Escambia County is the westernmost and oldest county in the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 321,905. The county seat and only city is Pensacola. Escambia County is included within the Pensacola Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county population has steadily increased as the City of Pensacola and its surrounding bedroom communities continue to grow with residential and commercial development. The county is part of the Northwest Florida region of the state.
History
The area had been inhabited for thousands of years by indigenous peoples of varying cultures. Historic American Indian tribes at the time of European-American settlement were the Pensacola and Muscogee, known among the English as the Creek.
Escambia County had been part of Spanish colonial settlement before the United States acquired it in 1818. The county was organized by European-Americans on July 21, 1821; it was named for the Escambia River. The name Escambia is taken from the Escambia river. The word "Escambia" may have been derived from the Creek name Shambia, meaning "clear water". The Choctaw were another major tribe in the Southeast.
Created on the same date, Escambia and St. Johns Counties were Florida's two original counties, covering the entire territory within modern state boundaries. The Suwannee River was the border between them,Today in Florida History!, July 21, 2012, www.myfloridahistory.org, Florida Historical Society, Cocoa, Florida following a winding path from the northern border of the state to the Gulf of Mexico. Essentially, the Escambia county government had jurisdiction over the "panhandle" and "big bend" areas, and St. Johns over the remainder of the entire state.
As population increased in the frontier territory, 21 counties were later organized from Escambia county directly or indirectly. They include Jackson (1821), Gadsden (created from Jackson)(1823), Leon (1824), Walton (1824), Washington (created from Jackson and Walton)(1825), Hamilton (1827), Jefferson (1827), Madison (created from Jefferson) (1827), Franklin (1832), Calhoun (1838), Santa Rosa (1842), Wakulla (created from Leon) (1843), Holmes (created from Jackson and Walton) (1848), Liberty (created from Gadsden) (1855), Lafayette and Taylor (created from Madison) (1856), Bay (created from Washington) (1913), Okaloosa (created from Santa Rosa and Walton) (1915), Dixie (created from Lafayette) (1921), and Gulf (created from Calhoun) (1925). The number of counties in Florida since 1925 has been stable at 67.
Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of , of which is land and (25.0%) is water.
The county jurisdiction includes the island of Santa Rosa south of Pensacola; it is not part of Santa Rosa County proper. Escambia County is part of the Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Adjacent counties Escambia County, Alabama — north Santa Rosa County, Florida — east Baldwin County, Alabama — west
Escambia County, Florida, and Escambia County, Alabama, are two of 22 counties or parishes in the United States with the same name to border each other across state lines. Culturally, Escambia County, as well as the entirety of the Florida Panhandle (or more specifically West Florida) is sometimes called “Lower Alabama” due to its physical and cultural proximity to the State of Alabama. National protected areas Gulf Islands National Seashore (part)
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition +Escambia County, Florida – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)179,172198,083208,678196,901200,96276.64%75.37%70.88%66.16%62.43%Black or African American alone (NH)45,50152,33362,54867,44368,14819.46%19.91%21.25%22.66%21.17%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)1,8762,5522,5252,3841,9980.80%0.97%0.86%0.80%0.62%Asian alone (NH)3,0364,7456,4408,0159,8661.30%1.81%2.19%2.69%3.06%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census321400410xx0.11%0.13%0.13%Other race alone (NH)322724204721,7710.14%0.03%0.14%0.16%0.55%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census5,5437,94317,957xx1.88%2.67%5.58%Hispanic or Latino (any race)3,8875,0137,93514,06120,7931.66%1.91%2.70%4.72%6.46%Total233,794262,798294,410297,619321,905 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 321,905. The median age was 39.6 years. 19.8% of residents were under the age of 18 and 18.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 96.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.1 males age 18 and over.
There were 128,160 households in the county, of which 26.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 41.2% were married-couple households, 19.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 31.9% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 30.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. There were 74,083 families residing in the county.
There were 145,390 housing units, of which 11.9% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 63.1% were owner-occupied and 36.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 12.5%.
The racial makeup of the county was 64.3% White, 21.4% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 3.1% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.3% from some other race, and 8.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 6.5% of the population.
92.4% of residents lived in urban areas, while 7.6% lived in rural areas.
2010 Census At the 2010 census there were 297,619 people, 116,238 households, and 74,040 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 136,703 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 68.9% White, 22.9% Black or African American, 0.9% Native American, 2.7% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 1.3% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. 4.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 116,238 households 25.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.5% were married couples living together, 4.8% had a male householder with no wife present, 16.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.3% were non-families. 28.9% of households were one person and 10.2% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.96.
The age distribution was 21.6% under the age of 18, 13.0% from 18 to 24, 24.2% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% 65 or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.10 males.
The median household income was $43,707 and the median family income was $54,543. Males had a median income of $38,878 versus $30,868 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,773. About 12.7% of families and 16.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.4% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over.
2000 Census At the 2000 census there were 294,410 people, 111,049 households, and 74,180 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 124,647 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 72.4% White, 21.4% Black or African American, 0.9% Native American, 2.2% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.9% from other races, and 2.2% from two or more races. 2.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 111,049 households 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.8% were married couples living together, 15.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.2% were non-families. 26.9% of households were one person and 9.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.98.
The age distribution was 23.5% under the age of 18, 12.2% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.3% 65 or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.10 males.
The median household income was $35,234 and the median family income was $41,708. Males had a median income of $31,054 versus $22,023 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,641. About 12.1% of families and 15.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.7% of those under age 18 and 9.6% of those age 65 or over.
Education
Public primary and secondary education schools in Pensacola are administered by the Escambia County School District, the county's only school district. - Text list
The University of West Florida, Pensacola State College, and Pensacola Christian College are in Escambia County.
Media
Newspapers The largest daily print newspaper in the area is the Pensacola News Journal. There is also a weekly print newspaper, The Independent News.
Television Two major networks broadcast from Pensacola on WEAR-TV: ABC on DT1 and NBC on DT2. Several major networks are broadcast from nearby Mobile, such as CBS affiliate WKRG, Roar affiliate WPMI-TV, and Fox affiliate WALA. The following is a list of broadcast television stations in the Mobile, Alabama – Pensacola – Fort Walton Beach, Florida market.(Nielsen DMA#59) Cox Communications provides cable television service in the county's urbanized areas, and television advertising through its subsidiary, Cox Media. Spectrum holds the cable television franchise for the county's mainland rural areas, while Mediacom serves the Pensacola Beach community on Santa Rosa Island.
WALA WAWD WFNA WBQP-CD WEAR-TV WEIQ WFBD WFGX WHBR WJTC WKRG-TV WMPV-TV WPAN WPMI-TV WSRE
Radio Radio stations in the Pensacola / Mobile market:
Transportation
Airports Coastal Airport Ferguson Airport Pensacola International Airport
Transit Escambia County is served by buses run by Escambia County Area Transit.
Major highways
Railroads Pensacola was a scheduled stop on the route of Amtrak's Los Angeles-Orlando Sunset Limited from 1993 to 2005, when damage to railroad bridges and tracks caused by Hurricane Katrina resulted in cancellation of the route east of New Orleans. Escambia County has had no passenger train service since then.
Before the creation of Amtrak in 1971, Pensacola was served by the New Orleans-Jacksonville Gulf Wind, operated jointly by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad and the Seaboard Air Line Railroad (predecessors of CSX).
The following freight railroads serve Escambia County: CSX from Flomaton, Alabama, to Pensacola Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad, which acquired most of the CSX main line from Pensacola to Jacksonville on June 1, 2019 Alabama & Gulf Coast Railway from Amory, Mississippi, to Pensacola (predecessor: the Frisco Railway).
Library Escambia County is served by the West Florida Regional Library System.
Government Escambia County government is led by a five-member Board of County Commissioners. Each is elected from a single-member district. The county commission appoints a professional county administrator as chief administrative officer of the county.
The chief law enforcement authority of Escambia County is the Escambia County Sheriff's Office, also an elective office. The sheriff of Escambia County is Chip Simmons, elected in 2020.
The fire protection arm of the Escambia County is the Escambia County Fire Rescue (Florida).
Board of County Commissioners