*** Welcome to piglix ***

Alachua County

Alachua County, Florida
Dsg Alachua County Courthouse Family and Civil Justice Center 20050507.jpg
Alachua County Courthouse
Flag of Alachua County, Florida
Flag
Logo of Alachua County, Florida
Logo
Map of Florida highlighting Alachua County
Location in the U.S. state of Florida
Map of the United States highlighting Florida
Florida's location in the U.S.
Founded February 29, 1824
Named for Chua (Timucuan word for "sinkhole")
Seat Gainesville
Largest city Gainesville
Area
 • Total 969 sq mi (2,510 km2)
 • Land 875 sq mi (2,266 km2)
 • Water 94 sq mi (243 km2), 9.7%
Population (est.)
 • (2016) 263,496
 • Density 301/sq mi (116/km²)
Congressional district 3rd
Time zone Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Website www.alachuacounty.us

Coordinates: 29°41′N 82°22′W / 29.683°N 82.367°W / 29.683; -82.367

Alachua County (/əˈlæu.ə/ a-LATCH-oo-a) is a county in the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2010 census, the population was 247,336. The county seat is Gainesville, the home of the University of Florida.

Alachua County is included in the Gainesville, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county is known for its diverse culture, local music, and artisans. Much of its economy revolves around the university.

The first people known to have entered the area of Alachua County were Paleo-Indians, who left artifacts in the Santa Fe River basin prior to 8000 BCE. Artifacts from the Archaic period (8000 - 2000 BCE) have been found at several sites in Alachua County. Permanent settlements appeared in what is now Alachua County around 100 CE, as people of the wide-ranging Deptford culture developed the local Cades Pond culture. The Cades Pond culture gave way to the Alachua culture around 600 CE. The Timucua-speaking Potanos lived in the Alachua culture area in the 16th century, when the Spanish entered Florida. The Potano were incorporated in the Spanish mission system, but disease, rebellion, and raids by tribes backed by the English led to severe population declines and the depopulation of what is now Alachua County by the early 18th century.


...
Wikipedia

...