Medulla is an unincorporated community and

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 western 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. Medulla is an affluent residential community located south of the Lakeland city limits, and north of the

Mulberry ''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of 19 species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 subordinat ...

city limits. Medulla neighbors Lakeland Highlands, and together the two communities make up much of what is known as south (unincorporated) Lakeland. The population was 8,892 at the 2010 census. The area is addressed to Lakeland, with zip codes 33811 and 33813.

Geography

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 (0.35%) is water.

History

A post office was established at Medulla in 1881, and remained in operation until 1909. Before the post office opened, the community was called Spring Hill. The name Medulla was given to the area due to its connecting link on the stagecoach rail-line between Bartow and Fort Meade, similar to how the

medulla oblongata The medulla oblongata or simply medulla is a long stem-like structure which makes up the lower part of the brainstem. It is anterior and partially inferior to the cerebellum. It is a cone-shaped neuronal mass responsible for autonomic (involun ...

(in the lower part of the brain) connects with spinal cord. Medulla saw a period of rapid growth throughout the 1990s and early 2000s with development of Deer Brooke, a meg
deed restricted community
Development of many other smaller subdivisions soon followed.

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 6,637 people, 2,567 households, and 1,791 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 2,739 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 84.53%

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 ...

, 11.65%

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 ...

, 0.03% Native American, 0.62% Asian, 0.02%

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 ...

, 1.82% from other races, and 1.34% 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 5.20% of the population. There were 2,567 households, out of which 35.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.6% 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, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.2% were non-families. 23.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.06. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 26.4% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 33.6% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 8.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.3 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $45,460, and the median income for a family was $51,691. Males had a median income of $35,698 versus $26,341 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 $21,459. 6.0% of the population and 4.2% of families 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 ...

. Out of the total population, 4.0% of those under the age of 18 and 7.4% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

References

{{Polk County, Florida Census-designated places in Polk County, Florida Unincorporated communities in Polk County, Florida