Wewahitchka, Florida facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Wewahitchka, Florida
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| City of Wewahitchka | |
Old Gulf County Courthouse
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| Motto(s):
"Home of Dead Lakes & Tupelo Honey"
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Location in Gulf County and the state of Florida
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 Wewahitchka, Florida
Location in Florida
Wewahitchka, Florida
Location in the United States
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| Country |  United States |
| State |  Florida |
| County | Gulf |
| Settled | c. 1870-1875 |
| Incorporated | 1959 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Commission–Manager |
| Area | |
| • Total | 7.80 sq mi (20.20 km2) |
| • Land | 6.69 sq mi (17.34 km2) |
| • Water | 1.11 sq mi (2.87 km2) |
| Elevation | 46 ft (14 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 2,074 |
| • Density | 309.88/sq mi (119.64/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP Code |
32465
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| Area code(s) | 850 |
| FIPS code | 12-77100 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0294641 |
Wewahitchka is a city located in Gulf County, Florida, in the United States. In 2020, about 2,074 people lived there.
From 1925 to 1965, Wewahitchka was the main government center, or county seat, for Gulf County. Later, the county seat moved to Port St. Joe.
The city of Wewahitchka was first settled around 1870 and officially became a city in 1875. Its name comes from a Native American word that means "water eyes." This name makes sense because two lakes near the city, Lake Julia and Lake Alice, look like a pair of eyes.
Geography of Wewahitchka
Wewahitchka is in the northeastern part of Gulf County. You can find it where two main roads, Florida State Road 71 and Florida State Road 22, meet.
- State Road 71 goes north for about 27 miles to Blountstown. It also goes south for about 24 miles to Port St. Joe.
- State Road 22 goes west for about 28 miles to Panama City.
The city covers a total area of about 7.8 square miles (20.0 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, about 6.7 square miles (17.3 square kilometers). The rest, about 1.1 square miles (2.8 square kilometers), is water.
Wewahitchka is located west of the Chipola River, which flows into the Apalachicola River. It's also southwest of the Dead Lakes. Besides Lake Julia and Lake Alice, Lake Shippey is another lake found within the city limits.
Climate
The weather in Wewahitchka has hot and humid summers. The winters are usually mild. The area has a humid subtropical climate, which means it gets a lot of rain and has warm temperatures for most of the year.
| Climate data for Wewahitchka, Florida, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1901–present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 85 (29) |
86 (30) |
93 (34) |
93 (34) |
99 (37) |
104 (40) |
105 (41) |
101 (38) |
99 (37) |
98 (37) |
93 (34) |
87 (31) |
105 (41) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 76.9 (24.9) |
78.7 (25.9) |
83.2 (28.4) |
87.0 (30.6) |
92.5 (33.6) |
95.4 (35.2) |
95.8 (35.4) |
94.7 (34.8) |
93.1 (33.9) |
87.8 (31.0) |
83.7 (28.7) |
78.6 (25.9) |
97.4 (36.3) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 63.1 (17.3) |
66.5 (19.2) |
72.2 (22.3) |
78.1 (25.6) |
84.9 (29.4) |
88.4 (31.3) |
89.4 (31.9) |
89.0 (31.7) |
86.1 (30.1) |
79.7 (26.5) |
71.5 (21.9) |
65.3 (18.5) |
77.9 (25.5) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 51.4 (10.8) |
54.9 (12.7) |
60.5 (15.8) |
66.2 (19.0) |
73.5 (23.1) |
78.8 (26.0) |
80.6 (27.0) |
80.4 (26.9) |
77.0 (25.0) |
68.7 (20.4) |
59.4 (15.2) |
53.8 (12.1) |
67.1 (19.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 39.8 (4.3) |
43.3 (6.3) |
48.8 (9.3) |
54.3 (12.4) |
62.2 (16.8) |
69.1 (20.6) |
71.7 (22.1) |
71.7 (22.1) |
67.9 (19.9) |
57.7 (14.3) |
47.3 (8.5) |
42.4 (5.8) |
56.4 (13.5) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 23.9 (−4.5) |
28.1 (−2.2) |
32.8 (0.4) |
40.5 (4.7) |
49.6 (9.8) |
62.0 (16.7) |
67.7 (19.8) |
66.7 (19.3) |
58.2 (14.6) |
42.0 (5.6) |
31.5 (−0.3) |
28.0 (−2.2) |
22.3 (−5.4) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 11 (−12) |
15 (−9) |
20 (−7) |
34 (1) |
35 (2) |
45 (7) |
56 (13) |
60 (16) |
41 (5) |
30 (−1) |
22 (−6) |
11 (−12) |
11 (−12) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 4.83 (123) |
4.94 (125) |
5.26 (134) |
4.49 (114) |
3.28 (83) |
6.27 (159) |
8.24 (209) |
7.91 (201) |
6.63 (168) |
3.24 (82) |
3.84 (98) |
4.17 (106) |
63.10 (1,603) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 9.0 | 8.6 | 7.4 | 7.1 | 6.7 | 13.4 | 16.7 | 16.5 | 11.2 | 6.3 | 6.7 | 8.3 | 117.9 |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
Population of Wewahitchka
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1930 | 584 | — | |
| 1940 | 1,022 | 75.0% | |
| 1950 | 1,289 | 26.1% | |
| 1960 | 1,436 | 11.4% | |
| 1970 | 1,733 | 20.7% | |
| 1980 | 1,742 | 0.5% | |
| 1990 | 1,779 | 2.1% | |
| 2000 | 1,722 | −3.2% | |
| 2010 | 1,981 | 15.0% | |
| 2020 | 2,074 | 4.7% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
The population of Wewahitchka has changed over the years. In 2010, there were 1,981 people living in the city. By 2020, the population had grown to 2,074 people.
In 2020, there were 797 households in Wewahitchka. A household is a group of people living together in one home. Out of these, 534 were families.
Schools
Wewahitchka has two schools that are part of the Gulf District Schools. These are Wewahitchka Elementary School and Wewahitchka High School. The sports teams for both schools are called the Gators. There is also a Head Start program at the old elementary school site, which helps young children get ready for school.
Tupelo Honey
Wewahitchka is famous for its beekeeping and Tupelo honey. It's one of the biggest places in Florida where this special honey is made. A movie called Ulee's Gold was even filmed here because of the honey production.
Beekeepers place their beehives, also called "Bee Boxes," in the swamps along the Apalachicola River and other nearby rivers. Sometimes, they put the beehives on platforms or rafts to keep them safe from floods.
To make sure the honey is pure Tupelo honey, beekeepers follow special steps:
- Before the tupelo flowers bloom, all other types of honey are removed from the beehives. This stops them from mixing with the new tupelo honey.
- As soon as the tupelo flowers stop blooming, the honey must be collected quickly. This prevents the bees from adding nectar from other plants.
Every May, Wewahitchka hosts a two-day Tupelo Honey festival. It's a celebration of this unique and delicious honey.
See also
In Spanish: Wewahitchka para niños
