Fort Walton Beach is a city in southern Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. As of 2004, the population estimate for Fort Walton Beach, Florida is 19,992 recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau. It is a principal city of the Fort Walton Beach–Crestview–Destin Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Fort Walton Beach is a year round fishing and beach resort community. Its busiest time of the year is during the summer, with spring break being another busy time when thousands of people flock to the Emerald Coast.
History
Prehistoric settlement of the Fort Walton Beach is attributed to the mound building "Fort Walton Culture" that flourished from approximately 1100~1550 AD. This culture appeared to come about due to contact with the major Mississippian centers to the north and west. It was the most complex in the north west Florida region. The Fort Walton peoples put in to practice mound building, intensive agriculture, made pottery in a variety of vessel shapes and had a hierarchial settlement patterns that reflected other Mississippian societies.
The first Europeans to step foot into what is now Okaloosa County and the Fort Walton Beach area were members of Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca's party, who traveled by boat from what is now Panama City Beach, Florida in 1528 to Texas "Then we set out to sea again, coasting towards the River of Palms. Every day our thirst and hunger increased because our supplies were giving out, as well as the water supply, for the pouches we had made from the legs of our horses soon became rotten and useless. From time to time we would enter some inlet or cove that reached very far inland, but we found them all shallow and dangerous, and so we navigated through them for thirty days, meeting sometimes Indians who fished and were poor and wretched people".
The area is described at "Baixa de Baca" in a Spanish map dated 1566. In later English and French maps the area of was noted as "Baya Santa Rosa" or "Bay St. Rose". A number of Spanish artifacts, including a portion of brigantine leather armor, are housed in the Indian Temple Mound Museum.
Contrary to popular belief, there is no documentary evidence of pirates using the area as a base of operations. Piracy was rampant in the Gulf of Mexico from pirates working out of Hispaniola, the Caribbean, and the Florida Keys. Notable raids occurred in 1683 and 1687 against the Spanish fort at San Marcos de Apalachee (by French and English buccaneers), a 1712 raid against Port Dauphin (now Alabama) by English pirates from Martinique, and the actions of the late 18th century adventurer William Augustus Bowles who was based out of Apalachicola. Bowles was never referred to as "Billy Bowlegs" in period documentation; his Creek name was "Eastajoca".
During the era of Spanish and English colonization, the area of what was to become Fort Walton Beach was noted in several journals but no worthwhile presence was established.
Early settlers of Walton County, Florida were the first to establish permanent settlements in what is now Fort Walton Beach (the area was originally named "Anderson"). One of the first settlers was John Anderson who received land plots in 1838. The name "Anderson" is noted on maps from 1838 to 1884. It wasn't until 1911 that the name "Camp Walton" appeared on Florida maps.
In 1861, Camp Walton was a confederate military camp made up of the 1st Florida Regiment, which consisted of men from the Walton County Militia. At this time, Okaloosa County did not yet exist. Walton County received its name from Col. George Walton, who served as an aid under Andrew Jackson and whose father, George Walton Sr., is the 56th signer of the Declaration of Independence. As a result of Col. Walton's influence in the politics of northwest Florida, his name was honored by establishing Walton County.
The 1st Florida regiments camp was located in front of the Indian Temple Mound, which is now known as the Heritage Park and Cultural Center, and their mission was to protect the "Narrows" from Union ships. Although the 1st Florida Regiment did not see much action, they did keep busy by digging up prehistoric Indian remains buried in the Indian Temple Mound and displaying them at camp.
The 1940 census counted 90 residents in Fort Walton. Fort Walton was incorporated by a State Senate bill effective June 16, 1941.
The community's name was officially changed from Fort Walton to Fort Walton Beach on Monday, June 15, 1953, by agreement with the state legislature in Tallahassee, and incorporated a portion of Santa Rosa Island formerly known as Tower Beach. This 875-acre parcel of Santa Rosa Island with three miles of Gulf frontage was conveyed to Okaloosa County on July 8, 1950 in an informal ceremony at the county courthouse in Crestview, Florida. The county paid the federal government $4,000 to complete the transaction, which was the result of the efforts of Congressman Bob Sikes. The portion of Santa Rosa Island transferred is now known as Okaloosa Island. The government was changed to a city manager form.
A special census conducted in 1956 listed 9,456 residents, which grew to 11,249 by 1960.
Geography
Fort Walton Beach is located at 30°25′13″N 86°37′00″W / 30.420199°N 86.616727°W / 30.420199; -86.616727 (30.420199, -86.616727).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 21.3 km 2 (8.2 sq mi). 19.3 km 2 (7.5 sq mi) of it is land and 2 km 2 (0.77 sq mi), or 9.26%, is water.
Climate
Fort Walton Beach has a very warm humid subtropical climate. The area experiences hot and very humid summers, and they generally last from late May to mid-September. Autumns last from mid-September to early December, and are generally warm. Winters are very short and mild, lasting from mid-December to late February. Springs are warm, lasting from late February to late May. The area recorded its highest temperature of 107°F (42°C) in July 1980. The area recorded its lowest temperature of 4°F (-16°C) in January 1985, just five years later.
Fort Walton Beach is also very wet, averaging 69 inches of rain each year, more than any city in Florida. The wettest season is Summer, and the driest is Autumn; however, the flood season is also in Autumn. Snow and freezing rain are very rare. Freezing rain occurs about once every 5-10 years. Snow occurs about once every 10-15 years. The last significant snowfall was on January 31, 1977, where a depth of 4 inches was reported in inland Florida. The last report of snow was on December 24, 2001. The last report of freezing rain was on February 11, 2010.
Transportation
Airports
Nearby Northwest Florida Regional Airport (airport code VPS) serves Fort Walton Beach, as well as Valparaiso, Florida. Airlines that currently serve Northwest Florida Regional Airport are American Eagle, Delta Air Lines, Delta Connection, Continental Express, Continental Connection, Northwest Airlines and US Airways Express. They provide non-stop service to Atlanta, Charlotte, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, Dallas Ft. Worth, Houston, and Memphis.
Mass Transit
Okaloosa County Transit provides public transportation throughout Fort Walton Beach as well as Okaloosa County. Uptown Station also provides public bus transportation throughout the city.
Major Highways
State Road 189 is a north-south highway that runs from State Road 85 to US 98 in Downtown Fort Walton Beach. State Road 85 is a north-south highway that runs from US 331 in Paxton, through I-10 in Crestview and ends at US 98 in Downtown Fort Walton Beach. US 98 is an east-west highway, which runs through Downtown Fort Walton Beach. It is the main route to Destin, and Pensacola.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 19,973 people, 8,460 households, and 5,419 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,036.5/km 2 (2,683.0/mi 2 ). The racial makeup of the city was 78.84% White, 13.34% African American, 0.45% Native American, 2.72% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 1.22% from other races, and 3.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.04% of the population.
There were 8,460 households out of which 26% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.3% were married couples living together, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.9% were non-families. 28.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.85.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.4% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 96.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $40,153, and the median income for a family was $45,791. Males had a median income of $29,709 versus $21,641 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,085. About 7.3% of families and 9.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.2% of those under ag
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