Florida
Sunshine State · Capital: Tallahassee · South (Deep South)
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Bordering states: Georgia, Alabama.
About Florida
Florida borders only Georgia and Alabama, and it is the only state fronting both the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. It is the exposed crest of a limestone platform, and rainwater dissolving that rock produces sinkholes, more than a thousand named springs and the Floridan aquifer. The highest point, Britton Hill, is 345 feet, the lowest high point of any state. Lake Okeechobee covers about 730 square miles, and its overflow once spread south as the Everglades, a sheet of sawgrass up to sixty miles wide. Rainfall runs 50 to 60 inches a year, mostly in summer, and roughly 120 hurricanes have made landfall since 1851.
The Calusa, Apalachee, Timucua and Tequesta lived here when Juan Ponce de Leon landed in April 1513 and named the land La Florida for the Spanish Easter season. Pedro Menendez de Aviles founded St. Augustine in 1565. Britain held Florida from 1763 to 1783, then Spain again until the Adams-Onis Treaty, ratified in 1821, transferred it to the United States. After the Second Seminole War of 1835 to 1842, Florida became the 27th state on March 3, 1845. It seceded in 1861 and was readmitted in 1868. Henry Flagler's railroad reached Biscayne Bay in 1896, and in 1928 a hurricane killed roughly 2,500 people around Lake Okeechobee.
The 2020 census counted 21,538,187 residents, the third largest population, up 14.6 percent from 2010, worth 28 House seats. Tallahassee is the capital and Jacksonville the largest city. Air conditioning, mosquito control, federal money and migration drove its growth: rockets have flown from Cape Canaveral since 1950, Walt Disney World opened near Orlando in 1971, and Cuban arrivals after 1959 made Miami bilingual. The orange crop has shrunk sharply since citrus greening appeared in 2005. Notable figures include Zora Neale Hurston, who grew up in Eatonville, and Mary McLeod Bethune, whose 1904 school in Daytona Beach became Bethune-Cookman University.
4 fun facts about Florida
- Florida is the only US state that borders both the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.
- Walt Disney World covers about 25,000 acres, close to the size of San Francisco.
- Florida is home to about 1.3 million wild alligators.
- Florida's orange crop, once most of the US total, has shrunk sharply because of citrus greening disease.
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Frequently asked questions about Florida
Is Florida a US state?
Yes, Florida is one of the 50 US states. It was admitted to the Union in 1845, making it the 27th state. Its capital is Tallahassee and its largest city is Jacksonville.
What is the capital of Florida?
The capital of Florida is Tallahassee. Note that the largest city in Florida is Jacksonville, not the capital, a common point of confusion.
When did Florida become a state?
Florida became a US state in 1845. It is the 27th state admitted to the Union.
What is the abbreviation for Florida?
The 2-letter USPS abbreviation for Florida is FL.
How big is Florida?
Florida ranks #22 of 50 US states by area. With 401.4 residents per square mile in 2020, it was the 8th most densely populated state.
What is the population of Florida?
Florida had 21,538,187 residents at the 2020 census, the 3rd largest population of the 50 states, up 14.6% since 2010. That count gives it 28 seats in the US House of Representatives.
What region is Florida in?
Florida is in the South region of the United States, per the US Census Bureau.
What time zone is Florida in?
Florida observes Eastern Time (the state spans multiple time zones).
Learn more
How to learn the 50 states (full guide)
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