.
Arts and culture
Apalachicola is home to the Dixie Theatre, a professional
Equity theater which is also a live performance venue. Built in 1912, the theatre was fully renovated beginning in 1996.
Education
Apalachicola is a part of the
Franklin County Schools system. As of the 2008–2009 school year, all students, except those attending charter schools, attended the K–12 Franklin County School. Apalachicola Bay
Charter School is also located in Apalachicola.
*
Wallace M. Quinn High School
Notable people
*
Jimmy Bloodworth
James Henry Bloodworth (July 26, 1917 – August 17, 2002) was an American professional baseball second baseman who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Senators (1901–1960), Washington Senators (1937 and 1939–41), Detroi ...
,
MLB baseball player
*
Alvin Wentworth Chapman, botanist
*
John Gorrie, inventor of mechanical cooling
*
Mary Rogers Gregory, artist
*
Richard Heyser, U-2 pilot
References
External links
City of Apalachicola official websiteApalachicola Bay Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control
Cities in Franklin County, Florida
County seats in Florida
Populated places on the Intracoastal Waterway in Florida
Cities in Florida
1827 establishments in Florida Territory
Populated places established in 1827