Florida is geographically part of the South, although its population differs radically from that of other southern states. Florida's demographic history, however, did not begin to diverge markedly from that of its regional neighbors until the middle of the twentieth century. Until then it was basically an agricultural state, populated by whites and blacks, most descended from people who had migrated from other southern states since 1821, the year Florida became a territory of the United States. The character of Florida began to change rapidly after World War II when the relatively modest but steady flow of mainly northerners into state was augmented by a flood of white southerners, whose numbers have mounted into the millions over the last forty years. Many of those northerners have been retirees. A little more than a decade after the migration of northerners began, a movement of people from Caribbean nations commenced. At first they were primarily politicalÊrefugees from Castro's successful revolution in Cuba, but later economicÊrefugees from many other Caribbean nations settled in Florida. Over the past thirty years approximately three-quarters of a million people from the Caribbean have come to live in the state. Migration to Florida during the last fifty years has made its social geography far more complex today than the past. The maps in the section that follows portray the social geographical heterogeneity of this state, while the narrative attempts to explain it. POPULATION GROWTH Since Florida became a territory its rate of population growth has always been high. In most decades since 1830, the year of the first census, the ten-year growth rate has between 40 and 60 percent. In all census periods the rates of population growth in Florida have been higher than those of the United States as a whole. The nation's population growth rate was higher during the decades of the nineteenth century. In Florida growth rates have been at least triple those of the nation since the 1920s. In 1830, 34,730 people were enumerated in Florida. Most lived in the north, near the Georgia border. When Florida became a United States territory in 1821, the Midwest and the lower Mississippi valley were being populated by people from the settled portion of the nation or from Europe. In 1817 AndrewÊJackson had moved many of the Indians from north Florida in what later became known as the First Seminole War. Florida was now considered a frontier, ready for occupation. Typically the pattern of population growth in frontier America began with a rapid influx of people that lasted several decades, followed by a steep decline in the flow once the land had been occupied. Florida's growth rates were high during the first few decades, but were not as high as in territories in the Midwest or the lower Mississippi valley. In fact, most who came to Florida settled in the north, and few moved onto the peninsula, where the true frontier began, and where a second war to remove the Indians was fought from 1835-42. Migration would have increased if it were not for the formidable environmental obstacles that had to be overcome to live and work in subtropical Florida. Elsewhere in the nation were far more attractive frontiers. People did, however, continue to come in relatively large numbers during the nineteenth century. Florida's population during the 1850s reached 100,000, by the 1870s it had risen to 250,000, and by the late 1890s it surpassed 500,000. It was during the twentieth century that people began to flow into the state in large numbers. By 1923 its population had reached 1 million, double the 1898 figure. The 2 million mark was reached in about 17 more years (1940), 3 million in eleven more years (1951), 4 million in approximately 1955, 5 and 6 million during the 1960s, 7, 8, and 9 million in the 1970s, and 10, 11, and 12 million during the 1980s. In 1990 the state's population approached 13 million. Florida's population overtook that of both Pennsylvania and Ohio in the 1980s, and in 1990 it had the fourth largest population in the nation, behind California, New York, and Texas. The rates of growth of Alaska, Arizona, and Nevada were higher than Florida's during the 1980s, but only California exceeded Florida in absoluteÊgrowth. Florida's delegation to the US Congress grew from 6 in 1950 to 23 in 1992. National prosperity following World War II explains the huge growth in population of Florida during the past four decades. Soon after the war most families were able to purchase automobiles, and many had the time and money to travel. Many chose Florida for their vacations. SocialÊSecurity and other retirement benefits available after the war to millions of workers made it possible for many to move to Florida. Employment opportunities mushroomed with the growing numbers of tourists and retirees. The construction industry boomed, as homes, schools, hotels, stores, and offices as well as roads had to be built to meet the needs of new residents and tourists. Visitors and new residents also required a myriad of services, further increasing employment opportunities. Those who came to work and their families created more demand and more jobs. In short, jobs in Florida have been fueled by migration. SETTLEMENT OF THE STATE At the time Florida became a territory of the United States in 1821 there were just two urban settlements, StÊAugustine and Pensacola, separated by 275 miles. Each held about 2,000 inhabitants. Neither was chosen as the territorial capital. Instead, land was cleared for the capital from the forest halfway between the two older settlements. A small Indian population was in the area at the time, but no Europeans. The town was given the name Tallahassee, a corruption of a Seminole Indian word for the area. Fortuitous for Tallahassee's growth it was located in the best area for cotton cultivation in the territory. For Years it was the market town for a prosperous agricultural region and for a brief time was the territory's largest city. Throughout the nineteenth century three-quarters of the state's inhabitants lived in north Florida. In the early part of the century most of the population was between the Suwannee and Apalachicola rivers, in a region called Middle Florida, which included Tallahassee. Following the Civil War, northeastern Florida, which includes Jacksonville, overtook Middle Florida in population. West Florida, delineated from Middle Florida by the Apalachicola River, barely maintained an 18 percent share of the state's population in the nineteenth century, and most who lived there settled in or around Pensacola. Relatively few people moved down the peninsula during the nineteenth century. In 1860 it contained only 6 percent of the state's population, but by 1900 its share had risen to 28 percent. For decades the most densely populated part of the peninsula was around Orlando where the economy was based on citrus and a handful of other crops that the newly built railroads could ship to the northern United States. Urban centers in Florida were small throughout the nineteenth century. From 1850 until sometime during the 1890s KeyÊWest was the state's largest town. Its importance rested on its strategic location at the entrance to the Gulf of Mexico. The federal government located a naval base there, and several stone forts were built, making the town the "Gibraltar of the Gulf of Mexico." Aside from naval personnel, many of its inhabitants were Cubans and Bahamians. Although visited frequently by winter tourists, it actually had little economic connection with the rest of the state. During the 1890s its population was overtaken in size by both Jacksonville and Pensacola. Jacksonville in 1900 had a population of 28,429 and was thriving as the gateway to the peninsula. Pensacola (17,747 inhabitants) was growing rapidly as a lumber port. Key West in 1990 had a population of 17,114, almost 1,000 less than in 1890. Tampa, with a population of 15,839, was the only other city in the state with population greater than 5,000. Most population growth during the twentieth century has been on the peninsula. At the beginning of the century north Florida held two-thirds of the state's population, but ninety years later it contained only 20 percent. During the same period the share of the state's population in the northern half of the peninsula (central Florida) rose from 23 percent to 42 percent and the southern half from 5 percent to 38 percent. When Florida became popular with tourists and retirees after World War II, south Florida became the most rapidly growing part of the state. Since 1970 both south and central Florida have been growing at about the same rate. In-migration to central Florida was greatly stimulated by both the space program, located in Brevard County, and tourism. Tourism was given a big boost with the opening of Disney World in 1971, which was soon followed by many more tourist attractions. After 1970 many retirees began to choose central Florida over the GoldÊCoast, in part because of fear generated from growth of drug-related crime and violence in Miami. During the 1980s, Miami had one of the highest murder rates of any city in the nation. During the twentieth century the coastal margins of the peninsula have received the vast majority of newcomers. Retirees and vacationers prefer the beaches of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico to the rolling hills and numerous small lakes of the interior, and these two groups have been the principal generators of jobs for those who arrived in search of economic opportunity. A string of coastal towns and cities has grown steadily in size during this century. Many cities and towns have now merged, creating two long and narrow urbanized areas. One extends from Daytona Beach south beyond Miami, another from Ft. Myers to at least 40 miles north of St. Petersburg-Tampa. Today 92 percent of Floridians live in the state's MetropolitanÊStatisticalÊAreas (MSAs). Only six states have higher percentages of urban population. In 1960, the US Census only identified six MSAs in Florida. By 1990 their number has risen to twenty. Florida MSAs are among the fastest growing in the nation. For example, the area that now comprises the Naples MSA held only 16,000 people in 1960, but in 1990 was the home of 152,000. Of Florida's five most populous MSAs, Miami-Hialeah, Ft. Lauderdale-Hollywood, Tampa-St. Petersburg, and Jacksonville grew slower than the state average between 1980 and 1990; Orlando grew faster. New residents are now more frequently choosing to live in smaller MSAs, the larger ones being perceived as congested, and even dangerous. Population growth in Florida outside the MSAs is generally slower. Non-metropolitan north Florida and the interior of the peninsular simply lack the amenities to appeal to many retirees, and few businesses find the economic environment sufficiently attractive to move there. A gigantic metropolitan area comprising several MSAs, with a total population of 4.3 million people, has emerged on the southeastern coast of Florida between Miami and West Palm Beach. Known as the God Coast, one-third of the state's population lives there, including 72 percent of its Hispanics, 40 percent of its blacks, and 37 percent of its non-Hispanic white aged. Its share of the state's Hispanics has remained approximately the same since data became available in 1970. Since 1940 its share of the state's blacks has risen. throughout the twentieth century, until 1980, the Gold Coast continually increased its share of the state's non-Hispanic aged. During the 1980s the region's share of that group fell 2 percentage points, largely because Miami has lost its attraction as a retirement destination. When this huge urban area began to emerge, Greater Miami had the majority of its population. Its share of the total Gold Coast population has been steadily falling, and the counties to its north have begun to grow far faster. COMPONENTS OF POPULATION CHANGE Populations grow or decline as a result of the balance of births, deaths, and netÊmigration. Florida's fertility patterns have changed over time much like those of the nation. The birthÊrate dipped during the economic depression of the late 1920s and early 1930s, moved upwards with the baby boom of the 1940s and early 1950s, and dropped progressively during the past two decades. Every birth adds to the state's population, but Florida's exceptional growth is due only in part to birth rates. Like all Americans, Floridians live longer today than in the past. On the negative side, deathÊrates in Florida are high since the state has attracted so many retirees. By 1990 deaths in Florida almost equaled births, and in several counties more people die each year than are born. As the percentage of aged in the state's population increases, growth through births is more frequently being canceled by deaths. Population growth by naturalÊincrease presently accounts for only 12 percent of the state's growth. Without question, migration to Florida has been the principal factor in its population increase, contributing 88 percent of the state's increase in population during the 1980s. Within the United States, net migration to Florida has been greatest from the northeastern states, followed by the north central states. Many people come to Florida from other southern states, but almost as many Floridians now leave for these states, making for a small net-migration. The majority of those who come from the northeastern and north central states are retirees, although Florida now attracts many in the productiveÊageÊgroups and their dependents. People who come to Florida from southern states generally come with their families to work. Since 1960 hundreds of thousands of Latin Americans have entered the state, principally from the Caribbean, many without official documents. Initially Cuban exiles from the 1959 Castro-led revolution made up the majority of Latinos, but now they come from many Latin American nations, escaping poverty and political upheaval. Canadians, mainly those 65 years of age and older, have for years been a major contributor to the immigrant stream. The newest source of foreign immigrants is Asia, and during the 1980s tens of thousands of Asians arrived. The majority were from China, but many people also immigrated from India. POPULATION COMPOSITION The composition of Florida's population is unusual in two significant respects--its disproportionately high percentage of elderly people and its high percentage of Hispanics. In 1990, 18 percent of all Floridians were 65 years of age or older, compared with 12 percent for the nation. Six counties had percentages in 1990 above 30 percent. Five of these counties are peninsular and face the Gulf of Mexico: Charlotte, Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, and Sarasota. The sixth is Highlands County, northwest of Lake Okeechobee. In these counties, and many others throughout the state, are communities overwhelmingly populated by the aged. The numbers of women, because of their longer lifeÊexpectancy, exceed the numbers of men at these older ages, and thus women outnumber men in counties with large shares of the aged. From the territorial period until the middle of the twentieth century the vast majority of Floridians were either descended from people born in the British Isles or were black. A number of counties near the Georgia border, where cotton and tobacco were important crops, had a black majority for over a century, but today only one remains (Gadsden). Throughout this century the share of blacks within the state's population has fallen. Their share of the state's population has decreased as a result of the huge number of white in-migrants who have arrived, especially since 1950. Also, during several decades more blacks left the state than arrived. Throughout the last century the share of blacks in the state was over three times the national average, but by 1990 it was approximately the same as the national average. The distribution of blacks in the state has also changed. No longer are most living in small towns or on farms in northern Florida. Today most live in the central cities of the state's largest metropolitan areas. Approximately 40 percent live in the gigantic urbanized area that extends from Miami to West Palm Beach. Many of these blacks live in the city of Miami. Like other states of the south, Florida attracted few immigrants from Europe during the nineteenth century. However, several thousand Spaniards from Cuba and people of Spanish descent born in Cuba left during the island's long civil war to live in Key West, where they established a cigar industry. Following a destructive hurricane they left Key West to relocate in Tampa. Early in this century a handful of Greek sponge fishermen settled in Tarpon Springs. Small communities of Danes, Czechs, Japanese, and several other nationalities were established in various places throughout the state at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth century, but they were usually short lived. Ethnicity became a major factor in urban Florida following World War II, when thousands of aged Jews began to arrive in southeastern Florida from the large metropolitan areas in the northern United States. Until then YborÊCity, an Hispanic area of Tampa, and "LittleÊHavana" in Miami were the only urban ethic neighborhoods of any consequence in the state. Miami Beach was particularly attractive to Jewish retirees, and that community quickly became closely identified with this group. Although other ethnic American retirees arrived from the North at the same time as the Jews, they rarely concentrated in the same communities. The most notable exception was the Finns. Many Finns came from the North to retire in and around Lake Worth in Palm Beach County. Florida today has one of the largest Jewish populations in the nation. Most are retirees who spent their productive lives in northern states. Initially they settled primarily in the Miami area, but with the arrival of the Hispanics to that city the Jewish population began to decline. Coincident to that decline, the Jewish population has grown rapidly in counties to the north, and increasingly elsewhere in the state. No ethnic group has had a greater impact on the state's society than the Hispanics. Hundreds of thousands of Cubans went into exile in Florida following the Cuban Revolution of 1959, and a large percentage chose to live in Dade County (Miami). Poverty and civil unrest has driven hundreds of thousands more from Caribbean countries and Mexico to Florida. Today Florida has the fourth largest Hispanic population in the United States. Approximately 72 percent live on the Gold Coast, and most of these reside in the central cities of Hialeah and Miami. Hialeah in 1990 had the highest percentage of Hispanics in its population of any large city in the United States (74 percent) and Miami had the third (56 percent), just behind El Paso, Texas. The Hispanic population of Florida is commonly believed to be overwhelmingly Cuban, but actually it is also comprised of people from many other Latin American nations. Whereas Cubans have concentrated heavily in Dade County, other Latin Americans are more widely distributed throughout the state. It would be comforting, but not accurate, to say that Florida is a twentieth-century melting pot of diverse racial, ethnic, and age groups. As elsewhere in the United States, a lumpy stew of racial and ethnic groups is a more appropriate metaphor. Nowhere is this better illustrated than in Dade County (Miami), a metropolitan area that has attracted many blacks, aged Jews, young non-Hispanic whites, and Hispanics. Instead of a harmonious integration of these groups over time they have contested for the most attractive parts of the city, and those with the most economic power have won. Today the aged Jews no longer have a large presence; the neighborhoods that they lived in have become Hispanic. Hispanics have also become dominant in middle and upper middle class central city neighborhoods formerly occupied by young non-Hispanic white families. The latter now have either moved to the suburbs or out of the county. Most blacks remain in inner city ghettoes, although many of the more affluent have moved to the suburbs. Though the groups may be different, the same contest for space goes on in the state's other metropolitan areas. LOOKING TO THE FUTURE Predicting Florida's population in the year 2000 is difficult. A consensus is emerging that growth will not be as great as in the 1980s. This is based on the fact that the nation's age cohort reaching 65 years of age during the decade will not grow substantially. Also, those who will reach retirement age during the 1990s will have a wider choice of retirement places throughout the nation to select from, and fewer will choose Florida. If national economic growth is as slow during the entire decade as it was in the first years, fewer retirees will have sufficient savings to move to Florida. Fewer older migrants to the state will mean fewer new jobs to attract younger people. Despite a possible reduction in the number of migrants to the state during the 1990s, by the end of the decade there still will be millions more Floridians than when the decade began, The absorption of these new residents will continue to put enormous strain on the state's existing infrastructure. More schools, hospital, stores, and homes will have to be built, and the transportation system improved. The decision of what and where to build will put a heavy burden on state and local planning agencies.