Liberty 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

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

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 ...

, part of the Big Bend region. As of the 2020 census, the population was 7,974, making it the least populous county in Florida. Its county seat is

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

. Torreya State Park and the

Apalachicola National Forest The Apalachicola National Forest is the largest U.S. National Forest in the state of Florida. It encompasses and is the only national forest located in the Florida Panhandle. The National Forest provides water and land-based outdoors activiti ...

are located within the county. 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 ...

runs through the county as well. Liberty County is the only

dry county In the United States, a dry county is a county whose local government forbids the sale of any kind of alcoholic beverages. Some prohibit off-premises sale, some prohibit on-premises sale, and some prohibit both. The vast majority of counties n ...

in Florida as Lafayette County prohibits bars, but not retail sale of beer.

History

Liberty County was created in 1855 and is named after the American ideal of

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 ...

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.9%) is water. The county is bordered on the west by the Apalachicola River.

Adjacent counties

* Gadsden County - northeast * Wakulla County - east * Leon County - east * Franklin County - south * Gulf County - southwest * Calhoun County - west * Jackson County - northwest

National protected area

(part)

Demographics

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 7,974 people, 2,513 households, and 1,602 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 7,021 people, 2,222 households, and 1,553 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 3,156 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 76.41%

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 ...

, 18.43%

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 ...

, 1.81% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 2.08% from other races, and 1.13% from two or more races. 4.50% 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. More than 10% of the population are

Mormons Mormons are a Religious denomination, religious and ethnocultural group, cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's d ...

. There were 2,222 households, out of which 34.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.80% 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, 13.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.10% were non-families. 25.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.00. In the county, the population was spread out, with 21.80% under the age of 18, 9.40% from 18 to 24, 37.70% from 25 to 44, 21.00% from 45 to 64, and 10.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 144.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 159.50 males. The median income for a household in the county was $28,840, and the median income for a family was $34,244. Males had a median income of $22,078 versus $22,661 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 $17,225. About 16.80% of families and 19.90% 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 24.30% of those under age 18 and 24.30% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Liberty County has shifted rapidly towards the Republican Party in the 21st century. As of 2025, Republicans maintain an advantage in voter registration, which is the case in all but four counties in the Panhandle. As recently as 2016, Liberty County had 722 registered Democrats and just 3,399 registered Republicans, although it has consistently voted for Republican candidates, last supporting a Democrat with

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

. Liberty County is run by a board of five county commissioners, each elected at-large. Terms for these offices begin on the second Tuesday following the general election. The following is a list of the commissioners with the number representative of his/her district: # Dewayne Branch (R) # Hannah Causseaux (R) # Jim Johnson (R) # Doyle Brown (R) # Derrick Arnold (D) The school board is run by five members, each also elected at-large in non-partisan elections. Terms for these offices begin on the second Tuesday following the general election. The following is a list of the school board with the number representative of his/her district: # Mason Kever # Jodi Bailey # Darrel Hayes # Jason Singletary # Charles Morris The remaining elected officials are the constitutional officers. Terms for these offices begin on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January following the general election except for the role of Superintendent of Schools which begins on the second Tuesday following the general election, in coordination with elected school board members. * County Judge: Christopher D. Bufano * Clerk of Court: Jace Ford (R) * Sheriff: Dusty Arnold (R) * Property Appraiser: Chris Rudd (R) * Tax Collector: Marie Goodman (R) * Supervisor of Elections: Grant Conyers (R) * Superintendent of Schools: Kyle Peddie (R)

Library

Liberty County is part of the Northwest Regional Library System, which serves

Gulf 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 ...

and Bay counties as well.

Communities

Town

Census-designated places

* Hosford * Lake Mystic *

Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

Unincorporated communities

* Estiffanulga * Orange * Rock Bluff * Telogia * White Springs * Wilma * Woods

Transportation

Much like Calhoun County, Liberty County has no Interstates or U.S. Highways, just state roads. * FL State Road 20 is the main west-to-east route that runs east from the

at the Calhoun/Liberty County line to the Ochlockonee River at the Liberty/Leon County line, passing through Bristol and Hosford. * FL State Road 65 is the main south-to-north route running from the Franklin/Liberty County line at Sumatra to the Liberty/Gadsden County line north of Hosford. * FL State Road 12 is a southwest-to-southeast route running from Liberty County in the southwest to Havana in the northeast. It also contains a county extension into Levy County. * FL State Road 267 briefly runs alongside state road 20 until it splits away shortly after crossing the Leon/Liberty county line and heads north towards Quincy.

Notes

References

External links

Government links/Constitutional offices

Liberty County Board of County Commissioners

Liberty County Supervisor of Elections

Liberty County Property Appraiser

Liberty County Election's Office

Liberty County Tax Collector

Liberty County Emergency Management

Special districts

Liberty County School Board

Liberty County High School

Northwest Florida Water Management District

Judicial branch

Liberty County Clerk of Courts

Public Defender, 2nd Judicial Circuit of Florida
serving Franklin, Gadsden, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, and Wakulla counties
Office of the State Attorney, 2nd Judicial Circuit of Florida

Circuit and County Court for the 2nd Judicial Circuit of Florida

Tourism links

Liberty County Chamber of Commerce
{{Coord, 30.23, -84.89, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-FL_source:UScensus1990 Florida counties 1855 establishments in Florida North Florida