Physical Characteristics. Alachua County is in northeast Florida and is bordered by Columbia, Union, Bradford, Putnam, Marion, Levy, and Gilchrist counties. The county has 901.47 square miles of land and 68.00 square miles of water for a total of 969.47 square miles. The average January temperature is 51.1 degrees Fahrenheit, and the average August temperature is 81.1 degrees Fahrenheit. The average annual rainfall is 49.90 inches.
History. Alachua County was established in 1824 from a portion of St. Johns County and named for a Spanish ranch existing in the vicinity in 1680. Two derivatives have been proposed for the name: La ("the" in Spanish) and Chua ("sink" in Seminole) and Luchuwa ("jug" in Seminole). The name is thought to refer to a large chasm 2.5 miles southeast of Gainesville.
