Highlands
County, Florida
Location, Site, and Situation
Central county
Adjacent counties: Osceola-North,
Okeechobee-East, Glades-South, Charlotte-Southwest, DeSoto-West, Hardee-West, Polk-Northwest
Total Area:1,106.28 sq. mi/2,865.25 sq. km
Land Area:1,028.27 sq. mi/2,663.2 sq. km
Water Area:78.01 sq. mi/202 sq. km (7.05%)
Latitude/Longitude of Sebring, Highlands
Water Supply
Main source-groundwater
Total use steadily increased since 1965
Total daily groundwater withdrawals:
1965: 37 mil. Gal., 2005: 107 mil. Gal. Increase due to agricultural activities
Population-Age Breakdown
Age Highlands
County
Florida
Under 5 5.4% 6.3%
Under 18 18.7% 21.9%
Between 18-64 49.8% 60.9%
Over 65 31.5% 17.2%
Population Pyramid
Population
Statistics
Total population: 86,366 (2000)
Population density-85/Sq. mi. or 32.82/Sq.
km
Households: 37,471
Families: 25,780
Government Structure
County Seat: Sebring
Incorporated- Cities: Sebring, Avon Park; Town: Lake
Placid
Unincorporated- Avon Park Lakes, Brighton, Cornwell, De
Soto City, Fort Basinger, Fort Kissimmee, Hicora, Lorida, Placid Lakes, Spring Lake, Sun ‘n Lake of Sebring, Sylvan Shores,
Political Geography
Year Republica
n
Democra tic
Other
2000 58.4% 40.4% 1.3%
2004 62.4% 37.0% 0.6%
2008 57.5% 40.3% 2.2%
Presidential Election Results
Ethnicity-Breakdown
Ethnicity Highlands County Florida
White 87.4% 79.4%
Black 9.6% 16.1%
American Indian/ Alaskan Native
0.5% 0.5%
Asian 1.5% 2.4%
Native Hawaiian/ Pacific Islander
Z 0.1%
Two or More Races 1.0% 1.5%
Hispanic/Latino Origin 17.5% 21.5%
White, Non-Hispanic 70.8% 59.5%
Agriculture-Citrus
Primary source-agriculture Citrus, cattle, dairy
3rd largest county in Florida for citrus 4th largest total producer of citrus
Largest producer of Valencia orange in
Florida
Latest orange season-26 mil., 90 lbs boxes of
oranges (enough to make 40 mil. Gal. orange juice)
Agriculture-Cattle
In Florida, 1st in number of beef cows, 2nd
in beef cows and calves
Over 72,000 head of beef cows, and over
121,000 total cows and calves grazing on 425,000 acres/ 60% (Florida Department of Agriculture)
$31 mil. in annual gross sales for 300+
History
Founded in April 23, 1921 in separation from DeSoto
County
Sebring: founded in 1912 by George Sebring; became
county seat when county founded
Avon Park: Oliver Martin Crosby-1st settler (from
Connecticut), came to study Everglades in 1884; Lake Forest founded in 1886-name changed to Avon Park (English woman was reminded of her home Stratford-upon-Avon)
Lake Placid: Lake Stearns chartered December 1,
History
14 National Register of Historic Places listings
Archbold Biological Station at Red Hill, Avon Park Historic District, Central Station, Elizabeth Haines House, Edward Hainz House, Harder Hall,
Highlands County Courthouse, Kenilworth Lodge, Old Lake Placid Atlantic Coast Line Railroad
Industry-Employment
Industry Highlands County Florida
Natural Resources and Mining
16.3% 1.2%
Construction 5.8% 6.5%
Trade, Transportation, and Utilities
19.4% 20.5%
Manufacturing 2.2% 4.7%
Information 0.8% 2.0%
Other Services 2.4% 3.2%
Public Administration 6.1% 5.9%
Leisure and Hospitality 9.8% 11.9% Education and Health
Services
24.5% 19.4%
Professional and Business Services
9.3% 14.4%
Financial Activities 3.3% 6.6%
Industry-Average Annual Wages
Industry Wage
All Industries $27,691
Construction $28,134
Education and Health Services $36,073 Financial Activities $35,041
Information $41,117
Leisure and Hospitality $14,881
Manufacturing $30,727
Natural Resources and Mining $20,608
Other Services $21,889
Professional & Business Services $25,542 Public Administration $38,701 Trade, Transportation, and Utilities $25,477
Industry-Major Employers
Florida Hospital Heartland
Division-Healthcare (1,300)
Highlands Regional Medical
Center-Healthcare (500)
Cross Country Automotive
Services-Roadside Assistance Call Center (500)
Wal-Mart (Sebring)-Department Store (450) Medical Data Systems-Collection Assistance
Industry-Major Employers (cont.)
Delray Plants/Highlands
Greenhouse-Ornamental Plants (450)
Lake Placid Healthcare-Assisted Living
(290)
Alan Jay Network-Automobile Dealership
(290)
Palms of Sebring Assisted Living-Assisted
Living (264)
Forestry and Lakes
Highlands Hammock State Park-9,000
acres, 4 mi. west of Sebring, opened 1931, old-growth bald cypress swamp
77-113 lakes
Largest-Lake Istokpoga
Recreation-cycling, hiking, camping,
Bibliography
1886, By. "Avon Park, Florida." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 25 Oct. 2010.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avon_Park,_Florida>.
"File:Highlands County Road 29 FL.svg." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 24 Oct. 2010.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Highlands_County_Road_2 9_FL.svg>.
"File:USA Highlands County, Florida Age Pyramid.svg." Wikimedia Commons. Web. 24 Oct. 2010.
<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:USA_Highlands_C ounty,_Florida_age_pyramid.svg>.
Find Latitude and Longitude. Web. 24 Oct. 2010.
Bibliography
"Florida's 67 Counties." Florida Travel, Attractions, Real Estate,
Education, Cities, Businesses, Shopping, Sports, Pictures, Beaches, Facts...Web. 24 Oct. 2010.
"Highlands County Agriculture." Highlands County Farm Bureau.
Web. 25 Oct. 2010.
<http://www.highlandsfarmbureau.com/agriculture.html>.
"Highlands County, Florida." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia.
Web. 24 Oct. 2010.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highlands_County,_Florida>.
"Highlands County Profile." Florida :: Florida Business Resource
for Business Development and Relocation. Web. 24 Oct. 2010.
Bibliography
"Highlands County QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau."
State and County QuickFacts. Web. 24 Oct. 2010.
<http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/12/12055.html>. "HIGHLANDS COUNTY." Web. 26 Oct. 2010.
<http://highmail.highlands.k12.fl.us/~hrrpd/AboutHC>. "Highlands Hammock State Park." Wikipedia, the Free
Encyclopedia. Web. 25 Oct. 2010.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highlands_Hammock_State_Park> .
"History of Sebring." New Page 1. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. <http://www.harderhall.com/history.htm>.
Bibliography
Rubenstein, James M. "Electoral Geography." An
Introduction to Human Geography The Cultural Landscape.
8th ed. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2005. 280-81. Print.
"Sebring, Florida." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web.
25 Oct. 2010.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sebring,_Florida>.
"USGS Scientific Investigations Report 2010-5097:
Hydrogeology and Groundwater Quality of Highlands County, Florida." USGS Publications Warehouse. Web. 24 Oct. 2010.
Wikipedia. "Highalnds County, Florida." WorldLingo.
WorldLingo Translations, 2010. Web. 24 Oct. 2010.
