Leon County Florida   Located in North Florida

Leon County Cities

Land area (rank): 676 square miles (37)
Population 1993 (rank): 206,302 (18)
Population density 1993 (rank): 305 persons per square mile (15)
Growth 1980-1990 (rank): 29.5% (38)

Physical Characteristics

Leon County is in north Florida and is bordered by the state of Georgia and by Wakulla, Liberty, Gadsden, and Jefferson counties. The county has 26 square miles of water. The average January temperature is 51.7 degrees F, and the average August temperature is 80.8 degrees F. The average annual rainfall is 55.17 inches.

History

Leon County was established from a portion of Escambia County in 1824 and named for the Spanish explorer, Juan Ponce de Leon. On the second voyage of Columbus, Ponce de Leon sighted Florida in the spring of 1513 and named the land "Pascua Florida," after the Feast of Flowers being held at that time. Present-day Leon County was the center of the Apalachee Indian culture when Hernando de Soto arrived in 1539.

Population

Leon County's population is concentrated in Tallahassee, the state capital and the county's only incorporated place, and surrounding areas. In 1993, 64% of Leon County's population was within the corporate limits of Tallahassee (131,683 persons). The population of unincorporated Woodville increased from 1,768 in 1980 to 2,760 in 1990. The U.S. Bureau of the Census has designated Leon County (with Gadsden County) as the Tallahassee Metropolitan Statistical Area. In 1993, 73% of Leon County's population was white and 27% was nonwhite. In 1990, 2.5% of the population was Hispanic. Of the population increase between 1980 and 1990, 65.8% was due to net migration. The 1992 birth rate was 13.3 live births per 1,000 persons, and the 1992 death rate was 5.9 deaths per 1,000 persons. In 1992 the infant mortality rate was 10.4 per 1,000. The leading causes of death in 1993 were cancer, heart disease, and stroke.

Education

Of all 1992 high school graduates, 64.1% planned to continue their education. The 1992 high school dropout rate was 4.5%. In 1990, 84.9% of persons in the county were high school graduates, and 37.1% had completed four or more years of college. Colleges and universities. Tallahassee Community College, Florida A & M University, Florida State University, Tallahassee.

Economy

The per capita income in Leon County for 1993 was $18,485 (20th highest in the state). The median household income in 1989 was $27,323. In 1989, 9.4% of families had incomes below the poverty level. In 1990, 12.9% of personal income in Leon County was derived from transfer payments. In 1992 the greatest numbers of persons in Leon County were employed in the government, services, and retail trade sectors. State offices, two state universities and a community college account for most of the government employment. The major employers in the services sector were medical and other health services and business services. In the retail trade sector the major employers were eating and drinking establishments and food stores. In 1992 there were 263 farms in Leon County, totalling 100,764 acres (27% of land in the county). Corn and hay are major crops. In 1991, 8,985 thousand board feet of softwood logs, 60,391 cords of softwood for pulp, and 6,764 cords of hardwood for pulp were produced.

Median value of a single-family home 1990: $75,200
Median monthly rent 1990: $351
Mobile homes as a % of total housing: 12.3
Housing starts 1992: 1,807
Housing starts 1993: 1,884

In 1992 the price level index for Leon County was 96.55 (21 highest in the state).

Local Government

In 1993, the ad valorem millage rate was 8.7600, and the total taxable value of property was $5,207,567,464. Taxable sales totalled $1873.50 million in 1992 and $2040.00 million in 1993. Lottery sales totalled $24,074 thousand in 1992-93. In 1990-91 Leon County's revenues totalled $141,793 thousand ($715.2 per capita) and its expenditures $116,408 thousand ($587.1 per capita). Of those 18 years of age and older, 74.0% were registered to vote in 1992. Of these, 65.6% were registered Democrat and 24.8% were registered Republican. In the 1992 presidential election 49.1% of the votes were cast for Clinton, 32.9% for Bush, and 17.7% for Perot.

Events and Places of Interest

Springtime Tallahassee, March, Florida Native American Heritage Festival, September, Tallahassee; Maclay State Gardens, Capitol Complex, Museum of Florida History, San Luis Archeological Site, Tallahassee Museum of History and Natural Science; Calhoun Street, Magnolia Heights, and Park Avenue historic districts, Tallahassee; Natural Bridge Battlefield, vicinity of Woodville.