Madison County Florida   Located in North Florida

Madison County Cities

Land area (rank): 710 square miles (33)
Population 1993 (rank): 17,316 (54)
Population density 1993 (rank): 24 persons per square mile (57)
Growth 1980-1990 (rank): 11.3% (59)

Physical Characteristics

Madison County is in north Florida and is bordered by Georgia and by Hamilton, Suwannee, Lafayette, Taylor, and Jefferson counties. The county has 5 square miles of water. The average January temperature is 54.8 degrees F, and the average August temperature is 81.3 degrees F. The average annual rainfall is 52.50 inches.

History

Madison County was established in 1827 from a portion of Escambia County and named for President James Madison.

Population

In 1993, 73% of Madison County's population was in unincorporated areas. The incorporated place with the greatest population is Madison, which had a 1993 population of 3,417, followed by Greenville, which had a 1993 population of 948. In 1993, 57% of Madison County's population was white, and 43% was nonwhite. In 1990, 1.4% of the population was Hispanic. Of the population increase between 1980 and 1990, 42.9% was due to net migration. The 1992 birth rate was 15.0 live births per 1,000 persons, and the 1992 death rate was 10.9 deaths per 1,000 persons. In 1992, the infant mortality rate was 8.0 per 1,000. The leading causes of death in 1993 were heart disease, cancer, and stroke.

Education

Of all 1992 high school graduates, 56.8% planned to continue their education. The 1992 high school dropout rate was 2.7%. In 1990, 56.5% of persons in the county were high school graduates, and 9.7% had completed four or more years of college. Colleges and universities. North Florida Junior College, Madison.

Economy

The per capita income in Madison County for 1993 was $12,470 (62nd highest in the state). The median household income in 1989 was $18,153. In 1989, 19.7% of families had incomes below the poverty level. In 1990, 27.4% of personal income in Madison County was derived from transfer payments. In 1992 the greatest numbers of persons in Madison County were employed in the manufacturing, government, and services sectors. The leading manufacturers in terms of employment were lumber and wood products firms. The major employers in the retail trade sector were automobile dealers and service stations. In 1992 there were 481 farms in Madison County, totalling 132,208 acres (29% of land in the county). Madison County is among the state's top producers of corn and soybeans. In 1991, 13,604 thousand board feet of softwood logs, 443 thousand board feet of hardwood logs, 60,141 cords of softwood for pulp, and 12,317 cords of hardwood for pulp were produced.

Median value of a single-family home 1990: $38,800
Median monthly rent 1990: $148
Mobile homes as a % of total housing: 30.9
Housing starts 1992: 82
Housing starts 1993: 45

In 1992 the price level index for Madison County was 89.99 (63rd highest in the state).

Local Government

In 1993, the ad valorem millage rate was 9.500, and the total taxable value of property was $241,800,354. Taxable sales totalled $57.00 million in 1992 and $50.70 million in 1993. Lottery sales totalled $4,182 thousand in 1992-93. In 1990-91 Madison County's revenues totalled $11,144 thousand ($674.9 per capita) and its expenditures $10,477 thousand ($634.5 per capita). Of those 18 years of age and older, 63.3% were registered to vote in 1992. Of these, 90.2% were registered Democrat and 8.7% were registered Republican. In the 1992 presidential election, 45.4% of the votes were cast for Clinton, 34.4% for Bush, and 20.1% for Perot.

Places of Interest

Dial-Goza House, First Baptist Church, Wardlaw-Smith House, Confederate Memorial Park, Madison.