Gulf 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 ...

located in the panhandle of the U.S. state of

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 14,192. 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 Port St. Joe. Gulf County is included in the

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 ...

, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Gulf County, created in 1925, was named for 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 ...

. Wewahitchka was its first county seat and the 1927

Gulf County Courthouse A gulf is a large inlet from an ocean or their seas into a landmass, larger and typically (though not always) with a narrower opening than a bay (geography), bay. The term was used traditionally for large, highly indented navigable bodies of s ...

is still in existence. In 1965 the county seat was moved to Port Saint Joe, which under its original name

Saint Joseph According to the canonical Gospels, Joseph (; ) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. Joseph is venerated as Saint Joseph in the Catholic Church, Eastern O ...

, had been the site of

's first Constitutional Convention in 1838. In 2018, Category 5 Hurricane Michael made landfall just miles north of the county line in Mexico Beach, severely damaging large parts of the region and its timber and shellfish industries. The area has largely recovered in the years since.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (25.4%) is water.

Communities

Cities

* Port St. Joe * Wewahitchka

Unincorporated communities

Unincorporated areas include: * Cape San Blas * Dalkeith * Highland View * Honeyville * Howard Creek * Indian Pass * Oak Grove * Overstreet * St. Joe Beach * White City

Time zones

By way of the Intracoastal Waterway, Gulf County is one of a small number of counties in the United States to be in two time zones, Eastern and Central in this case.

Adjacent counties

* Calhoun County, Florida — north * Liberty County, Florida — northeast *

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 ...

— east * Bay County, Florida — west

National protected area

* St. Vincent National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Demographics

2020 census

The 2020 United States census counted 14,192 people, 5,571 households, and 3,656 families in Gulf County, Florida. The population density was 25.6 per square mile (9.9/km). There were 8,796 housing units at an average density of 15.9 per square mile (6.1/km). The racial makeup was 80.32% (11,399)

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 ...

European American European Americans are Americans of European ancestry. This term includes both people who descend from the first European settlers in the area of the present-day United States and people who descend from more recent European arrivals. Since th ...

(79.07%

non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...

), 12.0% (1,703)

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 ...

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

, 0.54% (76) Native American or

Alaska Native Alaska Natives (also known as Native Alaskans, Alaskan Indians, or Indigenous Alaskans) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of Alaska that encompass a diverse arena of cultural and linguistic groups, including the I ...

, 0.4% (57) Asian, 0.03% (4)

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 ...

Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, Indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was set ...

, 1.66% (236) from other races, and 5.05% (717) 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 was 3.91% (555) of the population. Of the 5,571 households, 23.7% had children under the age of 18; 49.0% were married couples living together; 25.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 28.2% of households consisted of individuals and 15.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.1 and the average family size was 2.5. The percent of those with a bachelor’s degree or higher was estimated to be 19.6% of the population. 16.7% of the population was under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 22.2% from 25 to 44, 30.0% from 45 to 64, and 24.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.3 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 86.0 males. The 2016-2020 5-year

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...

estimates show that the median household income was $50,640 (with a margin of error of +/- $3,582). The median family income was $60,978 (+/- $11,534). Males had a median income of $34,738 (+/- $4,577) versus $26,463 (+/- $5,198) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $31,055 (+/- $3,077). Approximately, 10.0% of families and 12.1% 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 13.9% of those under the age of 18 and 8.4% of those ages 65 or over.

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 13,332 people, 4,931 households, and 3,535 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

was . There were 7,587 housing units at an average density of . The

racial Race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 16th century, when it was used to refer to groups of va ...

makeup of the county was 79.89%

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 ...

, 16.94%

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 ...

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 ...

, 0.65% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.05%

, 0.53% from other races, and 1.55% from two or more races. 2.03% of the population were

or Latino of any race. There were 4,931 households, out of which 28.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.50% 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, 11.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.30% were non-families. 25.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.87. In the county, the population was spread out, with 21.70% under the age of 18, 6.80% from 18 to 24, 29.40% from 25 to 44, 26.00% from 45 to 64, and 16.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 114.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 116.70 males. The median income for a household in the county was $30,276, and the median income for a family was $36,289. Males had a median income of $27,539 versus $20,780 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 $14,449. About 13.70% of families and 16.70% of the population were below the

, including 20.80% of those under age 18 and 14.10% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Once heavily Democratic, Gulf County voted Republican at the Presidential level for the first time in 1964 and has transitioned to a Republican stronghold at the Presidential level. The county still supported conservative Democrats for local office until the 2000s. Republicans flipped most county offices in the 2010s and now consist of a strong majority of registered voters as of 2023. The county is governed by a five-member Board of County Commissioners, elected in single-member districts. At the state level, Gulf County is represented by State Senator Corey Simon (R) and State Representative Jason Shoaf (R). Gulf County is a part of Florida's 2nd Congressional District and is represented by Neal Dunn (R).

Education

Gulf County is served by Gulf County Schools.

Libraries

Gulf County is part of the Northwest Regional Library System (NWRLS), which serves Bay and

Liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...

Counties as well. * Bay County Public Library * Panama City Beach Public Library * Parker Public Library * Springfield Public Library * Gulf County Public Library * Charles Whitehead Public Library * Harrell Memorial Library of Liberty County * Jimmy Weaver Memorial Library

Transportation

Airports

* Costin Airport

Notes

References

External links

Government links/Constitutional offices

Gulf County Board of County Commissioners

Gulf County Supervisor of Elections

Gulf County Property Appraiser

Gulf County Sheriff's Office

Gulf County Tax Collector

Special districts

Gulf County School District

Northwest Florida Water Management District

Judicial branch

Gulf County Clerk of Courts

Circuit and County Court for the 14th Judicial Circuit of Florida
serving Bay, Calhoun, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson and Washington counties

Tourism links

Gulf County Tourism Development Council

Business links

Gulf County Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control 1925 establishments in Florida Counties in multiple time zones Florida counties North Florida Populated places established in 1925