Spring Hill is a community in Hernando County, Florida, United States. It is called a "census-designated place" (CDP) because it's a special area used for counting people by the government. In 2020, about 113,568 people lived there. This was more than the 98,621 people counted in 2010.

Spring Hill is part of Florida's beautiful Nature Coast region. It is also close to the big cities of Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater. You can find Spring Hill east of Hernando Beach, southwest of Brooksville, and north of Tampa.

History of Spring Hill

Spring Hill was once a large area of Longleaf Pine forests and Sand Pine Scrub. These areas were full of different plants and animals. Many rare species lived there. Most of this natural land stayed the same until the 1970s. Then, a lot of trees were cut down.

The name Spring Hill first appeared on maps of Hernando County in 1856. This was along what is now Fort Dade Avenue. The modern Spring Hill was started in 1967. It was planned as a new community by the Deltona Corporation and the Mackle Brothers.

The developers first wanted to name it Spring Lake. But that name was already being used nearby. So, they chose Spring Hill instead. The plans for Spring Hill were the same as for another community called Deltona. The Mackle Brothers sold many homes and land here through a lot of advertising.

Today, Spring Hill has grown into a large area, almost like a city. But it is still an "unincorporated area," meaning it doesn't have its own city government. The main entrance to the original community has a waterfall. It is located on Spring Hill Drive and U.S. Route 19 (Commercial Way).

Spring Hill is about 40 miles (64 km) south of Tampa. In 2001, the Suncoast Parkway was finished. This road made it much easier to travel between Spring Hill and the Tampa-St. Petersburg area.

Geography of Spring Hill

Spring Hill is located in the southwest part of Hernando County. Its exact location is 28°28′44″N 82°32′52″W / 28.47889°N 82.54778°W / 28.47889; -82.54778.

It shares borders with several other communities:

To the west: Timber Pines
To the north: Weeki Wachee, North Weeki Wachee, High Point, Brookridge, and Wiscon
To the east: South Brooksville, Garden Grove, and Masaryktown
To the south: Shady Hills and Heritage Pines in Pasco County

Spring Hill covers a total area of about 62.2 square miles (161.2 square kilometers). Most of this area, about 59.8 square miles (154.9 square kilometers), is land. The rest, about 2.4 square miles (6.3 square kilometers), is water.

Sometimes, the U.S. Postal Service suggests using "Spring Hill" as the mailing address for a ZIP Code (34610) that is actually in Pasco County. However, the official Spring Hill community itself does not go into Pasco County. That mailing area includes parts of the Shady Hills and Quail Ridge communities.

People of Spring Hill

Spring Hill has grown a lot over the years. Here's how its population has changed:

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1980	6,468	—
1990	31,117	381.1%
2000	69,078	122.0%
2010	98,621	42.8%
2020	113,568	15.2%
source:

In 2020, there were 113,568 people living in Spring Hill. There were 43,121 households and 30,380 families.

Many different groups of people live in Spring Hill. Here's a look at the different racial groups in 2010 and 2020:

**Spring Hill racial composition**
(Hispanics excluded from racial categories)
(*NH = Non-Hispanic*)
Race	Pop 2010	Pop 2020	% 2010	% 2020
White (NH)	77,399	78,660	78.48%	69.26%
Black or African American (NH)	4,485	5,646	4.55%	4.97%
Native American or Alaska Native (NH)	259	305	0.26%	0.27%
Asian (NH)	1,349	1,922	1.37%	1.69%
Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian (NH)	38	51	0.04%	0.04%
Some other race (NH)	174	637	0.18%	0.56%
Two or more races/Multiracial (NH)	1,538	4,770	1.56%	4.20%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	13,379	21,577	13.57%	19.00%
Total	98,621	113,568

In 2010, about 29.8% of households had children under 18 living there. The average household had 2.49 people. The average family had 2.91 people.

The median age in Spring Hill in 2010 was 44.3 years. About 21.6% of the people were under 18. About 22.2% were 65 or older.

Languages Spoken

Most people in Spring Hill speak English at home. From 2013 to 2017, about 85.7% of the population spoke English as their first language. About 14.3% spoke other languages. The most common other language was Spanish, spoken by 10.0% of the people.

Education in Spring Hill

Spring Hill has many schools for kids of all ages. There are public and private schools for elementary, middle, and high school students. There are also places for higher education nearby.

Primary and Secondary Schools

Public schools in Spring Hill are part of the Hernando County School Board. This board manages all public schools in Hernando County.

Here are some of the main public schools in the Spring Hill area:

High Schools

Central High School
Frank W. Springstead High School, which is an IB World School
Nature Coast Technical High School
Weeki Wachee High School
Hernando High School

Middle Schools

Fox Chapel Middle School
Gulf Coast Academy of Science and Technology, which is a charter school
Powell Middle School
West Hernando Middle School

K-8 Schools

These schools teach students from kindergarten to 8th grade.

Challenger K-8 School of Science and Mathematics
Explorer K-8
John D. Floyd K-8 School of Environmental Science
Winding Waters K-8

Elementary Schools

Chocachatti Elementary School
Deltona Elementary School
Pine Grove Elementary School
Spring Hill Elementary school
Suncoast Elementary School
Westside Elementary School

There are also several private schools in Spring Hill:

Growing In Grace Preschool
Notre Dame Catholic School (for Pre-K to 8th grade)
Spring Hill Christian Academy (for Pre-K to 12th grade)
Wider Horizons School, a Montessori school (for Pre-K to 6th grade) and a College Preparatory school (for junior and senior high school)
West Hernando Christian School

Higher Learning

Spring Hill has a campus of Pasco–Hernando State College. This campus is about 100,000 square feet (9,290 square meters) in size. It was the fourth campus built for the college.

Northwestern Christian University has its main office in Spring Hill. This university offers online programs.

Libraries

The Hernando County Library System has several libraries in and around Spring Hill. These include the West Hernando Branch Library and the Spring Hill Branch Library. The Spring Hill Branch Library replaced the older Little Red Schoolhouse Branch Library. The historic Little Red Schoolhouse Branch Library is now a bookstore. Its sales help support the library system.

Healthcare

The only hospital in Spring Hill is TGH Spring Hill.

Tourism

Near Spring Hill is Weeki Wachee Springs. This famous place has live mermaid shows. It also has Florida's only water park that is fed by a natural spring, called Buccaneer Bay.

Media

Spring Hill has two local newspapers: the Hernando Times (which is part of the Tampa Bay Times) and the Hernando Sun.

Spring Hill is also part of the Tampa Bay Area media market. This is one of the largest TV markets in the United States.

Notable People

Many interesting people have lived in Spring Hill, including:

Douglas Applegate, who was a member of the United States House of Representatives
Matt Breida, a running back for the New York Giants football team
Ricou Browning, a film director, actor (he played the "Gill-man" in Creature from the Black Lagoon), producer, writer, and stuntman
Corey Hill, a former UFC fighter
Zachary James, an opera singer and actor on stage and TV (he played "Lurch" in The Addams Family on Broadway)
Willie Sutton, a famous bank robber
Huey Whittaker, a wide receiver for the Florida Tuskers football team

Transportation

Spring Hill's location in Florida (red dot)

Getting around Spring Hill is easy, thanks to its public transportation and roads.

Public Transportation

Public transportation in Spring Hill is called Hernando County Transit, also known as The Bus. It has four routes that serve Spring Hill and Brooksville. It also connects to the Pasco County Bus System (PCPT) in Hudson. The Bus system runs six days a week, including Saturdays.

The four bus routes are:

Purple: Travels from Pasco-Hernando State College in Brooksville to Spring Hill, ending in Hudson. Here, it connects to Pasco County Transit (PCPT) Route 21.
Green: Goes from Brooksville US 41 & Wiscon Road, through Wiscon Road, California Street, and Spring Hill Drive, to Pasco-Hernando State College Spring Hill Campus.
Red: Travels along Mariner & Northcliffe Boulevards, Deltona, & Forest Oaks Boulevards, and US 19, to Pasco-Hernando State College Spring Hill Campus.
Blue: Runs from Brooksville Walmart (SR50) along Mariner Boulevard to Bayfront Health Spring Hill.

There are also special transportation services called Trans-Hernando. These offer door-to-door rides by appointment. They are for older people, those with disabilities, and residents who need help with transportation.

Roads

Tourism sign on US 19 just north of CR 578 (County Line Road)

Several important county roads help people travel around Spring Hill. Here are some of them:

CR #	Name	Direction
CR 572	Elgin Boulevard/Powell Road	East/West
CR 574	Spring Hill Drive	East/West
CR 578	County Line Road	East/West
CR 585	Barclay Avenue/Anderson Snow Road	North/South
CR 587	Mariner Boulevard	North/South
CR 589	Deltona Boulevard	North/South

Highways

Spring Hill is next to US 19, which is also called Commercial Way. To the north, it's bordered by SR 50, known as Cortez Boulevard.

The Suncoast Parkway (SR 589) is a toll road that goes through Spring Hill. It connects Spring Hill to Pasco and Hillsborough counties to the south. This road also provides a way to get to Tampa.

Images for kids

Spring Hill waterfall at US 19 and Spring Hill Drive
Entrance to the Nature Coast Botanical Gardens
The Mother Earth sculpture, found in the Botanical Gardens
West Hernando County Library Branch
Spring Hill Library Branch
Harold's Garage on US 19 is a gas station shaped like a dinosaur, an example of novelty architecture.
Pink apatosaurus statue on US 19 near Windward Village