Avon Park, Florida facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Avon Park, Florida
|
||
|---|---|---|
| City of Avon Park | ||
|
||
| Nickname(s):
The City of Charm
|
||
Location of Avon Park in Highlands County, Florida.
|
||
| Country |  United States |
|
| State |  Florida |
|
| County | Highlands | |
| Settled | 1884 | |
| Incorporated (Town of Lake Forest) | 1886 | |
| Incorporated (City of Avon Park) | January 1, 1926 | |
| Government | ||
| • Type | Council-Manager | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 10.45 sq mi (27.06 km2) | |
| • Land | 10.13 sq mi (26.24 km2) | |
| • Water | 0.32 sq mi (0.82 km2) 12.4% | |
| Elevation | 121 ft (37 m) | |
| Population
(2020)
|
||
| • Total | 9,658 | |
| • Density | 953.31/sq mi (368.08/km2) | |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) | |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) | |
| ZIP codes |
33825-33826
|
|
| Area code(s) | 863 | |
| FIPS code | 12-02750 | |
| GNIS feature ID | 0278007 | |
Avon Park is a city in Highlands County, Florida, United States. It is known as "The City of Charm." In 2020, about 9,658 people lived there.
Avon Park is the oldest city in Highlands County. It is part of the larger Sebring, Florida area. The city got its name from Stratford-upon-Avon, a town in England.
Contents
History of Avon Park
The first permanent white settler in the Avon Park area was Oliver Martin Crosby. He came from Connecticut in 1884 to study the wildlife. By 1886, more people had arrived, and they founded the "Town of Lake Forest."
Crosby helped bring more settlers to the area. Many of them were from England, including people from Stratford-upon-Avon. This is how the town got its current name.
Fair Elections in Avon Park
In September 1949, a 21-year-old named Wiley Sauls Jr. was elected mayor. He was the youngest mayor in U.S. history at that time. Many people, especially from the second voting area, supported him.
In the next election in 1951, the second voting area was managed by its own residents for the first time. Sauls Jr. won again. Two new city council members were also elected with strong support from this area.
After the election, the old city council tried to change the results. They claimed there were problems with the votes from the second area. They voted to throw out those votes and tried to put the old mayor back in charge.
Sauls Jr. and the new council members went to court. They argued that the city council could not just cancel election results. The court agreed with them. The case even went to the Supreme Court of Florida, which also sided with Sauls Jr. This decision made it clear that local governments cannot unfairly change election outcomes.
Military Plane Crashes in the 1950s
On November 4, 1950, a Republic F-84 Thunderjet plane crashed near Avon Park. The pilot, Donald Floyd Whiston, was training for the Korean War. He died in the crash at the Avon Park Air Force Range.
Less than eight years later, on March 21, 1958, another military plane crashed. A Boeing B-47 Stratojet from MacDill Air Force Base crashed at the same Air Force Range. All four people on board died in the explosion.
Proposed Law in 2006
In 2006, the mayor at the time, Thomas Macklin, suggested a new city law. This law would have made it harder for businesses to hire people without proper documents. It also would have fined property owners who rented to them. The law also aimed to make English the city's only official language for business.
Before the vote, many local businesses saw fewer customers. Workers also stopped coming to farms because they were worried. The city council voted against the proposed law, so it did not pass.
Geography
Avon Park is in the northwest part of Highlands County. Major roads like U.S. Route 27 and U.S. Route 98 go through the city. These roads connect Avon Park to Lake Wales to the north and Sebring to the south.
The city is built on a karst landscape, which means it has a lot of limestone underground. Because of this, there are many round lakes in and around Avon Park. Some lakes within the city are Lake Tulane, Lake Verona, and Lake Isis. Many other lakes are nearby, like Lake Anoka and Lake Lillian.
Climate
Avon Park has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa). This means it has hot, humid summers and warm winters.
| Climate data for Avon Park, Florida, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1893–2022 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 90 (32) |
94 (34) |
96 (36) |
98 (37) |
102 (39) |
103 (39) |
103 (39) |
102 (39) |
101 (38) |
98 (37) |
93 (34) |
92 (33) |
103 (39) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 84.1 (28.9) |
85.8 (29.9) |
88.4 (31.3) |
91.6 (33.1) |
94.9 (34.9) |
96.4 (35.8) |
96.1 (35.6) |
96.0 (35.6) |
94.5 (34.7) |
91.2 (32.9) |
87.6 (30.9) |
85.0 (29.4) |
97.6 (36.4) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 73.0 (22.8) |
76.4 (24.7) |
80.0 (26.7) |
84.7 (29.3) |
89.4 (31.9) |
91.4 (33.0) |
91.8 (33.2) |
92.3 (33.5) |
90.2 (32.3) |
86.1 (30.1) |
79.7 (26.5) |
75.4 (24.1) |
84.2 (29.0) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 61.1 (16.2) |
64.2 (17.9) |
67.7 (19.8) |
72.6 (22.6) |
77.8 (25.4) |
81.3 (27.4) |
82.4 (28.0) |
82.8 (28.2) |
81.2 (27.3) |
76.1 (24.5) |
68.9 (20.5) |
64.2 (17.9) |
73.4 (23.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 49.2 (9.6) |
52.0 (11.1) |
55.4 (13.0) |
60.5 (15.8) |
66.1 (18.9) |
71.3 (21.8) |
73.0 (22.8) |
73.3 (22.9) |
72.3 (22.4) |
66.2 (19.0) |
58.1 (14.5) |
53.0 (11.7) |
62.5 (16.9) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 31.1 (−0.5) |
34.7 (1.5) |
39.4 (4.1) |
46.4 (8.0) |
55.8 (13.2) |
66.2 (19.0) |
68.9 (20.5) |
69.0 (20.6) |
66.1 (18.9) |
51.3 (10.7) |
42.8 (6.0) |
35.5 (1.9) |
29.6 (−1.3) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 18 (−8) |
23 (−5) |
23 (−5) |
34 (1) |
44 (7) |
51 (11) |
60 (16) |
61 (16) |
58 (14) |
38 (3) |
29 (−2) |
20 (−7) |
18 (−8) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 2.42 (61) |
2.01 (51) |
2.61 (66) |
2.63 (67) |
3.86 (98) |
9.24 (235) |
7.41 (188) |
7.56 (192) |
7.45 (189) |
3.26 (83) |
2.16 (55) |
2.07 (53) |
52.68 (1,338) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 6.1 | 5.9 | 5.9 | 5.7 | 6.7 | 14.6 | 16.3 | 15.7 | 13.8 | 7.8 | 5.6 | 5.8 | 109.9 |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
Population Information
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1920 | 890 | — | |
| 1930 | 3,355 | 277.0% | |
| 1940 | 3,125 | −6.9% | |
| 1950 | 4,612 | 47.6% | |
| 1960 | 6,073 | 31.7% | |
| 1970 | 6,712 | 10.5% | |
| 1980 | 8,026 | 19.6% | |
| 1990 | 8,042 | 0.2% | |
| 2000 | 8,542 | 6.2% | |
| 2010 | 8,836 | 3.4% | |
| 2020 | 9,658 | 9.3% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
Population Changes (2010 and 2020)
| Race | Pop 2010 | Pop 2020 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White (NH) | 3,647 | 3,933 | 41.27% | 40.72% |
| Black or African American (NH) | 2,363 | 2,544 | 26.74% | 26.34% |
| Native American or Alaska Native (NH) | 20 | 25 | 0.23% | 0.26% |
| Asian (NH) | 70 | 55 | 0.79% | 0.57% |
| Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian (NH) | 1 | 4 | 0.01% | 0.04% |
| Some other race (NH) | 21 | 17 | 0.24% | 0.18% |
| Two or more races/Multiracial (NH) | 138 | 267 | 1.56% | 2.76% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2,576 | 2,813 | 29.15% | 29.13% |
| Total | 8,836 | 9,658 |
In 2020, the 2020 United States census counted 9,658 people living in Avon Park. There were 3,787 households and 2,420 families.
The 2010 United States census showed 8,836 people living in the city. There were 3,146 households and 2,146 families at that time.
Transportation
The Avon Park Executive Airport is a public airport. It is located about 2 miles (3.2 km) west of the city center.
Education
Public Schools
- Avon Elementary School
- Park Elementary School
- Memorial Elementary School
- Avon Park Middle School
- Avon Park High School
Private Schools
- Walker Memorial Academy
- Central Florida Academy
- Parkview Pre-K LLC
- Community Christian Academy
- Cornerstone Christian Academy
Colleges
Media
Television
Avon Park gets its TV signals from stations in other cities. These include:
- WFTV, the ABC station from Orlando
- WINK-TV, the CBS station from Fort Myers/Naples
- WFLA-TV, the Tampa Bay area NBC station
- WTVT, the Tampa Bay area Fox station
Radio
Avon Park is part of the Sebring radio market. Some radio stations broadcasting from Avon Park are:
- WAVP/1390 (Adult Hits)
- WAPQ-LP/95.9 (Religious)
- WWOJ/99.1 (Country) "OJ99.1"
- WWMA-LP/107.9 (Religious)
Newspapers
The local newspaper is the News-Sun. It is published three times a week. Another local paper, Highlands Today, joined with the News-Sun in 2016.
Points of Interest
- Avon Park Air Force Range
- Avon Park Historic District
- Lake Adelaide
- Lake Isis
- Lake Tulane
- Lake Verona
Notable People
- David A. Brodie (1867–1951) – a person who studied farming and coached college football
- Red Causey (1893–1960) – a MLB player
- Eric Cheape (1885–1973) – a college football player
- Derrick Crawford (born 1979) – a NFL player
- Shelby Dressel (born 1990) – a country singer and songwriter
- Nick Gordon (born 1995) – an MLB player
- Tom Gordon (born 1967) – an MLB player and sports commentator
- Ben H. Griffin Jr. (1910–1990) – a businessman, helper, and politician
- Dee Hart (born 1992) – an NFL player
- Hal McRae (born 1945) – an MLB player and manager
- Conrad H. Moehlman (1879–1961) – an author and professor of church history
- Bernice Mosby (born 1984) – a basketball player for the WNBA and WKBL
- Deanie Parrish (1922–2022) – a U.S. Army Air Force pilot during World War II
- Charles K. Pringle (1931–2024) – a politician
- Howard E. Skipper (1915–2006) – a researcher and doctor who studied cancer
- Dee Strange-Gordon (born 1988) – an MLB player
- Ernie Steury (1930–2002) – a doctor and Christian missionary
- Leslie Wolfsberger (born 1959) – an Olympic gymnast
See also
In Spanish: Avon Park para niños
