Physical Characteristics. Hardee County is east of the Bradenton area and south of the Lakeland-Winter Haven area. The county is bordered by Polk, Manatee, De Soto, and Highlands counties. The county has 637.45 square miles of land and .80 square miles of water for a total of 638.25 square miles. The average annual rainfall is 58.07 inches.
History. Hardee County was established in 1921 from a portion of De Soto County and named for Cary Augustus Hardee, who was governor the year the county was formed. Wauchula was the site of a military post built during the Seminole Wars.
