Micanopy, Florida facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Micanopy, Florida
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Micanopy Town Hall and Library
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| Motto(s):
"The Town that Time Forgot"
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Location in Alachua County and the state of Florida
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| Settled | 1821 |
| Incorporated | 1837 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor-Commission |
| Elevation | 38 m (125 ft) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 648 |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code |
32667
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| Area code(s) | 352 |
| FIPS code | 12-45225 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0286767 |
Micanopy (
i/ˌmɪkəˈnoʊpi/ MIK-ə-NOH-pee) is a town in Alachua County, Florida, United States, located south of Gainesville. It is part of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population as of the 2020 census was 648, up from 600 at the 2010 census.
It is the oldest community in the interior of Florida that has been continually inhabited. Its downtown area is designated as the Micanopy Historic District, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This municipality contains a number of antique stores, as well as several restaurants, a library, firehouse, and post office. Its unofficial slogan is "The Town that Time Forgot."
Contents
History
A historical marker in the area notes that Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto recorded finding a village of the Timucua portion of the Potano tribe located near by in 1539. In 1774, the American naturalist William Bartram recorded his impressions of a proto-Seminole village named "Cuscowilla".
By the time Spain ceded its Florida provinces to the U.S. in 1821, the newly constructed hamlet of Micanopy became the first distinct United States town in the Florida Territory. One of the early settlers of the area was Moses Elias Levy, a wealthy Jewish businessman and philanthropist who was involved in West Indies shipping and other interests. He immigrated to the United States in 1820 and founded "Pilgrimage", the first Jewish communal settlement in the United States located two miles from town.
The village of Micanopy was built under the auspices of the Florida Association of New York (the earliest Florida development corporation, headquartered in Manhattan). Chief Micanopy lived about 60 miles (97 km) south in present-day Sumter County. In 1821, when the territorial village was developed, a faction of Miccosukee Indians lived in the immediate area. The historian C. S. Monaco has suggested that the town was named after Micanopy "to appease the chief and acknowledge his original authority over the land." In the early days, the frontier village was sometimes referred to as "Wantons", after one of the original settlers.
Both Fort Defiance (1835–1836) and Fort Micanopy (1837–1843) were located here during the Second Seminole War. Some of the bloodiest battles of that war took place along the road southwest from Fort Micanopy to Fort Wacahoota, just inside modern Alachua County. A recent archaeological study has verified both forts as well as the location of two battlefields within the town limits: the Battle of Micanopy and the Battle of Welika Pond (1836).
The Town of Micanopy was officially incorporated as a municipality in 1837.
Prior to the 1880s, produce from Micanopy, including citrus, was carried to the southern shore of Lake Alachua and taken by boat to the northern shore, which was served by branch lines from the Transit Railroad. In 1883, the Florida Southern Railway built a branch line to Micanopy from its line running from Rochelle (southeast of Gainesville) to Ocala. In 1895, a rail line was laid from Micanopy by the Gainesville and Gulf Railroad, and by 1889, reached to Irvine and Fairfield in Marion County, and Sampson City in Bradford County, where it connected to the Atlantic, Suwannee River and Gulf Railway and the Georgia Southern and Florida Railroad. The railroads spurred farming in the surrounding area. It had a population of over 600 in 1880. In the 1920s, cars crossed Paynes Prairie on the Micanopy Causeway.
Geography
The approximate coordinates for the Town of Micanopy is located at 29°30′28.95″N 82°16′50.48″W / 29.5080417°N 82.2806889°W.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.8 km2), of which 1.0 square mile (2.6 km2) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) (4.63%) is water.
Climate
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild winters. According to the Köppen climate classification, the Town of Micanopy has a humid subtropical climate zone (Cfa).
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1880 | 432 | — | |
| 1890 | 494 | 14.4% | |
| 1900 | 645 | 30.6% | |
| 1910 | 613 | −5.0% | |
| 1920 | 546 | −10.9% | |
| 1930 | 725 | 32.8% | |
| 1940 | 720 | −0.7% | |
| 1950 | 612 | −15.0% | |
| 1960 | 658 | 7.5% | |
| 1970 | 759 | 15.3% | |
| 1980 | 737 | −2.9% | |
| 1990 | 612 | −17.0% | |
| 2000 | 653 | 6.7% | |
| 2010 | 600 | −8.1% | |
| 2020 | 648 | 8.0% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
2010 and 2020 census
| Race | Pop 2010 | Pop 2020 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White (NH) | 435 | 474 | 72.50% | 73.15% |
| Black or African American (NH) | 133 | 100 | 22.17% | 15.43% |
| Native American or Alaska Native (NH) | 4 | 1 | 0.67% | 0.15% |
| Asian (NH) | 1 | 3 | 0.17% | 0.46% |
| Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian (NH) | 0 | 0 | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Some other race (NH) | 0 | 4 | 0.00% | 0.62% |
| Two or more races/Multiracial (NH) | 10 | 36 | 1.67% | 5.56% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 17 | 30 | 2.83% | 4.63% |
| Total | 600 | 648 |
As of the 2020 United States census, there were 648 people, 201 households, and 111 families residing in the town.
As of the 2010 United States census, there were 600 people, 358 households, and 205 families residing in the town.
Arts and culture
Micanopy hosts an annual autumn art festival, in which both local and non-local artists participate.
Micanopy Historical Society Museum, housed downtown in the Thrasher Warehouse, features displays of local and town history that range from the early Native Americans, to naturalist William Bartram’s travels in the region, to the Seminole Wars and the Civil War. Built in 1896, the warehouse was served by a branch of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad until the 1950s and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
The Alachua County Library District operates a branch library in the town.
The downtown Micanopy Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park is a major source of outdoor recreation for the town and the county as a whole.
Education
Micanopy is served by the School Board of Alachua County. The School Board charters two schools, the Micanopy Area Cooperative School (elementary), and Micanopy Academy (secondary).
Media
Micanopy is mentioned in the Tom Petty song "A Mind with a Heart of Its Own" from the album Full Moon Fever. Petty humorously sings that he's "been to Brooker, been to Micanopy, been to St. Louis too, I've been all around the world!"
Micanopy is noted in the chorus of the John Anderson song "Seminole Wind" from the album Seminole Wind. The song is covered by James Taylor on the album James Taylor Covers.
The film Doc Hollywood, based on the book What? Dead…Again? by Neil B. Shulman and starring Michael J. Fox, was filmed in Micanopy.
On September 27, 1975, the variety show Hee Haw saluted Micanopy.
Notable people
- Archie Carr, zoologist and author, and his wife Marjorie Harris Carr, also a conservationist. They lived at Wewa Pond just outside Micanopy
- Stephen F. Eisenman, art historian, critic, columnist (Counterpunch) and environmentalist
- John Horse, Black Seminole leader, lived here before the Seminole Wars and removal to Indian Territory
- Moses Elias Levy, wealthy businessman and philanthropist, founded Pilgrimage and Micanopy
- River Phoenix, actor, cremated ashes scattered here at family ranch
See also
In Spanish: Micanopy para niños
