Lake Alfred is a city in
Polk County,
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. It is part of the
Lakeland–
Winter Haven Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was approximately 6,374 at the 2020 US census.
History
The city was established soon after the
South Florida Railroad reached the area in 1883. It had a number of early names, including Fargo, Chubb and Bartow Junction.
The settlement was named Fargo by
snowbirds escaping the cold of
Fargo,
North Dakota
North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...
. They at first named the settlement after their hometown, but the
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...
protested after a series of mix-ups with the town of
Largo. The town then became Chubb and later Bartow Junction because it lay at the junction of a railroad leading south into the county seat
Bartow.
The name Lake Alfred was adopted in 1913 and was taken from the nearest large lake, named after Alfred Parslow, who came to Florida in 1877 and obtained a charter to build the
Jacksonville, Tampa and Key West Railroad.
In 1917, the State of Florida established the first off-campus center for the
University of Florida
The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...
in Lake Alfred, the Citrus Experiment Station to study ways of improving citrus growing.
Today this location is known as the UF/IFAS Citrus Research and Education Center.
Geography and climate
Lake Alfred is located within the Central Florida Highlands area of the
Atlantic coastal plain
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
with a terrain consisting of flatland interspersed with gently rolling hills.
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 (42.84%) is water.
The exact coordinates for the location is at .
Lake Alfred is located in the humid subtropical zone, as designated by the (
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
: ''Cfa'').
Demographics
2010 and 2020 census
As of the
2020 United States census, there were 6,374 people, 2,218 households, and 1,493 families residing in the city.
As of the
2010 United States census, there were 5,015 people, 1,839 households, and 1,372 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 3,890 people, 1,511 households, and 1,103 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 1,741 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 78.25%
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 ...
, 17.25%
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 ...
, 0.23%
Native American, 0.80%
Asian, 1.72% from
other races, and 1.75% 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 5.89% of the population.
In 2000, there were 1,511 households, out of which 32.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.0% 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, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.0% were non-families. 22.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 2.98.
In 2000, in the city, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.9 males.
In 2000, the median income for a household in the city was $36,809, and the median income for a family was $42,904. Males had a median income of $31,875 versus $20,445 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 $18,008. About 10.7% of families and 14.0% 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 24.1% of those under age 18 and 7.4% of those age 65 or over.
Transportation
Highways
* – Lake Alfred lies near the western end of the concurrency between
US 17 and
US 92. The concurrency of US 17/92 leads eastward to
Haines City and further toward
Kissimmee; US 17 leads southward to
Winter Haven; and US 92, westward to
Auburndale and further to
Lakeland.
* – Leads northward to
I-4 and toward
Polk City
Mass transit
The city is served by buses of
Winter Haven Area Transit
Winter Haven Area Transit is a bus system based in Winter Haven, Florida. The system operates 9 of its own buses, and another 4 buses are provided for WHAT by the Citrus Connection. There are 8 routes serving Winter Haven, Auburndale, Lakela ...
, primarily the Route #15 bus.
Railroads played a role in the development in the history of the Lake Alfred. The city is currently served by the
CSX Carters Subdivision, which was previously part of the
Main Line of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad. Amtrak uses the line but does not stop in the city. At one time the city served as the junction of the ACL
Bartow Branch.
Airports
Two airports serve Lake Alfred, both of which are located in
Winter Haven, west of the city. The
Winter Haven Regional Airport along US 92 and the adjacent
Jack Browns Seaplane Base located on the northeast shores of Lake Jessie.
Government and infrastructure
The
Florida Department of Citrus has its department of scientific research in Lake Alfred.
Contact
Archive
. Florida Department of Citrus. Retrieved on September 13, 2015. "Florida Department of Citrus Scientific Research 700 Experiment Station Road Lake Alfred, Florida 33850 USA"
Lake Alfred Public Library
Lake Alfred Public Library was started in 1962 by the Junior Women's Club.
Gallery
File:Mackay Estate Lake Alfred Florida.JPG, Mansion at Mackay Gardens & Lakeside Preserve
File:Lake Alfred library.JPG, Lake Alfred Public Library
File:Lake Rochelle boat ramp LakeAlfredFL.JPG, Lake Rochelle boat ramp
Notable people
* Dawayne Bryan, racing driver
* Ahmed Johnson, professional wrestler[
*Charles Walton “Doc” Adams]
* Manisha Singh, attorney and Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs
The Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs is an office in the United States Department of State responsible for managing the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs. It was known as the Assistant Secretary of State for Ec ...
References
External links
*
City of Lake Alfred
official site
*
{{authority control
Cities in Polk County, Florida
Populated places established in 1915
Cities in Florida