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Hobe Sound, Florida
Banyan Trees on Hobe Sound Beach in Jupiter Island
Banyan Trees on Hobe Sound Beach in Jupiter Island
Location in Martin County and the state of Florida
Location in Martin County and the state of Florida
Hobe Sound, Florida is located in the United States
Hobe Sound, Florida
Hobe Sound, Florida
Location in the United States
Hobe Sound, Florida is located in Florida
Hobe Sound, Florida
Hobe Sound, Florida
Location in Florida
Country  United States
State  Florida
County  Martin
Area
 • Total 7.72 sq mi (20.00 km2)
 • Land 7.11 sq mi (18.41 km2)
 • Water 0.61 sq mi (1.59 km2)
Elevation
20 ft (6 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 13,163
 • Density 1,852.38/sq mi (715.16/km2)
Time zone UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes
33455, 33475
Area code(s) 772
FIPS code 12-30975
GNIS feature ID 0284064
HobeSoundFlorida-sunset
Sunset from the Intracoastal Waterway in Hobe Sound, Florida.

Hobe Sound is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Martin County, Florida, United States, located along Florida's Treasure Coast. The population was 13,163 at the 2020 census.

Geography

Hobe Sound is located at 27°04′36″N 80°08′31″W / 27.076737°N 80.142076°W / 27.076737; -80.142076.

Hobe Sound is an exurban area in southern Martin County near the Atlantic Ocean. It stretches along the coast between Port Salerno and Jonathan Dickinson State Park but does include Jupiter Island.

History

The name of Hobe Sound comes from the name of the Jove or Jobe Indians, one of the Native American groups that lived in the area before European settlement. The Spanish pronounced Jove/Jobe as which later evolved into the current spelling "Hobe".

The earliest recorded European contact occurred in 1696 when a British ship, the barkentine (three-masted ship) Reformation, sailing from Jamaica to Philadelphia sank close to the shore north of Jupiter Inlet, carrying 25 passengers and crew and a cargo of sugar, rum, beef, molasses, and Spanish currency. The small Quaker party, including its most notable passenger, Jonathan Dickinson, encountered and received aid from the Jove Indians. Hobe Sound received its name by 1699, according to the Florida WPA Guide.

Parts of Hobe Sound were included in the 12,000 acres (49 km2) of the Gomez grant given by Spain to Don Eusebio in 1815. In 1821, Gomez sold 8,000 acres (32 km2), including Jupiter Island, to Joseph Delespine for $1 per acre.

Shortly after the turn of the 20th century, Henry Flagler built his railroad along the east coast of Florida passing through Hobe Sound. This gradually created many opportunities including jobs, the birth of tourism, and other related industries.

Bubble Houses, Hobe Sound, Florida 006
A 'Bubble House' in Hobe Sound

During the land boom of the 1920s elaborate plans were announced for Hobe Sound by the Olympia Improvement Corporation. Their goal was to create a town, in Greek style, where motion pictures could be produced. Street names bore the Greek theme with names such as Zeus, Saturn, Mercury, Mars, Olympus, Venus, Pluto and Athena. For a brief time Hobe Sound was renamed "Picture City" and plans were presented for a movie picture production center. The boom collapsed after the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane and the original name was restored. Street names remained, however, as did the cement streetlights along Dixie Highway.

In 1924, the building which soon would become the new schoolhouse in Hobe Sound was constructed. The Martin County Board of Public Instruction secured the use of the new school building from the Picture City Corporation in 1925, and in October of that year, the Olympia School opened. The school was designated the “Picture City School” of Martin County. It remained in use as a school until 1962.

Other mementos of the past are gone, including the ice plant, which was south of Bridge Road, and the old train station, which now, refurbished and relocated west of Hobe Sound, serves as an office building for Becker Groves and the Texaco station east of the Winn-Dixie plaza, which no longer supplies gasoline but continues to serve the community with car rentals and a livery service, operated by its founding family.

Hobe Sound is positioned at the southern end of environmentally-sensitive Martin (named after Governor Martin) County. It has been stated that at Hobe Sound’s front door lies the Gold Coast and that at her back door lies the Treasure Coast. Thus, Hobe Sound can lend to both while retaining its proud heritage and unique personality. Hobe Sound’s proximity to the coast affords immediate access to the Atlantic Ocean and the deep-channeled Intracoastal Waterway, a 1,200-mile (1,900 km) water route that provides a sheltered passage for boats along the eastern seaboard.

Another significant historical association possessed by Hobe Sound is the brief stay there of former Defense Secretary James Forrestal in 1949 between his resignation from that post and his death.

March 15, 1997: During a stay at golfer Greg Norman's Jupiter Island Estate, after conversing late into the night, Norman was escorting then President Clinton to a cottage on his estate when the president fell while descending four dark-wood steps to a stone landing. In the darkness, he apparently misjudged the final step, untilsaid White House Press Secretary Michael D. McCurry.

"He remembers his right knee buckling out. He heard a very loud pop," said Navy Capt. Connie Mariano, the president's personal physician.

Alcohol was not a factor, Mariano told reporters while still in Florida. Paramedics at Norman's estate rushed to the president's side. They found Clinton lying on the ground being comforted by Norman and a Secret Service agent. The paramedics checked Clinton's vital signs, put ice and a splint on his leg and put him into an ambulance.

Hobe Sound is a predominantly wealthy community whose residents include such celebrities as "Tiger" Woods, Alan Jackson, Celine Dion, and Burt Reynolds among others.

Police protection for Hobe Sound is provided by the Martin County Sheriff's Department. The Martin County Fire Rescue Department provides modern fire, rescue, as well as EMS Services. State-of-the-art inter-facility EMS services are also provided by the Martin Health System.

Counties

Hobe Sound has been part of the following counties:

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
2000 11,376
2010 11,521 1.3%
2020 13,163 14.3%
U.S. Decennial Census

2020 census

Hobe Sound racial composition
(Hispanics excluded from racial categories)
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
Race Number Percentage
White (NH) 10,387 78.91%
Black or African American (NH) 744 5.65%
Native American or Alaska Native (NH) 19 0.14%
Asian (NH) 126 0.96%
Pacific Islander (NH) 7 0.05%
Some Other Race (NH) 34 0.26%
Mixed/Multi-Racial (NH) 458 3.48%
Hispanic or Latino 1,388 10.54%
Total 13,163

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 13,163 people, 6,079 households, and 3,397 families residing in the CDP.

Transportation

Travel in Hobe Sound is predominantly performed by private automobile. There are no interstate highways in Hobe Sound; the nearest, Interstate 95, is 7 miles (11 km) west. Hobe Sound is dominated by US 1, a four- and six-lane arterial road that runs north to south. Other important throughways include Florida State Road A1A (locally known as a part of the old 'Dixie Highway'), Bridge Road, Gomez Avenue, and Osprey Street. US 1 arguably represents the central business district though some commercial activity occurs on Dixie Highway (A1A) near Bridge Road.

Mass transit

Only a very limited public transport system exists in Hobe Sound. No fixed-route services exist in Hobe Sound. The Community Coach, a service of the Council on Aging of Martin County, is the public transportation service for Martin County. It operates a curb-to-curb, advance reservation, shared ride service and also operates fixed-route services in other parts of the county. The closest Tri-Rail commuter railroad station is located in Magnolia Park to the south.

Railroads

The Florida East Coast Railway runs through Hobe Sound parallel to A1A. At-grade crossings can be found at (from north to south) A1A, Osprey Street, Crossrip Street, Pettway Street, Bridge Road, and Gleason Street.

Until 1963 long distance trains, East Coast Champion, City of Miami, Havana Special and South Wind, served Hope Sound's station. Until 1957 the Dixieland, (nee Dixie Flagler) made stops there as well. Until 1968 local Jacksonville to Miami trains made stops at Hobe Sound.

There are plans to extend the high-speed Brightline rail system and add a station in Stuart to the north. Currently, the West Palm Beach Brightline station is the closest stop to Hobe Sound. The historic West Palm Beach station is also served by Tri-Rail, and is the closest Amtrak stop to Hobe Sound.

Airports

The closest airport to Hobe Sound is Witham Field, and is located in Stuart. This airport is primarily used for general aviation. The closest airport offering commercial service is Palm Beach International Airport.

In popular culture

In Dexter season 7, episode 8 ("Argentina"), Dexter takes his children and nanny to Hobe Beach, near Tower 1, gives Hannah Mackay directions to meet them there, and tells his stepdaughter Astor that beach was where her late mother used to always take them; it was her favorite beach.


Education

The Hobe Sound Bible College is the only institution that provides post-secondary education within Hobe Sound. Private schools include the Hobe Sound Christian Academy. Publicly run schools include Hobe Sound Elementary and Seawind Elementary Schools. Residents of Hobe Sound attend Murray Middle School and South Fork High School.

The Pine School (formerly St. Michael's Independent) is now located on its new campus in Hobe Sound. This prestigious private school has a college preparatory program and educational opportunities for Kindergarten through 12th grade students. The campus offers education covering the basic arts (graphics, music, and media).

Notable people

  • Ted Cabot, lawyer, politician, and judge
  • Greg Norman, No. 1 ranked golfer in the 1980s and 90s
  • Mary Oliver, poet
  • Nathaniel Reed, Assistant Director Dept. of the Interior
  • Vanessa Rousso, professional poker player and Big Brother 17 contestant
  • Marion Margery Scranton, women's suffrage activist, leading member of the Republican Party in the United States, and a member of the prominent Scranton family
  • Worthington Scranton, businessman, lawyer, and philanthropist, and member of the prominent Scranton family

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Hobe Sound para niños

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