Fort Walton Beach, Florida 1

Fort Walton Beach, Florida

Fort Walton Beach, FloridaCity

City of Fort Walton Beach

FlagSeal

Nickname(s): "The Emerald Coast", "The Camellia City", "The Sonic City"[1]

Motto: "A City On The Move!"

Location in Okaloosa County and the state of Florida

Coordinates: 30°25′13″N 86°37′0″W [2]Coordinates: 30°25′13″N 86°37′0″W [2]

Country  United States of America

State  Florida

County Okaloosa

Government

 • Mayor Mike Anderson

Area

 • Total 8.2 sq mi (21.3 km2)

 • Land 7.4 sq mi (19.3 km2)

 • Water 0.8 sq mi (2.0 km2)

Elevation 7 ft (2 m)

Population (2010)

 • Total 19,507

Fort Walton Beach, Florida 2

 • Density 2,606.8/sq mi (1,006.5/km2)

Time zone CST (UTC-6)

 • Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)

ZIP codes 32547-32549

Area code(s) 850

FIPS code 12-24475[3]

GNIS feature ID 0282710[4]

Website http:/ / www. fwb. org

Fort Walton Beach is a city in southern Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. As of 2005, the populationestimate for Fort Walton Beach was 19,992, and as of 2010, the population estimate for Fort Walton Beach is 19,507recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau. It is a principal city of the Fort Walton Beach−Crestview−Destin MetropolitanStatistical Area.Fort Walton Beach is a year-round fishing and beach resort community. Its busiest time of the year is the summer,with spring break being another busy time when thousands of people flock to the Emerald Coast.

HistoryPrehistoric settlement of Fort Walton Beach is attributed to the mound building "Fort Walton Culture" that flourishedfrom approximately 1100~1550 AD. It is believed that this culture evolved out of the Weeden Island culture. Fortalso appeared to come about due to contact with the major Mississippian centers to the north and west. It was themost complex in the north-west Florida region. The Fort Walton peoples put into practice mound building andintensive agriculture, made pottery in a variety of vessel shapes, and had hierarchical settlement patterns thatreflected other Mississippian societies.The first Europeans to set foot in what is now Okaloosa County and the Fort Walton Beach area were members ofÁlvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca's party, who traveled by boat from what is now Panama City Beach, Florida in 1528 toTexas, "Then we set out to sea again, coasting towards the River of Palms. Every day our thirst and hungerincreased because our supplies were giving out, as well as the water supply, for the pouches we had made from thelegs of our horses soon became rotten and useless. From time to time we would enter some inlet or cove that reachedvery far inland, but we found them all shallow and dangerous, and so we navigated through them for thirty days,meeting sometimes Indians who fished and were poor and wretched people".

The area is described at "Baixa de Baca" in a Spanish map dated 1566. In later English and French maps the area ofwas noted as "Baya Santa Rosa" or "Bay St. Rose". A number of Spanish artifacts, including a portion of brigantineleather armor, are housed in the Indian Temple Mound Museum.Contrary to popular belief, there is no documentary evidence of pirates using the area as a base of operations. Piracywas rampant in the Gulf of Mexico from pirates working out of Hispaniola, the Caribbean, and the Florida Keys.Notable raids occurred in 1683 and 1687 against the Spanish fort at San Marcos de Apalachee (by French andEnglish buccaneers), a 1712 raid against Port Dauphin (now Alabama) by English pirates from Martinique, and theactions of the late 18th-century adventurer William Augustus Bowles, who was based in Apalachicola. Bowles wasnever referred to as "Billy Bowlegs" in period documentation; his Creek name was "Eastajoca".During the era of Spanish and English colonization, the area of what was to become Fort Walton Beach was noted inseveral journals but no worthwhile presence was established.Early settlers of Walton County, Florida were the first to establish permanent settlements in what is now Fort WaltonBeach (the area was originally named "Anderson"). One of the first settlers was John Anderson, who received land

Fort Walton Beach, Florida 3

plots in 1838. The name "Anderson" is noted on maps from 1838 to 1884. It was not until 1911 that the name "CampWalton" appeared on Florida maps.In 1861, Camp Walton was a Confederate military camp, a fortified post, made up of the 1st Florida Regiment,which consisted of men from the Walton County Militia, called the "Walton Guards". At this time, Okaloosa Countydid not yet exist. Walton County received its name from Col. George Walton, who served as an aide under AndrewJackson and whose father, George Walton Sr., was the 56th signatory of the Declaration of Independence. As a resultof Col. Walton's influence in the politics of north-west Florida, his name was honored by establishing WaltonCounty.The 1st Florida regiment's camp was located in front of the Indian Temple Mound, now known as the Heritage Parkand Cultural Center, and its mission was to protect the "Narrows" from Union ships. Although the 1st FloridaRegiment did not see much action, they did keep busy by digging up prehistoric Indian remains buried in the IndianTemple Mound and displaying them at camp."The post was abandoned following the Confederate evacuation ofPensacola in 1862, and its garrison, elements of the 1st Florida Infantry, was assigned to duty on the Tennesseefront."[5]

The United States Post Office changed the official name on their cancellations from Camp Walton to Fort Walton on1 March 1932.The 1940 census counted 90 residents in Fort Walton.[6] Fort Walton was incorporated by a State Senate billeffective June 16, 1941.[7]

The community's name was officially changed from Fort Walton to Fort Walton Beach on June 15, 1953, byagreement with the state legislature in Tallahassee, and incorporated a portion of Santa Rosa Island formerly knownas Tower Beach.[8] Tower Beach, named for a tall observation tower at the site which was later destroyed by ahurricane, had been an amusement area operated from 1928 by the Island Amusement Company by future-FortWalton Beach mayor Thomas E. Brooks,[9] with a board walk, casino, restaurant, dance pavilion, "40 modernlyequipped beach cottages",[10] and concession stands which was largely destroyed by fire on Saturday, March 7,1942. Wartime supply restrictions prevented a reconstruction.[11] This 875-acre parcel of Santa Rosa Island withthree miles of Gulf frontage was conveyed to Okaloosa County on July 8, 1950 in an informal ceremony at thecounty courthouse in Crestview, Florida. The county paid the federal government $4,000 to complete the transaction,the result of the efforts of Congressman Bob Sikes.[12] The portion of Santa Rosa Island transferred is now known asOkaloosa Island. The remaining Tower Beach summer cottages were removed after the 1955 tourist season as thenew Okaloosa Island Authority redeveloped the site with a new hotel and casino. The government was changed to acity manager form.A special census conducted in 1956 listed 9,456 residents, which grew to 11,249 by 1960.[13]

Fort Walton Beach, Florida 4

View from Sound Park looking west towards Presidio Condominium.

Geography

Fort Walton Beach is located at30°25′13″N 86°37′00″W [14]

(30.420199, -86.616727).[15]

According to the United States CensusBureau, the city has a total area of21.3 km2 (8.2 sq mi). 19.3 km2

(7.5 sq mi) of it is land and 2 km2

(0.77 sq mi), or 9.26%, is water.

Climate

Fort Walton Beach has a very warmhumid subtropical climate. The areaexperiences hot and very humidsummers, generally from late May tomid-September. Autumns, frommid-September to early December, are generally warm. Winters are very short and mild, from mid-December to lateFebruary. Springs are warm, from late February to late May. The area recorded its highest temperature of 107 °F(42 °C) on July 15, 1980. The area recorded its lowest temperature of 4 °F (−16 °C) on January 21, 1985, just fiveyears later.

Fort Walton Beach, part of the western Choctawhatchee Bay region of which Destin and Niceville are also part, isvery wet, averaging 69 inches of rain each year, more than any city in Florida, including Pensacola. The wettestseason is summer, and the driest autumn; however, the flood season is also in autumn. Snow and freezing rain arevery rare. Freezing rain occurs about once every 5–10 years. Snow occurs about once every 10–15 years. The lastsignificant snowfall was on January 31, 1977, when a depth of 4 inches was reported in inland Florida. The lastreport of snow was on January 28, 2014. The last report of freezing rain was on February 11, 2010. The KöppenClimate Classification subtype for this climate is "Cfa" (Humid Subtropical Climate).[16]

Climate data for Fort Walton Beach/Destin, Florida, 1981–2010 normals

Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year

Record high °F(°C)

80(27)

83(28)

87(31)

101(38)

101(38)

102(39)

107(42)

103(39)

102(39)

99(37)

89(32)

84(29)

107(42)

Average high°F (°C)

61.3(16.3)

64.6(18.1)

70.7(21.5)

76.9(24.9)

83.9(28.8)

89.1(31.7)

90.6(32.6)

90.3(32.4)

87.6(30.9)

80.3(26.8)

71.8(22.1)

63.2(17.3)

77.5(25.3)

Average low°F (°C)

36.3(2.4)

39.7(4.3)

45.3(7.4)

52.0(11.1)

61.0(16.1)

68.9(20.5)

71.3(21.8)

71.1(21.7)

66.5(19.2)

55.4(13)

45.9(7.7)

39.3(4.1)

54.4(12.4)

Record low °F(°C)

4(−16)

11(−12)

19(−7)

20(−7)

38(3)

48(9)

56(13)

55(13)

37(3)

27(−3)

18(−8)

8(−13)

4(−16)

Precipitationinches (mm)

5.13(130.3)

5.54(140.7)

5.69(144.5)

4.75(120.7)

3.90(99.1)

6.54(166.1)

8.59(218.2)

7.71(195.8)

6.40(162.6)

5.20(132.1)

4.84(122.9)

5.12(130)

69.39(1,762.5)

Avg.precipitation

days (≥ 0.01 In)

9.9 9.3 7.9 6.4 6.9 11.1 13.7 14.0 9.3 6.6 7.5 10.1 112.7

Source: NOAA, The Weather Channel

Fort Walton Beach, Florida 5

Transportation

Okaloosa County Transit Trolley, July 2011.

Airports

Nearby Northwest Florida Regional Airport(airport code VPS) serves Fort WaltonBeach, as well as Valparaiso, Florida.Airlines that currently serve NorthwestFlorida Regional Airport are AmericanEagle, Delta Air Lines, Delta Connection,Continental Express, ContinentalConnection and US Airways Express. Theyprovide non-stop service to Atlanta,Charlotte, Dallas, Houston, Louisville, Ky,Tunica/Memphis, and St. Petersburg/Tampa,with seasonal flights to St. Louis,Orlando/Sanford, Punta Gorda, Fl. and Ft.Lauderdale.

Mass TransitOkaloosa County Transit [17] provides public transportation throughout Fort Walton Beach as well as OkaloosaCounty. Its main stop and transfer location is Uptown Station located on State Road 85, a little over 1 mile north ofUS 98.

Major HighwaysState Road 189 is a north-south highway from State Road 85 to US 98 in downtown Fort Walton Beach. State Road85 is a north-south highway from Alabama State Route 55 in Florala, Alabama, through I-10 in Crestview and endsat US 98 in downtown Fort Walton Beach. US 98 is an east-west highway, which runs through downtown FortWalton Beach. The Brooks Bridge over the Santa Rosa Sound connects downtown Fort Walton Beach withOkaloosa Island. It is the main route to Destin, and Pensacola.

Demographics

Historical populationCensus Pop. %±

1950 2,463 —

1960 12,147 393.2%

1970 19,994 64.6%

1980 20,829 4.2%

1990 21,471 3.1%

2000 19,973 −7.0%

2010 19,507 −2.3%

U.S. Decennial Census [18]

Fort Walton Beach, Florida 6

In the census of 2000, there were 19,973 people,[19] 8,460 households, and 5,419 families residing in the city. Thepopulation density was 2,683.0 inhabitants per square mile (1,036.5/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 78.84%White, 13.34% African American, 0.45% Native American, 2.72% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 1.22% from otherraces, and 3.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.04% of the population.There were 8,460 households, of which 26% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.3% were marriedcouples living together, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.9% were non-families.28.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.6% had someone living alone who was aged 65 or older.The average household size was 2.33, and the average family size was 2.85.[20]

In the city the population was spread out with 22.4% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44,23.1% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100females there were 96.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.5 males.The median income for a household in the city was $40,153, and the median income for a family was $45,791.Males had a median income of $29,709 versus $21,641 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,085.About 7.3% of families and 9.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.2% of those under age18 and 4.1% of those aged 65 or over.

Notable people• Aric Almirola - NASCAR driver #43• Glen Coffee – former running back for the Alabama Crimson Tide football program and former running back in

the NFL. The San Francisco 49ers drafted Coffee with the 74th overall pick in the 3rd round of the 2009 NFLdraft.

• Richard Covey – Astronaut• Jason Elam – National Football League kicker• Scott Fletcher – former MLB baseball player• Shane Gibson - Internationally-known heavy metal guitarist, currently playing with the band Korn• E. G. Green – National Football League wide receiver, Indianapolis Colts (1998–2000)• D. J. Hall – former Alabama Crimson Tide, and National Football League wide receiver• Rick Malambri- Actor• Brian Marshall – bass player for the rock band Creed & now Alterbridge• Matt Moore - Pitcher for the Tampa Bay Rays• Carolyn Murphy – internationally acclaimed model (Born in Panama City, Florida)• Preston Shumpert – Syracuse Orange Basketball Forward/Guard (1998–2002)• Joe Stanley - Retired U.S. Air Force Colonel, commander of Eglin Air Force Base during the 1950s• Danny Wuerffel – 1996 Heisman Trophy winning quarterback from the University of Florida and former

quarterback for the New Orleans Saints• Bud Day - Retired Air Force Colonel; United States Marine Corps, Army and Air Force Veteran; Vietnam

prisoner of war; Medal of Honor and Air Force Cross recipient.

EconomyThe economy of Fort Walton Beach is driven by two primary factors: tourism and the military. There are two majorAir Force bases which border Fort Walton Beach. Hurlburt Field is home to Headquarters, Air Force SpecialOperations Command (AFSOC), the 1st Special Operations Wing, and the Joint Special Operations University. EglinAFB is home to the Air Force Material Command's Air Armament Center and the 96th Air Base Wing, the 46th TestWing, and Air Combat Command's 33rd Fighter Wing. Eglin is geographically one of the largest Air Force bases at724 square miles (1,880 km2), and thus home to joint exercises, and missile and bomb testing. For example, the'Massive Ordnance Air Blast' or 'Mother of All Bombs' (MOAB) was first tested at Eglin AFB on March 11, 2003.

Fort Walton Beach, Florida 7

There is support industry in the area that benefits from the presence of the bases, including military contractors andthe service industry. Companies based in Fort Walton Beach include Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken and ResortQuest.The tourism industry is seasonal, with summer being the primary season, and a smaller peak season during springbreak. The area also boasts a large snowbird population, which includes the Fort Walton Beach Snowbird Club.[21]

The Billy Bowlegs Pirate Festival is held annually.

Top employersAccording to Fort Walton Beach's 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,[22] the top employers in the citywere:

# Employer # of Employees

1 Eglin Air Force Base 16,476

2 Hurlburt Field 11,171

3 Okaloosa County School District 3,278

4 Okaloosa County 1,383

5 Fort Walton Beach Medical Center 1,305

6 DRS Technologies 875

7 InDyne 786

8 Northwest Florida State College 763

9 ResortQuest 750

10 BAE Systems 700

Sister Cities• Quezon City, Philippines (since 1977)

Notes[1][1] Archaic, used from the 1950s to 1970s.[2] http:/ / tools. wmflabs. org/ geohack/ geohack. php?pagename=Fort_Walton_Beach%2C_Florida&

params=30_25_13_N_86_37_0_W_type:city(19507)_region:US-FL[3] "American FactFinder" (http:/ / factfinder. census. gov). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.[4] "US Board on Geographic Names" (http:/ / geonames. usgs. gov). United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.[5][5] Roberts, Robert B., "Encyclopedia of Historic Forts", Macmillan Publishing Company, New York, London, 1988, Library of Congress card

number 86-28494, ISBN 0-02-926880-X, page 212.[6][6] Hutchinson, Leonard Patrick. "History of the Playground Area of Northwest Florida". Great Outdoors Publishing. St. Petersburg, Florida, 1st

ed., 1961, no Library of Congress card number, no ISBN, page 83.[7][7] Hutchinson, page 85.[8] Fort Walton Beach, Florida, Playground News, June 18, 1953, page 1.[9] Hamilton, Percy, "Tower Beach to End Colorful, 26-Year History as Pioneer Tourist Attraction", Playground News, Thursday 11 August

1955, Volume 9, Number 80, page 1.[10] Display advert, Okaloosa News-Journal, Crestview, Florida, Friday 2 September 1938, Volume 24, Number 35, page 5.[11] Crestview, Florida, "Amusement Area Of Tower Beach Is Destroyed By Fire", Okaloosa News-Journal, Friday 13 March 1942, Volume 28,

Number 8, page 1.[12] Fort Walton, Florida, "Island Tract Turned Over To Okaloosa - Formal Transfer Completed With $4,000 Payment", Playground News,

Thursday 13 July 1950, Volume 5, Number 24, page 1.[13] Fort Walton Beach, Florida, "County Hits 61,067 - Census Reveals 11,249 Is Population for FWB", Playground News, Thursday, June 9,

1960, Volume 15, Number "19" (actually No. 20), page 1.[14] http:/ / tools. wmflabs. org/ geohack/ geohack. php?pagename=Fort_Walton_Beach%2C_Florida& params=30. 420199_N_-86.

616727_E_type:city_region:US

Fort Walton Beach, Florida 8

[15] "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990" (http:/ / www. census. gov/ geo/ www/ gazetteer/ gazette. html). United States Census Bureau.2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.

[16] Climate Summary for Fort Walton Beach, FL (http:/ / www. weatherbase. com/ weather/ weather-summary. php3?s=77747&cityname=Fort+ Walton+ Beach,+ Florida,+ United+ States+ of+ America& units=)

[17] http:/ / rideoct. org/[18] http:/ / www. census. gov/ prod/ www/ abs/ decennial/[19] Fort Walton Beach city, Florida - QT-PL. Race, Hispanic or Latino, and Age: 2000 (http:/ / factfinder. census. gov/ servlet/

QTTable?_bm=n& _lang=en& qr_name=DEC_2000_PL_U_QTPL& ds_name=DEC_2000_PL_U& geo_id=16000US1224475)[20] http:/ / censtats. census. gov/ data/ FL/ 1601224475. pdf[21] http:/ / snowbirdsgulfcoast. com/ snowbird-clubs/ ft-walton-beach-snowbird-club[22] City of Fort Walton Beach CAFR (http:/ / www. fwb. org/ images/ fwb/ Finance/ 2011/ 2010FWB-CAFR. pdf)

References

External links• City of Fort Walton Beach (http:/ / www. fwb. org/ ) Official website• Local Boating Events and Information (http:/ / destinsharks. com/ )• The Beachcomber Newspaper (http:/ / www. thebeachcomber. org/ )• Northwest Florida Daily News (http:/ / www. nwfdailynews. com/ )• The Gulf Coast Post (http:/ / www. thegulfcoastpost. com/ )

Article Sources and Contributors 9

Article Sources and ContributorsFort Walton Beach, Florida  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=593038726  Contributors: Acalamari, Acmclain, Acntx, Alarics, Alex43223, Almansolilli, Andrwsc,ArkansasRed, Averette, Bachrach44, Bakilas, BanyanTree, Bongwarrior, Bratsche, BuzyBody, Calton, Can't sleep, clown will eat me, Champ2137891, CharlotteWebb, CheMechanical,Christopherconroy, Chuckcomella, Cmr08, Cobaltcigs, Creol, D.c.camero, DanMS, Droll, Ebyabe, Edward, Elassint, Englandd, Enric Naval, Extermino, Eyyaahh, FLJuJitsu, FSUgrad2011,Flobster, Fvcrew22, Gamweb, Gjn26, GoingBatty, Guardian of the Rings, Haleyga, Hawaiian897, Hello Control, Hmains, Hu, Illegitimate Barrister, Infrogmation, Inwind, Jaap3, Jcurtis,Jdieterich61, Jllm06, John K, John of Reading, Johnpacklambert, Jpnlpinlove, Jrein59, Kiwi128, Kuyi123w, La Parka Your Car, Lauren.kat.johnson, Lzbthhrn, MJCdetroit, Mark Sublette,Mermaid Maritza, Miguel raul, Monstrocity, Moreau36, Mr Stephen, Mtjaws, NE2, Nanouk, NicholasSThompson, OHWiki, OMHalck, Onorem, PKT, Pdelaune, Pearle, Pgabe09, Pinethicket,ProveIt, Qwe, RainbowOfLight, Ram-Man, Rebel32, Rettetast, RichardMills65, Rray32539, S, Scanlan, Seth Ilys, Shadowjams, Shortride, Sidestreamer, Silverplate, Slendro, Sydkid765,Texasrebelaggie, The Anonymouse, Tide rolls, TypoBoy, Ulric1313, Uncle Bubba, Useight, VolatileChemical, Wavelength, WikHead, WilliamJE, Wtmitchell, Zzuuzz, 197 anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and ContributorsFile:Flag of Fort Walton Beach, Florida.png  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_Fort_Walton_Beach,_Florida.png  License: Public Domain  Contributors:Illegitimate Barrister, TeleComNasSprVenFile:Seal of Fort Walton Beach, Florida.png  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Seal_of_Fort_Walton_Beach,_Florida.png  License: Public Domain  Contributors:Illegitimate BarristerFile:Okaloosa_County_Florida_Incorporated_and_Unincorporated_areas_Fort_Walton_Beach_Highlighted.svg  Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Okaloosa_County_Florida_Incorporated_and_Unincorporated_areas_Fort_Walton_Beach_Highlighted.svg  License: Creative CommonsAttribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported  Contributors: ArkyanFile:Flag of the United States.svg  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg  License: Public Domain  Contributors: AnomieFile:Flag of Florida.svg  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_Florida.svg  License: Public Domain  Contributors: Awg1010, Dbenbenn, Denelson83, DenghiùComm,Dzordzm, Ebyabe, Fma12, Fry1989, Himasaram, Homo lupus, Hystrix, Illegitimate Barrister, Madden, Mattes, Nightstallion, Pumbaa80, Reach Out to the Truth, Reuvenk, Rocket000,Theo10011, Vantey, Zscout370, 13 anonymous editsFile:Flag of Okaloosa County, Florida.png  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_Okaloosa_County,_Florida.png  License: Public Domain  Contributors: IllegitimateBarrister, TeleComNasSprVenFile:Sound Park Fort Walton Beach.jpg  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Sound_Park_Fort_Walton_Beach.jpg  License: Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 3.0 Contributors: User:Fvcrew22File:Okaloosa Trolley.jpg  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Okaloosa_Trolley.jpg  License: Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 3.0  Contributors: User:Fvcrew22File:Flag of the Philippines.svg  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_the_Philippines.svg  License: Public Domain  Contributors: User:Achim1999

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