Florida

Header Image from National Park Service Everglades National Park, Florida.

Florida was admitted on March 3, 1845 as the 27th state.

Bird: Mockingbird – The mockingbird can imitate many sounds, including the chirps of some 35 different bird species. And the chatty flier can learn over 200 different songs in its lifetime. Northern mockingbirds are very smart animals. They are able to identify humans, especially those that tried to destroy their nests. Northern mockingbirds mate for a lifetime. Male and female build nest together and produce 2 to 4 broods per season. State bird of Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas

Flower: Orange blossom. The Orange blossom is used in perfume making, has been written about as an aphrodisiac. It is traditionally associated with good fortune and has been popular in bridal bouquets and head wreaths for weddings.

Tree: Serbal palm. Sabal is a genus of New World palms, commonly known as palmettos. They are fan palms. Sabal Palms are also known as cabbage-palm, palmetto, and swamp cabbage.
Sabal palms are extremely salt-tolerant (can even grow where washed by sea water at high tide) and are often seen growing near the Atlantic ocean coast. The tree produces the palm heart which is used in heart of palm salad but harvesting the palm heart kills the tree. This tree is the state symbol of Florida and South Carolina.

State Quarter
From theus50.com

The design incorporates a 16th-century Spanish galleon, a space shuttle and the inscription “Gateway to Discovery.” A strip of land with Sabal palm trees is also depicted.

On Easter in 1513, while searching for the legendary Fountain of Youth, Ponce de Leon named the region “Pascua Florida,” meaning “Flowery Easter.” In 1539, Hernando de Soto and other explorers continued the exploration of the New World through the region.

Florida, home to the Kennedy Space Center, has been the starting point for most of the modern era’s most significant scientific space expeditions from Man’s first moon landing to the Voyager probe currently exploring deep space outside our solar system. From 16th-century Spanish galleons to 21st-century space exploration, Florida has played a continuing role in humanity’s quest for knowledge and discovery. With the highest average temperature of any state, and the second longest shoreline, Florida is one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations.

Capital: Tallahassee

Nickname: Sunshine State/ Peninsula State

Motto: In God We Trust

Florida Facts and Trivia

“Florida” means “flowery” in Spanish.

Six days after Easter in 1513, the Spanish conquistador, Juan Ponce de León, landed near what is now the city of Saint Augustine. In honor of the holiday and the area’s plant life, he named the land Florida for the Spanish phrase for the Easter season, pascua florida (“feast of flowers”). The name is the oldest surviving European place-name in the U.S.

Safety Harbor is the home of the historic Espiritu Santo Springs. Given this name in 1539 by the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto. He was searching for the legendary Fountain of Youth. The natural springs have attracted attention worldwide for their curative powers.

Spanish explorer Pedro Menéndez de Avilés established the first permanent European settlement in the United States at St. Augustine in 1565.

The first graded road built in Florida was Old Kings Road in 1763. It was named for King George of England.

Before he was President of the United States, General Andrew Jackson led an invasion of Seminole Indians in Spanish-controlled Florida in 1817.

Florida became a U.S. Territory in 1821 with General Andrew Jackson as military governor.

Dr. John Gorrie of Apalachicola invented mechanical refrigeration in 1851.

Miami Beach pharmacist Benjamin Green invented the first suntan cream in 1944. He accomplished this development by cooking cocoa butter in a granite coffee pot on his wife’s stove.

May 20, 1970 Florida lawmakers passed and sent to the Governor a bill adopting the moonstone as the official state gem. Ironically, the moonstone is not found naturally in Florida…nor was it found on the moon.

In 1987 the Florida legislature designated the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) the official state reptile. Long an unofficial symbol of the state, the alligator originally symbolized Florida’s extensive untamed wilderness and swamps.

Florida is not the southernmost state in the United States. Hawaii is farther south.

Florida is the only state that has 2 rivers both with the same name. There is a Withlacoochee in north central Florida (Madison County) and a Withlacoochee in central Florida. They have nothing in common except the name.

Any place in Florida is at distance not more than 60 miles (100 km) from the ocean.

Florida produces 70% of the U.S. oranges and supplies amazing 40% of the world’s orange juice.

Only four states have a lower tax burden than Florida, which has no State Income Tax at all.

Florida has approximately 1,300 golf courses, more than any other state.

Florida has more toll roads and bridges than any other state in the Union.

The Florida Everglades are the only place on the planet where crocodiles and alligators live together.

Florida is the largest producer of watermelons in the country. It also produces the most tomatoes, strawberries and sugar.

Gatorade was named for the University of Florida Gators where the drink was first developed.

The Saint John’s River is one of the few rivers that flows north instead of south.

The largest lake in Florida is Lake Okeechobee.

Florida Cities

Cape Canaveral is America’s launch pad for space flights.

The United States city with the highest rate of lightning strikes per capita is Clearwater.

In terms of area, Jacksonville, Florida is the largest city in the United States.

Fort Lauderdale is known as the Venice of America because the city has 185 miles of local waterways.

Fort Meade is the oldest settlement in Polk County. It dates back to 1849 when a settlement grew up around the United States Cavalry fort during the Seminole Indian Wars.

Just north of Haines City is the Baseball City Stadium the spring training home of the Kansas City Royals. Haines City is known as The Heart of Florida.

Islamorada is billed as the Sports Fishing Capital of the World.

Plant City, the Winter Strawberry Capital of the World, holds the Guinness record for the world’s largest strawberry shortcake. The 827 square-foot, 6,000 pound cake was made on Feb. 19, 1999 in McCall Park.

The name Punta Gorda, which means, “fat point” when translated from Spanish. The moniker was given to the city because a broad part of the land in Punta Gorda juts into Charlotte Harbor. The harbor itself is somewhat unique, as it is the point where the Peace River meets the ocean.

Titusville, known as Space City, USA, is located on the west shore of the Indian River directly across from the John F. Kennedy Space Center.

Venice is known as the Shark Tooth Capital of the World. Collecting prehistoric sharks teeth has been a favorite pastime of visitors and residents of the Venice area for years

Ybor City was once known as the Cigar Capital of the World with nearly 12,000 tabaqueros (cigar-makers) employed in 200 factories. Ybor City produced an estimated 700 million cigars a year at the industry’s peak.

Weird laws

Doors of all public buildings must open outwards
It is illegal to sell your children
Corrupting the public morals is defined as a nuisance, and is declared a misdemeanor offense.
If you have sex in any other position than missionary, you’re breaking the law.
Men are not allowed in public wearing a strapless dress, no matter how high fashion it is.
In Florida, it is explicitly illegal to drive over graves.
Parking on a sidewalk, crosswalk, or at the edge of a curbed street is also illegal.
In Welaka, Florida, vehicles that are abandon, junked, or disregarded are not allowed to be stored or deposited on private or public lands located within the city limits.
In Cape Coral City, Florida, it is illegal for anyone have a couch in their carport.
In Florida, it is illegal to confine a pregnant pig to a cage

People:

• Dave Barry, columnist, author
• Pat Boone, singer
• Delta Burke, actress
• Duante Culpepper, Football quarterback
• David Duval, American professional golfer
• Faye Dunaway, actress
• Chris Evert, tennis player
• Michael Irvin, football player, sports commentator
• Frances Langford, singer
• Butterfly McQueen, actress, Prissy in “Gone with the Wind”
• Jim Morrison, singer, song-writer
• Sidney Poitier, actor
• Janet Reno, attorney general
• David Robinson, basketball player
• Marco Rubio, senator
• Wesley Snipes, actor
• Steve Spurrier, football player and coach
• Bob Villa, home improvement personality

Credits:

See 11 facts about Florida
See Raise Your Brain.com
See 50 states.com
See History.com
See state symbols.org
See Mental Floss.com
See The fact file.org
See beef 2 live.com

See Ducksters.com
***Nelson, Ken. “Florida State History for Kids.” Ducksters, Technological Solutions, Inc. (TSI), www.ducksters.com/geography/us_states/florida_history.php. Accessed 17 February 2019.

See Tidbits of History.com/states for facts and trivia about all the states.