Baker County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in 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 so ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 28,259. Its

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 ...

is Macclenny. The county was founded in 1861 and is named for James McNair Baker, a judge and Confederate Senator. Baker County is included in the

Jacksonville metropolitan area The Jacksonville Metropolitan Area, also called the First Coast, Metro Jacksonville, or Northeast Florida, is the metropolitan area centered on the principal city of Jacksonville, Florida and including the First Coast of North Florida. As of th ...

. In 1864, the Battle of Olustee, which was the only major

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 ...

battle in Florida, was fought near Lake City in Baker County.

History

Baker County was founded in 1861. It was named for James McNair Baker, a judge and Confederate senator. In 1864 the Battle of Olustee was fought near Lake City in Baker County. This was the only major

battle in Florida. Much of the area was originally covered with pine flatwoods and cypress swamps, as was Columbia County to the west. Parts of both counties are included in Osceola National Forest. A

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

industry developed here, with sawmills constructed along rivers and waterways, where lumber was brought out by water.

Turpentine Turpentine (which is also called spirit of turpentine, oil of turpentine, terebenthine, terebenthene, terebinthine and, colloquially, turps) is a fluid obtainable by the distillation of resin harvested from living trees, mainly pines. Principall ...

was also produced. These industries employed many

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 ...

laborers.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.6%) is water. The extreme northern part of the county lies within the

Okefenokee Swamp The Okefenokee Swamp is a shallow, 438,000-acre (177,000 ha), peat-filled wetland straddling the Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia–Florida line in the United States. A majority of the swamp is protected by the Okefenokee National Wildlife Ref ...

and its federally protected areas. The St. Mary's River passes through Baker and numerous other counties. The St. Marys River is a remote

blackwater river A blackwater river is a type of River#Classification, river with a slow-moving channel flowing through forested swamps or wetlands. Most major blackwater rivers are in the Amazon Basin and the Southern United States. The term is used in fluvial ...

, rising in southeastern Georgia and flowing into northeastern Florida, where it forms the easternmost border between the two states.

Adjacent counties

* Charlton County, Georgia - north * Ware County, Georgia - north *

Nassau County, Florida Nassau County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. It is the northeasternmost county in the state. The county seat is Fernandina Beach. The population was 90,352 at the 2020 census. Nassau County is a constituent of the Jackso ...

- northeast *

Duval County, Florida Duval County ( ), officially the City of Jacksonville and Duval County, is a County (United States), county in the First Coast, northeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was ...

- east * Clay County, Florida - southeast * Union County, Florida - south * Bradford County, Florida - south *

Columbia County, Florida Columbia County is a County (United States), county located in the North Central Florida, north central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 69,698, up from 67,531 at the 2010 ...

- west * Clinch County, Georgia - northwest

National protected areas

* Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge (part) * Osceola National Forest (part)

Transportation

Major highways

* is the main west-to-east interstate highway in the county, and serves as the unofficial dividing line between northern and southern Baker County. It enters the county from Osceola National Forest and contains five interchanges within the county; the first being US 90 in Olustee (Exits 324), followed by Baker CR 229 (Exit 327) south of Sanderson and Baker CR 125 (Exit 333) south of Glen St Mary. The last two interchanges are in Macclenny; SR 121 (Exits 335), and SR 228 (Exit 336). Beyond this point I-10 runs through Nassau and Duval Counties into Downtown Jacksonville. * was the primary west-to-east route through Baker County until it was succeeded by Interstate 10. * runs west to east through the northwest portion of the county, beginning at the northeast corner of Columbia County, then passing through John M. Bethea State Forest and becoming Georgia State Route 94 after crossing the bridge over the Saint Mary's River. * is a south to north road that runs southwest to northeast from Raiford in Union County to just before the interchange with Interstate 10, and then straight south to north through downtown Macclenny and later towards rural Baker County, until it crosses a series of bridges over the Saint Mary's River where it takes a long journey through

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

and

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

as a tri-state de facto auxiliary route from U.S. Route 21 in

Rock Hill, South Carolina Rock Hill is the most populous city in York County, South Carolina, United States, and the List of municipalities in South Carolina, 5th-most populous city in the state. It is also the 4th-most populous city of the Charlotte metropolitan area, be ...

. * is a short northwest-to-southeast state highway in Macclenny that has two county extensions. The first is a south-to-north extension beginning at US 90 leading to SR 121 north of the town limits. The second is a bi-county extension running southeast of Interstate 10 to US 301 in Duval County near the resumption of a state road which passes through Westside Jacksonville, Downtown Jacksonville and all the way to the Hogan section of Southside Jacksonville.

Railroads

The main railroad line through Baker County is the Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad which acquired the former

CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Railroad classes, Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of trac ...

lines from Pensacola to Baldwin on June 1, 2019. CSX retained trackage rights on that route. No passenger trains stop anywhere in Baker County, but

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

Sunset Limited The ''Sunset Limited'' is a long-distance passenger train run by Amtrak, operating on a route between New Orleans and Los Angeles. Major stops include Houston, San Antonio and El Paso in Texas, as well as Tucson, Arizona. Opening in 1894 thr ...

served the Tallahassee Subdivision until

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

ravaged the Gulf Coast in 2005. The other major railroad line in the county is

Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...

's Valdosta District, which spans northwest to southeast from the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge at the Georgia State Line, north of the Columbia-Baker County Line, through Baxter at a bridge over the Saint Mary's River which cuts through the "Georgia Bend" and eventually leads to the Jacksonville Terminal. Additionally, the Jacksonville and Southwestern Railroad was a former

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967, it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coast ...

line running through the southeast portion of the county that was abandoned by CSX in 1992. The line has been converted to a rail trail between Baldwin and Jacksonville in Duval County, and in Raiford in Union County, but no known plans exist to connect the two segments.

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 28,259 people, 8,828 households, and 6,448 families residing in the county. 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 22,259 people, 7,043 households, and 5,599 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 7,592 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 84.04%

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 ...

, 13.92%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

, 0.38% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.03%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.25% from other races, and 0.98% from two or more races. 1.88% of the population were

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. 34.5% were of American, 9.9% Irish, 8.6% English and 6.6% German ancestry according to Census 2000. Those claiming "American" ancestry are of predominantly English ancestry but most people in Baker County who are Anglo-European tend to identify simply as American. 97.2% spoke English and 2.5% Spanish as their first language. There were 7,043 households, out of which 41.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.70% 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, 13.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.50% were non-families. 17.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.86 and the average family size was 3.20. In the county, the population was spread out, with 27.50% under the age of 18, 9.90% from 18 to 24, 30.70% from 25 to 44, 22.70% from 45 to 64, and 9.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 119.79 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.40 males. The median income for a household in the county was $40,035, and the median income for a family was $43,503. Males had a median income of $30,240 versus $21,279 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 county was $15,164. About 11.40% of families and 14.70% 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 22.20% of those under age 18 and 8.60% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Baker County School District serves public school students in the county. The main library serving Baker County is the Emily Taber Public Library. The building used to be the Old Baker County Courthouse, built in 1908. The library director is April Teel.

Government

Law enforcement

The Baker County Sheriff's Office is headquartered in Macclenny, Florida. Sheriff Scotty Rhoden was first elected in 2016.

Politics

Voter registration

As of September 1, 2020, Baker County has a Republican majority, with a Democratic minority.

Statewide elections

Industry

Baker County is home to a

Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...

distribution center, several small manufacturing businesses, and Acreage Holdings, a cannabis cultivation facility. There are also several local, regional, state (the Baker Correctional Institution), and federal prisons in the western part of the county, bordering several more such facilities in Columbia County.

Communities

City

* Macclenny

Town

* Glen St. Mary

Unincorporated communities

* Baxter * Cuyler * Margaretta * Manning *

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

* Olustee * Sanderson * Taylor

Notes

References

External links

Government links/Constitutional offices

Baker County Board of County Commissioners

Baker County Supervisor of Elections

Baker County Property Appraiser

Baker County Sheriff's Office

Baker County Tax Collector

Special districts

Baker County Schools

Suwannee River Water Management District

Judicial branch

Baker County Clerk of Courts

Office of the State Attorney, 8th Judicial Circuit of Florida
serving Alachua, Baker,

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

, Gilchrist, Levy and Union Counties
Circuit and County Court for the 8th Judicial Circuit of Florida

Community Web Pages

BakerCountyToday.org - Baker County, Florida: Today and Yesterday

Baker County Community Home Page - BakerCountyFL.com - Owned and Managed from Baker County

Federal

Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Museum and Library Resources

''The Baker County Press,''
the local newspaper for Baker County, Florida fully and openly available in th
Florida Digital Newspaper Library
{{authority control Florida counties 1861 establishments in Florida Counties in the Jacksonville metropolitan area North Florida Populated places established in 1861