Baker County Florida   Located in North Florida

Baker County Cities

Land area (rank): 585 square miles (48)
Population 1993 (rank): 19,527 (51)
Population density 1993 (rank): 33 persons per square mile (49)
Growth 1980-1990 (rank): 20.9% (47)

Physical Characteristics

Baker County is on the Florida-Georgia border between Nassau, Duval, and Clay counties to the east and Columbia County to the west. To the south are Union and Bradford counties. The county has 3 square miles of water. The average January temperature is 55.0 degrees F, and the average August temperature is 81.2 degrees F. The average annual rainfall is 49.27 inches.

History

Baker County was established in 1861 from New River County and named for James McNair Baker (1822-92), Confederate States senator and judge in Florida's Fourth Judicial District. The Civil War Battle of Olustee was fought just east of the town of Olustee.

Population

In 1993 over three-quarters of Baker County's population was in unincorporated areas. The county's most populous incorporated place is Macclenny with a 1993 population of 4,050. All the other settlements in the county have populations under 1,000. In 1993, 84% of Baker County's population was white and 16% was nonwhite. In 1990, 1.1% of the population was Hispanic. Of the population increase between 1980 and 1990, 46.4% was due to net migration . The 1992 birth rate for the county was 15.0 live births per 1,000 persons, and the 1992 death rate was 6.7 deaths per 1,000 persons. In 1992 the infant mortality rate was 7.0 per 1,000. The leading causes of death in 1993 were heart disease, cancer, and stroke.

Education

Of all 1992 high school graduates, 73.6% planned to continue their education. The 1992 high school dropout rate for the county was 3.7%. In 1990, 64.1% of persons in the county were high school graduates, and 5.7% had completed four or more years of college. Colleges and universities. Served by Lake City Community College (Columbia County).

Economy

The per capita income in Baker County for 1993 was $14,534 (43rd highest in the state). The median household income in 1989 was $25,816. In 1989, 13.2% of families had incomes below the poverty level. In 1990, 18.3% of personal income in Baker County was derived from transfer payments. In 1992 the greatest numbers of persons in Baker County were employed in the government, retail trade, and services sectors. Major employers in the governmental sector were Northeast Florida State Hospital, Macclenny, and Baker Correctional Institution, Olustee. In the retail trade sector, eating and drinking establishments and food stores employed the greatest numbers of persons. In 1992 there were 193 farms in Baker County, totalling 24,489 acres (7% of land in the county). Approximately two-thirds of this land is devoted to poultry and livestock. In 1991, 25,884 thousand board feet of softwood logs and 222,197 cords of softwood for pulp (3rd highest amount in the state) and 2,914 cords of hardwood for pulp were produced. Lumber and wood products firms accounted for much of the manufacturing employment in Baker County. Forests and wetlands cover vast portions of the county and provide excellent opportunities for freshwater fishing and hunting for quail, turkey, and deer.

Median value of a single-family home 1990: $53,400
Median monthly rent 1990: $225
Mobile homes as a % of total housing: 43.2
Housing starts (1992): 77
Housing starts (1993): 73

In 1992 the price level index for Baker County was 91.75 (54th highest in the state).

Local Government

In 1993, the ad valorem millage rate was 9.3300, and the total taxable value of property was $239,879,590. Taxable sales totalled $65.30 million in 1992 and $60.30 million in 1993. Lottery sales totalled $2,255 thousand in 1992-93. In 1990-91 Baker County's revenues totalled $11,668 thousand ($617.2 per capita) and its expenditures $10,298 ($544.7 per capita). Of those 18 years of age and older, 73.6% were registered to vote in 1992. Of these 93.8% registered Democrat and 5.5% registered Republican. In the 1992 presidential election 50.6% of the votes were cast for Bush, 29.2% for Clinton, and 19.5% for Perot.

Events and Places of Interest

Olustee Battlefield; Old Baker Courthouse, Macclenny; Burnsed Blockhouse, vicinity of Sanderson.