e-ReferenceDesk's College and 50 State Learning Resource Guide

Find Online Colleges

Find Campus Colleges

Florida State...

Florida

Choose a County

Alachua, Baker, Bay, Bradford, Brevard, Broward, Calhoun, Charlotte, Citrus, Clay, Collier, Columbia, DeSoto, Dixie, Duval /City of Jacksonville, Escambia, Flagler, Franklin, Gadsden, Gilchrist, Glades, Gulf, Hamilton, Hardee, Hendry, Hernando, Highlands, Hillsborough, Holmes, Indian River, Jackson, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lake, Lee, Leon, Levy, Liberty, Madison, Manatee, Marion, Martin, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Nassau, Okaloosa, Okeechobee, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Putnam, Santa Rosa, Sarasota, Seminole, St. Johns, St. Lucie, Sumter, Suwannee, Taylor, Union, Volusia, Wakulla, Walton, Washington

Florida Counties

Click Image to Enlarge

Florida Counties

In 1821, there were only two Counties in Florida: Escambia to the west and St. Johns to the east. From these two Counties were formed 67 today.In 1968, the electors of Florida granted local voters the power to adopt charters to govern their counties. Charters are formal written documents that confer powers, duties, or privileges on the county. To date, there are 19 charter Counties in Florida. Collectively these Counties are home to more than 75 percent of Florida's residents.

Baker County, Florida

Baker County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Macclenny
Year Organized: 1861
Square Miles: 585

Court House:

55 N. Third Street
County Courthouse
Macclenny, FL 32063-2101

Etymology - Origin of County Name

James McNair Baker, Fourth Municipal District, Confederate Senator.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

In 1861 by an act of the legislature, Baker County became the 39th county in Florida. The county was named for Honorable James McNair Baker, former Judge of the Fourth Judicial District of the State of Florida.

The first county seat was located in Sanderson until February 1, 1886 when it was moved to Macclenny. Macclenny was named after C.B. Macclenny, a big timber salesman. The town was incorporated April 11, 1887, and a revised map was recorded on March 4, 1889.

Olustee Battlefield, a state historic site located in Baker County, is a memorial to the major engagement of the Civil War in Florida. The battlefield, on U.S. 90 two miles east of Olustee, covers 270 acres.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the main businesses were: cattle raising, turpentining, lumbering, and farming. Osceola National Forest has played an important roll in the economy of the county.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 589 square miles (1,525 km²), of which, 585 square miles (1,516 km²) of it is land and 4 square miles (10 km²) of it (0.62%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

North: Ware County, Ga.
Northeast: Charlton County, Ga.; Nassau County
East: Duval County
Southeast: Clay County
South: Bradford County
Southwest: Union County; Columbia County
Northwest: Clinch County, Ga.

Cities and Towns:

- Glen St. Mary	town	Incorporated Area
- Macclenny (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resources

The history of our nation was a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names given the counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of this country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."