Floral City is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) in

Citrus County Citrus County is a county located on the northwest central coast of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 153,843. Its county seat is Inverness, and its largest community is Homosassa Springs. Citrus County com ...

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 ...

, United States. The population was 5,261 at the 2020 census, up from 5,217 at the 2010 census. It is part of the

Homosassa Springs, Florida Homosassa Springs is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Citrus County, Florida, United States. The population was 14,283 as of 2020, up from 13,791 at the 2010 census. Homosassa Springs is the principal community ...

Metropolitan Statistical Area. The community is home to the Floral City Heritage Hall Museum and hosts the Floral City Heritage Days the first weekend in December. The area has a history of

phosphate Phosphates are the naturally occurring form of the element phosphorus. In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthop ...

mining and includes historic homes.

Geography

Floral City is located in southeastern Citrus County at 28°44′N 82°18′W (28.7407,-82.2954). It is bordered to the south by

Hernando County Hernando County () is a county located on the west central coast of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 194,515. Its county seat is Brooksville, and its largest community is Spring Hill. Hernando County is in ...

U.S. Route 41 U.S. Route 41, also U.S. Highway 41 (US 41), is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs from Miami, Florida, to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Until 1949, the part in southern Florida, from Naples to Miam ...

runs through the community, leading north to

Inverness Inverness (; ; from the , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness") is a city in the Scottish Highlands, having been granted city status in 2000. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highland ...

, the Citrus County seat, and south to Brooksville. 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 CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 6.37%, is water. Floral City is located at the south end of

Tsala Apopka Lake Tsala Apopka Lake is a chain of lakes located within a bend in the Withlacoochee River in Citrus County in north central Florida. This area is known historically as the Cove of the Withlacoochee. Tsala Apopka Lake is composed of a number of lak ...

, a chain of lakes and wetlands that are part of the Withlacoochee River basin. The town is located at the 23 mile marker (middle) of the Withlacoochee State Trail, a linear state park that follows an old railroad line. It is currently the longest paved trail in Florida at .

History

Floral City was laid out and surveyed in 1883 by the surveyor W.H. Havron and then-Senator Austin S. Mann. The land was owned by James Baker, son-in-law of ex-

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

soldier John Paul Formy-Duval, an early area settler and landowner. The village was at one time larger than

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

,Floral City Heritage Museum due to the

mining industry located in Citrus County. Around the time of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the mining industry shut down in Floral City. After the war, mining was moved south to the Bartow area east of

Tampa Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...

. The community is said to be a slice of "Old Florida" that remains relatively intact. The town was named Floral City for its abundance of wild flowers, which are still plentiful today.

Demographics

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 4,989 people, 2,180 households, and 1,473 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 2,664 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 96%

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 ...

, 1.6%

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 ...

, 0.36% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.04%

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 ...

, 0.38% from other races, and 1.14% 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 2.6% of the population. There were 2,180 households, out of which 20.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.7% 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, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.4% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.69. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 20.3% under the age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 20.5% from 25 to 44, 25.4% from 45 to 64, and 29.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 49 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.6 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $28,180, and the median income for a family was $33,404. Males had a median income of $26,972 versus $22,348 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 CDP was $14,793. About 10.7% of families and 15.1% 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 22.6% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The CDP is served by Citrus County Schools. Zoned schools include Floral City Elementary School,

Middle School, and

Citrus High School Citrus High School (CHS) is a public high school in the town of Inverness, Florida, United States. A part of the Citrus County School District, Citrus High currently offers a four-year curriculum in grades 9-12 and currently has an enrollment ...

. The Floral City Library of Citrus Libraries is in Floral City.Locations & Hours
." Citrus Libraries. Retrieved on February 4, 2017. "FLORAL CITY PUBLIC LIBRARY 8360 E. Orange Avenue Floral City, FL 34436"

References

External links

Floral City
at City-data.com {{Authority control Census-designated places in Citrus County, Florida Census-designated places in Florida Former municipalities in Florida