Moore Haven is a city in, and the

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 ...

of, Glades 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

Florida Heartland The Florida Heartland (also known as South Central Florida) is a region of Florida located to the north and west of Lake Okeechobee, composed of six inland, predominantly rural counties— DeSoto, Glades, Hardee, Hendry, Highlands, and Okee ...

region. The population was 1,566 at the 2020 census, down from 1,680 at the 2010 census. Moore Haven is located on the southwest shoreline of

Lake Okeechobee Lake Okeechobee ( ) is the largest freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Florida. It is the List of largest lakes of the United States by area, eighth-largest natural freshwater lake among the 50 states of the United States and the second-largest ...

. It is part of the Clewiston, Florida Micropolitan Statistical Area (μSA).

History

The City of Moore Haven was named after James A. Moore (1861-1929), its founder. In its early days, Moore Haven was often called "Little Chicago", reflecting its status as a significant boom town. It was ideally located at the apex of

and the Caloosahatchee Canal.

First Woman Mayor of the South

In 1917, Marian Newhall Horwitz was elected as, not only the first woman mayor of Moore Haven, or the first woman mayor in Florida, she was additionally, the first female mayor south of the Mason-Dixon line. Horwitz was described by the ''Moore Haven Times'', in a July 27, 1917 issue, as being "business from head to foot" along with being seen regularly at 5:15 am riding horseback to work. She resigned on June 22, 1918, taking over management of the Desoto Land Company after her second husband, John J. O'Brien, left to serve in

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 ...

, and after her decision to live on the farm, outside the city limits. After stepping down as mayor, a "grateful citizenry" gave her a silver trophy, which was eventually passed to her son, Dr. Orville Horwitz, as of 1985.

Railroad

Horwitz is credited with bringing the railroad to Moore Haven, while her brother was a business associate of

J.P. Morgan JP may refer to: Arts and media * ''JP'' (album), 2001, by American singer Jesse Powell * ''Jp'' (magazine), an American Jeep magazine * '' Jönköpings-Posten'', a Swedish newspaper * Judas Priest, an English heavy metal band * ''Jurassic Pa ...

, the vice-president of the Atlantic Coastline Railroad. In 1918, construction of the first extension line was finished, bringing Moore Haven's first train on May 13, 1918. The twenty passengers and fifteen freight cars arrived ninety minutes late. "Late arrivals, unannounced schedule changes, and faulty equipment, as well as derailments, were to plague the railroad from the start." The train was often called the "Hinky Dink" and the "Muck Special." In addition to nicknames, a well-known joke about the train circulated, too, "a middle-aged man, who got off the train at Moore Haven, had left Haines City, as a young boy, in the care of the conductor."

Impact of Hurricanes

The Great Miami Hurricane of 1926 dramatically altered the landscape of the area. The

storm surge A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the ...

from the lake caused widespread death and destruction, sometimes literally relocating houses to the opposite side of the river. The town might have recovered, but it was hit not long after by the 1928 Okeechobee Hurricane. This decimated areas that had escaped damage in 1926. Today, Moore Haven is a small, sleepy town that has little industry and infrastructure. Moore Haven is home to the Annual Chalo Nitka Festival, which is held the first weekend in March. There are two access points to the

Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail The Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail (LOST) is a 109-mile multi-use path around Lake Okeechobee, the seventh largest lake in the United States and the largest in the state of Florida. The trail began as the Okeechobee Segment of the Florida National S ...

, which passes through the town and around Lake Okeechobee. Built in 2000 and crossing across the

Caloosahatchee River The Caloosahatchee River is a river on the southwest Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of Florida in the United States, approximately long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National ...

900 feet east of First Street, the Mamie Langdale Memorial Bridge breaks the Florida record of being the Longest Concrete I Girder Span, measuring 320 feet. The overall total length of the Prestressed Stringer/Multi-beam bridge equals 2,281 feet. The Westergaard House, built in 1920, located on 270 Avenue L Southwest, is the headquarters of the Glades County Historical Society.

Geography

The exact coordinates for the City of Moore Haven is located at . 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 (6.09%) is water.

Climate

Moore Haven has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Cfa'') with some characteristics of a

tropical monsoon climate An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate subtype that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ' ...

( Am), with a defined rainy season from June through September.

Demographics

2010 and 2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 1,566 people, 793 households, and 422 families residing in the city. As of the 2010 United States census, there were 1,680 people, 744 households, and 467 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 1,635 people, 572 households, and 414 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 792 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 61.28%

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 ...

, 22.32%

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 ...

, 0.80% Native American, 0.43% Asian, 14.56% from other races, and 0.61% 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 28.01% of the population. In 2000, there were 572 households, out of which 35.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.8% 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, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.6% were non-families. 22.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.81 and the average family size was 3.23. In 2000, in the city, the population was spread out, with 31.8% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 107.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 109.2 males. In 2000, the median income for a household in the city was $26,801, and the median income for a family was $28,542. Males had a median income of $26,615 versus $20,250 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 $12,183. About 19.0% of families and 23.8% 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 30.0% of those under age 18 and 16.8% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Historic district

The Moore Haven Downtown Historic District is a U.S.

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

, designated as such in 1995. The district contains seven historic buildings, and has a park which houses the only

Cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs from the ''Cupressus'' genus of the '' Cupressaceae'' family, typically found in temperate climates and subtropical regions of Asia, Europe, and North America. The word ''cypress'' ...

tree in the district.

Education

* Moore Haven Elementary School * Moore Haven Middle-High School

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control County seats in Florida Cities in Glades County, Florida Populated places on Lake Okeechobee Cities in Florida