Okeechobee, Florida | |
|---|---|
| City of Okeechobee | |
 Aerial view of the city in 2013 | |
 Seal | |
 Location inOkeechobee County and the state ofFlorida | |
| Coordinates:27°14′38″N80°49′17″W / 27.24389°N 80.82139°W /27.24389; -80.82139[1] | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Florida |
| County | Okeechobee |
| Incorporated | June 4, 1915[2][3] |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor-Council |
| • Mayor | Dowling R. Watford, Jr. |
| • Vice Mayor | Monica Clark |
| • Council Members | Noel Chandler, Bob Jarriel, and David McAuley |
| • City Administrator | Gary Ritter |
| • City Clerk | Lane Gamiotea |
| Area | |
• Total | 4.15 sq mi (10.76 km2) |
| • Land | 4.05 sq mi (10.50 km2) |
| • Water | 0.097 sq mi (0.25 km2) 0.96% |
| Elevation | 26 ft (8 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 5,254 |
| • Density | 1,296/sq mi (500.2/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| ZIP codes | 34972-34974 |
| Area code | 863 |
| FIPS code | 12-51200[5] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0288073[1] |
| Website | http://www.cityofokeechobee.com |
Okeechobee (US:/oʊkiˈtʃoʊbi/OH-kee-CHOH-bee[6]) is a city in and thecounty seat ofOkeechobee County, Florida, United States.[7] As of the 2020 US census, the city's population was 5,254.
TheLake Okeechobee area was severely damaged in the1928 Okeechobee Hurricane, the first recordedCategory 5 hurricane in the North Atlantic. This was one of the deadliest hurricanes ever to strike the US.
Okeechobee is served by theOkeechobee County Airport.
Okeechobee is close to the site of theBattle of Lake Okeechobee, a major battle of theSecond Seminole War, fought between forces under the command ofZachary Taylor andSeminole warriors resisting forced removal toIndian Territory west of theMississippi River in the 1830s. (This territory was later admitted as the state of Oklahoma in 1907.)
From 1918 to 1929, the international drink companyCoca-Cola had a plant to bottle their drinks in Okeechobee in the current location ofJersey Mike's Subs. Damages sustained from the 1928Okeechobee Hurricane was the primary reason they stopped bottling in Okeechobee.
In the 1930s, Okeechobee was the commercial center for the surrounding area, shipping hundreds of train cars of winter vegetables annually. It had poultry farms, a catfish shipping plant, and abullfrog breeding industry.[8]
TheFlorida guide described bullfrog breeding in the Okeechobee region:
Frog legs, or 'saddles,' bring high prices in the winter when frogs usually hibernate and are difficult to capture. Frog farmers enclose bottom lands, ponds, or swamps; as frogs live on insects, breeders strew the runs with rotting meat to attract blowflies. Some plant flowers and shrubs to lure bugs, and occasionally install electric lights to attract moths, beetles, and other nocturnal insects. A female frog lays from 10 to 30 thousand eggs a year; tadpoles appear from 60 to 90 days later, but frogs are seldom marketed before they are two years old.[9]
— Federal Writers'Project, "Part III: The Florida Loop",Florida: A Guide to the Southernmost State (1947)
The exact coordinates for the location of City of Okeechobee is at27°14′38″N80°49′17″W / 27.24389°N 80.82139°W /27.24389; -80.82139.
Okeechobee is located just north ofLake Okeechobee.Taylor Creek flows through the east side of the town. The area is served by US routes98 and441 and state routes70,700 and15.[10]
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.2 square miles (11 km2), of which 4.1 square miles (11 km2) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km2) (0.96%) is water.
Okeechobee has ahumid subtropical climate (Cfa), with hot, humid summers and warm, drier winters.
| Climate data for Okeechobee, Florida, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1945–2011 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 87 (31) | 87 (31) | 94 (34) | 97 (36) | 100 (38) | 100 (38) | 101 (38) | 101 (38) | 99 (37) | 98 (37) | 91 (33) | 89 (32) | 101 (38) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 83.0 (28.3) | 84.3 (29.1) | 87.1 (30.6) | 90.1 (32.3) | 93.6 (34.2) | 95.3 (35.2) | 96.7 (35.9) | 96.5 (35.8) | 94.7 (34.8) | 92.0 (33.3) | 87.0 (30.6) | 83.7 (28.7) | 97.8 (36.6) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 74.4 (23.6) | 76.9 (24.9) | 82.3 (27.9) | 84.4 (29.1) | 88.5 (31.4) | 90.3 (32.4) | 92.0 (33.3) | 91.9 (33.3) | 90.1 (32.3) | 86.2 (30.1) | 80.3 (26.8) | 75.9 (24.4) | 84.4 (29.1) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 63.2 (17.3) | 65.8 (18.8) | 70.5 (21.4) | 74.2 (23.4) | 78.3 (25.7) | 81.8 (27.7) | 83.3 (28.5) | 83.4 (28.6) | 81.8 (27.7) | 77.0 (25.0) | 70.2 (21.2) | 65.4 (18.6) | 74.6 (23.7) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 52.1 (11.2) | 54.8 (12.7) | 58.7 (14.8) | 64.0 (17.8) | 68.1 (20.1) | 73.2 (22.9) | 74.5 (23.6) | 74.8 (23.8) | 73.5 (23.1) | 67.8 (19.9) | 60.1 (15.6) | 55.0 (12.8) | 64.7 (18.2) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 33.8 (1.0) | 37.3 (2.9) | 41.9 (5.5) | 48.6 (9.2) | 58.6 (14.8) | 67.0 (19.4) | 69.4 (20.8) | 70.5 (21.4) | 67.6 (19.8) | 54.6 (12.6) | 45.3 (7.4) | 36.9 (2.7) | 30.9 (−0.6) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 16 (−9) | 26 (−3) | 29 (−2) | 37 (3) | 49 (9) | 54 (12) | 63 (17) | 65 (18) | 60 (16) | 41 (5) | 33 (1) | 20 (−7) | 16 (−9) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 2.47 (63) | 2.12 (54) | 2.96 (75) | 2.86 (73) | 4.15 (105) | 7.28 (185) | 5.90 (150) | 7.31 (186) | 7.23 (184) | 3.80 (97) | 1.89 (48) | 2.33 (59) | 50.30 (1,278) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.01 in) | 6.1 | 6.3 | 6.2 | 5.6 | 7.3 | 15.8 | 13.2 | 13.7 | 13.6 | 7.2 | 4.9 | 6.8 | 106.7 |
| Source: NOAA (mean maxima/minima 1981–2010)[11][12] | |||||||||||||
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1920 | 900 | — | |
| 1930 | 1,795 | 99.4% | |
| 1940 | 1,658 | −7.6% | |
| 1950 | 1,849 | 11.5% | |
| 1960 | 2,947 | 59.4% | |
| 1970 | 3,715 | 26.1% | |
| 1980 | 4,225 | 13.7% | |
| 1990 | 4,943 | 17.0% | |
| 2000 | 5,376 | 8.8% | |
| 2010 | 5,621 | 4.6% | |
| 2020 | 5,254 | −6.5% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[13] | |||
| Race | Pop 2010[14] | Pop 2020[15] | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White (NH) | 3,524 | 3,196 | 62.69% | 60.83% |
| Black or African American (NH) | 496 | 502 | 8.82% | 9.55% |
| Native American orAlaska Native (NH) | 58 | 40 | 1.03% | 0.76% |
| Asian (NH) | 46 | 71 | 0.82% | 1.35% |
| Pacific Islander orNative Hawaiian (NH) | 2 | 2 | 0.04% | 0.04% |
| Some other race (NH) | 7 | 18 | 0.12% | 0.34% |
| Two or more races/Multiracial (NH) | 70 | 165 | 1.25% | 3.14% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 1,418 | 1,260 | 25.23% | 23.98% |
| Total | 5,621 | 5,254 |
As of the2020 United States census, there were 5,254 people, 1,814 households, and 1,316 families residing in the city.[16]
Of the city's population in 2020, 6.7% were under 5 years old, 22.5% were under 18 years old, and 17.0% were 65 years and over. 47.7% of the population was female. There were 383 veterans living in the city and 14% were foreign-born persons.[17]
In 2020, the median household income was $40,149 with a per capita income of $21,449. 21.8% of the population lived below thepoverty threshold.[17]
As of the2010 United States census, there were 5,621 people, 1,839 households, and 1,152 families residing in the city.[18]
The sole school district in the county isOkeechobee County School District.[19]
On 25 December 1837, Lake Okeechobee became the site ofan important battle in theSecond Seminole War, fought between a number ofSeminole Native American groups, the United States government, and allied militias. The battlefield is now the site of a 145-acre (0.59 km2) park, and annual reenactments.[20]
In 2016, theOkeechobee Music & Arts Festival was organized for the first time. This multi-day, multi-genre music festival attracted approximately 30,000 people to the city in its first year.[21] The annual festival has continued since then, and is planned for 2023.
Municipalities and communities ofOkeechobee County, Florida,United States | ||
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| City |  | |
| CDPs | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Ghost town | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
