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Bay County, Florida
PC Bay Cnty crths01
The Bay County Courthouse in March 2008
Flag of Bay County, Florida
Flag
Seal of Bay County, Florida
Seal
Map of Florida highlighting Bay County
Location in the state of Florida
Map of the U.S
Florida's location in the U.S.
Founded April 24, 1913
Named for St. Andrews Bay
Seat Panama City
Largest city Panama City
Area
 - Total
 - Land
 - Water

1,033 sq mi (2,675 km²)
758 sq mi (1,963 km²)
275 sq mi (712 km²), 26.6%
Population
 - (2020)
 - Density

175,216
242/sq mi (93/km²)
Congressional district 2nd
Time zone Central: UTC-6/-5
Website http://www.co.bay.fl.us/

Bay County is a county on the Gulf coast in northwestern Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 175,216. Its county seat is Panama City.[1]

Bay County is included in the Panama City, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History[]

On February 12, 1913, representatives from five towns on St. Andrews Bay met in Panama City to select a name for a proposed new county. The name Bay was selected because it was satisfactory to the majority of the citizens and descriptive of the territory that would be included. On July 1, 1913, the Legislature created Bay County from portions of Washington, Calhoun and Walton counties.

Panama City was where Gideon v. Wainwright, a 1963 US Supreme Court decision that gave all persons accused of a crime the right to an attorney paid for by the government, originated.

Geography[]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,467 square miles (3,800 km2), of which 759 square miles (1,970 km2) is land and 708 square miles (1,830 km2) is water.[2]

Adjacent counties[]

National protected area[]

  • Apalachicola National Forest (part)

Demographics[]

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1920 11,407
1930 12,091 6.0%
1940 20,686 71.1%
1950 42,689 106.4%
1960 67,131 57.3%
1970 75,283 12.1%
1980 97,740 29.8%
1990 126,994 29.9%
2000 148,217 16.7%
2010 168,852 13.9%
U.S. Decennial Census[3]
1790-1960[4] 1900-1990[5]
1990-2000[6] 2010-2020[7]

As of the census[8] of 2000, there were 148,217 people, 59,597 households, and 40,466 families residing in the county. The population density was 194 people per square mile (75/km2). There were 78,435 housing units at an average density of 103 per square mile (40/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 84.17% White, 10.64% Black or African American, 0.78% Native American, 1.73% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.66% from other races, and 1.94% from two or more races. 2.42% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 59,597 households, out of which 30.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.00% were married couples living together, 12.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.10% were non-families. 26.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.92.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.00% under the age of 18, 8.70% from 18 to 24, 30.20% from 25 to 44, 23.70% from 45 to 64, and 13.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 98.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.80 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $36,092, and the median income for a family was $42,729. Males had a median income of $30,116 versus $21,676 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,700. About 9.80% of families and 13.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.30% of those under age 18 and 11.00% of those age 65 or over.

Government[]

Elected Officials[]

Bay County Government
Sheriff Tommy Ford [9] Republican
Tax Collector Chuck Perdue Republican
Clerk of the Court Bill Kinsaul Republican
Supervisor of Elections Mark Anderson Republican
Superintendent of Schools William Husfelt, III Republican
Property Appraiser Dan Sowell Republican

Board of Commissioners[]

5 members, elected from districts (zero Democrats, five Republicans)[10]

District Commissioner Party Positions
1 Tommy Hamm Republican Vice Chair of the County Commission
2 Robert Carroll Republican Chair of the County Commission
3 Bill Dozier Republican
4 Doug Moore Republican
5 Phillip "Griff" Griffits Republican

Politics[]

Voter registration[]

According to the Secretary of State's office, Republicans are a majority of the registered voters in Bay County.

Bay County Voter Registration & Party Enrollment as of August 31, 2017 (2017-08-31)[11]
Political Party Total Voters Percentage
style="background-color:#FF3333;" width=10px | Republican 60,008 52.02%
style="background-color:#3333FF;" width=10px | Democratic 30,391 26.35%
style="background-color:#ffffcc;" width=10px | Independent 24,244 21.02%
style="background-color:#ffffcc;" width=10px | Third Parties 704 0.61%
Total 115,347 100%

Statewide elections[]

United States presidential election results for Bay County, Florida[12]
Year Republican Democratic Third party
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 66,097 70.91% 25,614 27.48% 1,502 1.61%
2016 62,194 70.50% 21,797 24.71% 4,231 4.80%
2012 56,876 71.01% 22,051 27.53% 1,174 1.47%
2008 56,683 69.66% 23,653 29.07% 1,030 1.27%
2004 53,404 71.18% 21,068 28.08% 552 0.74%
2000 38,682 65.70% 18,873 32.06% 1,321 2.24%
1996 28,365 54.87% 17,068 33.02% 6,261 12.11%
1992 22,842 49.99% 12,846 28.12% 10,001 21.89%
1988 31,796 72.51% 11,603 26.46% 452 1.03%
1984 29,356 75.77% 9,384 24.22% 4 0.01%
1980 20,948 60.61% 12,389 35.85% 1,224 3.54%
1976 14,208 48.19% 14,858 50.39% 418 1.42%
1972 20,245 83.80% 3,914 16.20% 0 0.00%
1968 5,121 21.07% 4,020 16.54% 15,161 62.39%
1964 12,849 62.09% 7,846 37.91% 0 0.00%
1960 5,435 33.94% 10,579 66.06% 0 0.00%
1956 4,971 36.51% 8,645 63.49% 0 0.00%
1952 4,812 35.38% 8,789 64.62% 0 0.00%
1948 928 12.69% 5,168 70.68% 1,216 16.63%
1944 1,126 15.13% 6,317 84.87% 0 0.00%
1940 684 11.72% 5,153 88.28% 0 0.00%
1936 541 14.45% 3,202 85.55% 0 0.00%
1932 429 13.75% 2,692 86.25% 0 0.00%
1928 974 44.27% 1,190 54.09% 36 1.64%
1924 318 25.48% 838 67.15% 92 7.37%
1920 551 36.98% 818 54.90% 121 8.12%
1916 279 23.64% 725 61.44% 176 14.92%



Previous gubernatorial elections results
Year Republican Democratic Third parties
2018 72.17% 45,709 26.46% 16,757 1.37% 865
2014 71.79% 40,956 22.77% 12,990 5.44% 3,104
2010 66.39% 36,512 28.53% 15,689 5.08% 2,796
2006 65.26% 31,382 30.78% 14,802 3.96% 1,907
2002 70.02% 34,107 29.27% 14,258 0.71% 344
1998 69.01% 26,759 30.99% 12,017 0.00% 2
1994 56.87% 23,498 43.12% 17,816 0.01% 2

Education[]

Bay District Schools operates public schools serving all portions of the county except Mexico Beach, which is served by Gulf County Schools.

Schools in Bay County[]

Pre-K – 12 schools[]

Deane Bozeman School

North Bay Haven Charter Academy

Palm Bay Preparatory Academy

PreK-8 Schools[]

Breakfast Point Academy

Bay Haven Charter Academy

University Academy

High schools[]

  • Zoned

J. R. Arnold High School (Panama City Beach)

Bay High School (Panama City)

A. Crawford Mosley High School (Lynn Haven)

Rutherford High School (Springfield)

  • Optional

A.D. Harris High School (Panama City)

Haney Technical High School (Panama City)

New Horizons Learning Center (Lynn Haven)

Rosenwald High School (Panama City)

Middle schools[]

Everitt Middle School

Jinks Middle School

Merritt Brown Middle School

Mowat Middle School

Surfside Middle School (Panama City Beach)

Elementary schools[]

Callaway Elementary School

Cedar Grove Elementary School

Hiland Park Elementary School

Hutchison Beach Elementary School (Panama City Beach)

Lucille Moore Elementary School

Lynn Haven Elementary School

M. Cherry Street Elementary School

Millville Elementary School

Northside Elementary School

Oakland Terrace Elementary School

Parker Elementary School

Patronis Elementary School (Panama City Beach)

Patterson Elementary School

Southport Elementary School

Springfield Elementary School

St. Andrew Elementary School

Tommy Smith Elementary School

Tyndall Elementary School

Waller Elementary School

West Bay Elementary School

Public transportation[]

Airports[]

The Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport opened for commercial flights in 2010. It connects the region to several major airports in the South and Midwest.

Public surface transportation[]

The county operates the Baytown Trolley, which runs several routes in and around Panama City. The county also have a greyhound in Panama City.[13]

Library[]

Bay County is part of the Northwest Regional Library System[14] (NWRLS), which also serves Gulf and Liberty Counties. The Bay County Public Library is the headquarters library for the system. The Bay County Board of Commissioners is the system's governing authority and single administrative unit.[15]

Locations:

  • Bay County Public Library
  • Panama City Beach Public Library
  • Parker Public Library
  • Springfield Public Library
  • Gulf County Public Library
  • Charles Whitehead Public Library
  • Harrell Memorial Library of Liberty County
  • Jimmy Weaver Memorial Library
  • Bay County Law Library (at the Bay County Public Library)[16]

Communities[]

Panama City Beach, Florida (J.S

Panama City Beach

Cities[]

Census-designated places[]

  • Cedar Grove
  • Laguna Beach
  • Lower Grand Lagoon
  • Pretty Bayou
  • Tyndall AFB
  • Upper Grand Lagoon

Unincorporated communities[]

  • Bayou George
  • Cedar Grove
  • Fountain
  • Glenwood
  • Millville
  • Sand Hills
  • Santa Monica
  • Southport
  • Sunnyside
  • Vicksburg
  • Youngstown

Former Census-designated places[]

  • Hiland Park

See also[]

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Bay County, Florida

References[]

  1. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. 
  2. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2020: Florida Counties Gazeteer File". United States Census Bureau. 2020. https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2020_Gazetteer/2020_gaz_counties_12.txt. 
  3. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html. 
  4. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu. 
  5. ^ "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/population/cencounts/fl190090.txt. 
  6. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/briefs/phc-t4/tables/tab02.pdf. 
  7. ^ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named QF
  8. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov. 
  9. ^ Jackson, Tiffany (7 August 2016). "New era for Bay County: Tommy Ford sworn-in as Sheriff". http://www.mypanhandle.com/news/new-era-for-bay-county-tommy-ford-sworn-in-as-sheriff. 
  10. ^ cysy.com, Cyber Sytes, Inc.. "Page Not Found - Bay County Florida Online". http://www.baycountyfl.gov/Commissioners/. 
  11. ^ "Voter Registration - Current by County - Division of Elections - Florida Department of State". http://dos.myflorida.com/elections/data-statistics/voter-registration-statistics/voter-registration-monthly-reports/voter-registration-current-by-county/. 
  12. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS. 
  13. ^ "Archived copy". http://v2.baytowntrolley.org/routes/. 
  14. ^ "Archived copy". http://www.nwrls.com/locations_text.html. 
  15. ^ "Long-Range Plan & Mission". https://nwrls.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/NWRLS_Long_Range_Plan.pdf. 
  16. ^ "Bay County Law Library". https://www.baycountyfl.gov/575/Bay-County-Law-Library. 

External links[]

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Government links/Constitutional offices[]

Special districts[]

Judicial branch[]

Tourism links[]

News media[]

Template:North Florida

Coordinates: 30°14′N 85°38′W / 30.24, -85.63

This page uses content from the English language Wikipedia. The original content was at Bay County, Florida. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with this Familypedia wiki, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons License.
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