City in Florida, United States
Waldo
is a city in
Alachua County, Florida
, United States. It is part of the
Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area
. As of 2020 census, the population was 846, down from 1,015 at the 2010 census.
History
[
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]
The first major U.S. federal highway in early
territorial Florida
,
Bellamy Road
, was constructed in the 1820s?1830s and passed through Waldo from around
Lake Santa Fe
to the east and on towards the
Santa Fe River
in the west, where it passed over the river on a natural land bridge at modern
O'Leno State Park
. In 1853, the Florida Legislature chartered the
Florida Railroad
to build a line from
Fernandina Beach
to
Tampa
, with a branch running to
Cedar Key
.
U.S. Senator
David Levy Yulee
, president and chief stockholder of the Florida Railroad, made the decision to build the Cedar Key branch first. The section up to
Gainesville
was completed by 1859, with the intersection of Bellamy Road and the Florida Railroad named Waldo Station, after Senator Yulee's friend,
Benjamin Waldo
, a doctor and politician. In 1876, the railroad branch from Waldo to
Ocala
was completed.
[5]
[6]
The
City of Waldo
was officially incorporated as a municipality in 1907.
[1]
Geography
[
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]
The exact coordinates for the City of Waldo is located at
29°47′23″N
82°10′15″W
/
29.78972°N 82.17083°W
/
29.78972; -82.17083
.
According to the
United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 2.2 square miles (5.6 km
2
), of which 0.015 square miles (0.04 km
2
), or 0.74%, is water.
Lake Alto is a
freshwater lake
east of Waldo.
Climate
[
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]
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild winters. According to the
Koppen climate classification
, the City of Waldo has a
humid subtropical climate
zone (
Cfa
).
Demographics
[
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]
2010 and 2020 census
[
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]
As of the
2020 United States census
, there were 846 people, 538 households, and 154 families residing in the city.
[10]
As of the
2010 United States census
, there were 1,015 people, 348 households, and 196 families residing in the city.
[11]
Of the 348 households in 2010, 245 or 59.3% were families, and 128 or 31.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them. 144 households were headed by married couples living together which made up 34.9%, 79 households or 19.1% had a female householder with no husband present, while 22 or 5.3% had a male householder with no wife present. Non-family households made up 40.7% or 168 households. The average household size was 2.45 while the average family size was 3.10.
[12]
In 2010, the city, the population was spread out, with 24.1% under age 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 26.9% from 45 to 64, and 15.5% aged 65 and over. The median age was 38.4 years. 51.3% of the population was female while 48.7% of the population was male.
[12]
For the period 2007?2011, the estimated median annual income for a household in the city was $28,167, and the median income for a family was $36,375. Male full-time workers had a median income of $33,021 versus $30,597 for females. The
per capita income
for the city was $15,693. About 30.3% of families and 34.7% of the population were below the
poverty line
, including 42.2% of those under age 18 and 14.4% of those age 65 or over.
[13]
2000 census
[
edit
]
As of the
census
of 2000, there were 821 people, 347 households, and 207 families residing in the city. The
population density
was 184.3/km² (477.5/mi
2
). There were 407 housing units at an average density of 91.4/km² (236.7/mi
2
). The racial makeup of the city was 76.61%
White
, 15.23%
African American
, 0.49%
Native American
, 0.49%
Asian
, 0.73% from
other races
, and 6.46% from two or more races.
Hispanic
or
Latino
of any race were 2.07% of the population.
In 2000, there were 347 households out of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.3% were
married couples
living together, 16.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.1% were non-families. 33.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 3.05.
In 2000, in the city, the population was spread out with 26.1% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.5 males.
In 2000, the median income for a household in the city was $24,028, and the median income for a family was $34,643. Males had a median income of $25,083 versus $20,956 for females. The
per capita income
for the city was $15,397. About 13.6% of families and 16.7% of the population were below the
poverty line
, including 23.0% of those under age 18 and 14.2% of those age 65 or over.
Education
[
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]
Waldo is served by the
School Board of Alachua County
. Upon closure of Waldo Community School in 2016, elementary students are now zoned for Chester Shell Elementary in Hawthorne. Students in sixth through twelfth grade attend
Hawthorne Middle/High School
in nearby
Hawthorne
.
[14]
The
Alachua County Library District
operates a branch library in the city.
[15]
Notable people
[
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]
Speed trap designation
[
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]
In August 1995, the
American Automobile Association
(AAA) declared Waldo, and the neighboring city of
Lawtey
, as "
speed traps
" and urged motorists to choose alternate routes instead of driving through the two cities. On September 2, 2014, the
Florida Department of Law Enforcement
began an investigation of Waldo's ticketing following allegations of ticketing quotas, with one police chief having been suspended for a two-week period.
[20]
On October 1, 2014, the City Council voted 4?1 to disband the city's police department.
[21]
The former chief of the disbanded Waldo Police Department was cleared of any wrongdoing after an investigation by the
Florida Criminal Justice Standards & Training Commission
(CJSTC). In a letter to the Waldo City Manager, the CJSTC wrote, "The decision is based upon the finding that insufficient grounds exist under the guidelines of Chapter 943.1395, Florida Statutes, to pursue any disciplinary action by the commission."
[22]
This event led to then-Florida Governor
Rick Scott
to sign a bill (SB 264) which better defined the ban on ticket quotas.
[23]
Waldo is somewhat unique in that unlike most other speed trap towns, "...the speed trap in Waldo, Florida, was brought down not by outside pressure but from the inside", as reported in May 2022 by
Reason
magazine
.
[24]
In August 2018, the AAA officially lifted the designation of "speed trap" for the city of Waldo.
[25]
See also
[
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]
References
[
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]
- Turner, Gregg. (2003).
A Short History of Florida Railroads.
Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing.
ISBN
0-7385-2421-2
- Watkins, Caroline (April 1975). "Some Early Railroads in Alachua County".
The Florida Historical Quarterly
.
53
(4). Florida Historical Society: 450?59.
- ^
a
b
"FLORIDA CITIES BY INCORPORATION YEAR WITH INCORPORATION & DISSOLUTION INFO"
(PDF)
.
www.flcities.com
.
- ^
"2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
December 2,
2021
.
- ^
"U.S. Census website"
.
United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
January 31,
2008
.
- ^
"US Board on Geographic Names"
.
United States Geological Survey
. October 25, 2007
. Retrieved
January 31,
2008
.
- ^
Turner. 27-31
- ^
Watkins. 451-52
- ^
"Census of Population and Housing"
. Census.gov
. Retrieved
June 4,
2015
.
- ^
"P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Waldo city, Florida"
.
United States Census Bureau
.
- ^
"P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Waldo city, Florida"
.
United States Census Bureau
.
- ^
"S1101 HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES - 2020: Waldo city, Florida"
.
United States Census Bureau
.
- ^
"S1101 HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES - 2010: Waldo city, Florida"
.
United States Census Bureau
.
- ^
a
b
"Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (DP-1): Waldo city, Florida"
. U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Archived from
the original
on February 12, 2020
. Retrieved
May 6,
2013
.
- ^
"Selected Economic Characteristics: 2007-2011 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (DP03): Waldo city, Florida"
. U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Archived from
the original
on February 12, 2020
. Retrieved
May 6,
2013
.
- ^
"Alachua County Public Schools: Schools and Centers"
. Archived from
the original
on December 17, 2011.
- ^
"Waldo"
.
Alachua County Library District
.
- ^
"Home of T.K. and Sally Godbey - Waldo, Florida"
. State Archives of Florida
. Retrieved
September 8,
2023
.
- ^
a
b
Wilson Krause, Barbara (July 2011).
"Waldo Celebrities"
(PDF)
.
The Waldo Phoenix
.
2
(5). Waldo Historical Society: 3.
- ^
Hudak, Stephan (October 17, 2018).
"Broadcast veteran Vince Sanders helped co-found an organization to help black journalists"
.
South Florida Sun Sentinel
.
- ^
"Overtown's defunct Black hospital served its purpose"
.
The Miami Times
. February 19, 2015.
- ^
"Infamous Speed Trap Town Investigated Over Tickets"
.
ABC News
.
- ^
"
Waldo Votes to Disband its Police Force
" (
Archive
).
Associated Press
at
WCTV
. Retrieved on October 2, 2014.
- ^
"Ex-Waldo police chief cleared in standards investigation"
.
- ^
"Lawmakers outlaw traffic-ticket quotas"
.
- ^
CIARAMELLA, C.J.
"11 Insanely Corrupt Speed-Trap Towns"
.
reason.com/
. Reason
. Retrieved
May 10,
2022
.
- ^
"AAA Says Waldo, Lawtey No Longer Speed Traps"
.
External links
[
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]