Naples, Florida
Encyclopedia : N : NA : NAP : Naples, Florida
Naples is a city in Collier County, Florida, USA. The population was 20,976 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 21,480 [link].
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 37.3 km² (14.4 mi²). 31.2 km² (12.0 mi²) of it is land and 6.2 km² (2.4 mi²) of it (16.53%) is water.
Local History
Once, the only people to stroll Naples' seven miles of white, sandy beaches, were the Calusa Native Americans. The first settlers, Roger Gordon and Joe Wiggins, arrived in Naples in the late 1860's. A river and two inlets still bear their names.Throughout the 1870's and '80's, magazine and newspaper stories telling of the area's mild climate and abundant fish and game likened it to the sunny Italian peninsula. The name Naples caught on when promoters described the bay as "surpassing the bay in Naples, Italy."
In 1887, a group of wealthy Kentuckians, led by Walter N. Haldeman, owner of the Louisville Courier-Journal, purchased virtually the entire town of Naples. One of the first improvements Haldeman and his Naples Company made was to build a pier 600 feet into the Gulf of Mexico. The pier's "T" shape allowed large ships to dock easily. Despite being destroyed and rebuilt three times, the pier remains today.
Naples quickly gained a reputation as a winter resort. Social life revolved around the Naples Hotel, which played host to celebrities such as Rose Cleveland, Thomas Edison, Harvey Firestone, Greta Garbo, Hedy Lamarr, and Gary Cooper. As the population of the town of Naples went up, so did the price of property. The cost of a beachfront lot soon reached $125.
In 1911, Barron Collier, who had made his fortune in streetcar advertising, visited nearby Useppa Island. He was so taken with the area that he bought over a million acres (4,000 km²) of untouched swampland - including most of Naples. Collier believed that Florida's west coast could enjoy the same boom that the east coast was experiencing in the 1920's; but first it was necessary to bring in road and railroads.
Based on Collier's promise to help build the Tamiami Trail, in 1923 the state legislature created Collier County, of which Naples is the county seat. Collier spent more than $1 million of his own money to construct the Tamiami Trail, which opened in 1926 as the only paved highway linking the state's two largest cities at that time - Tampa and Miami.
Area attractions
Naples is home to parts of two major land reserves, the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary and the Everglades National Park. The Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is known not only for it's 11,000 acres of landscape and wildlife, but for a two and a half mile length boardwalk spread throughout the sanctuary[link]. The Naples area is also home to the Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens, which dates back to 1919[link].Naples is part of the market for the Florida Everblades ECHL hockey team, the Florida Firecats af2 arena football team, and the Florida Flame NBDL Basketball team, sharing the market Fort Myers and Lee County[link].
The city is served by the Naples Municipal Airport, whose only year-round commercial carrier is Delta Connection, which flies to Atlanta[link]. Southwest Florida International Airport, in South Fort Myers, handles the vast majority of commercial air traffic in and out of the region, with 7.5 million passengers making their way through the airport in 2005[link].
Naples is home to an estimated 250 Fortune 500 CEOs. [link]
Downtown Naples is home to the 5th Avenue South and 3rd Street South shopping districts, which feature a variety of antique shops[link]. Gallery Row, also downtown, is a concentration among the numerous art galleries spread throughout the downtown area[link]. The Philharmonic Center of the Arts, located in North Naples, has played host to celebrities including Bill Cosby, and musical talents from across the globe[link]. The Naples Players, the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra, The Philharmonic Center of Naples, Sugden Theater, and the other cultural attractions in Naples makes the area "The top small art town in America"[link].
With more than 80 championship golf courses, Naples is the self-titled "Golf Capitol of the World", claiming to have more holes per capita than any other community[link][link].
Naples schools are part of the Collier County School District, which includes several of the state's top-ranked schools. Barron Collier High School is the only school in Collier County to make Newsweek's 2006 list of top U.S. high schools[link]. Ave Maria University, the first Catholic university established in the U.S. since 1963, is located northeast of the city[link]. Florida Gulf Coast University is in Estero, located between the cities of Bonita Springs and Fort Myers to the north.
Demographics
As of the census[Geographic references#2GR2] of 2000, there were 20,976 people, 10,803 households, and 6,568 families residing in the city. The population density was 673.2/km² (1,744.3/mi²). There were 16,956 housing units at an average density of 544.2/km² (1,410.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.50% White, 4.65% African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.30% from other races, and 2.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.23% of the population.There were 10,803 households out of which 10.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.8% were married couples living together, 5.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.2% were non-families. 34.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 20.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.92 and the average family size was 2.38.
In the city the population was spread out with 10.9% under the age of 18, 2.3% from 18 to 24, 14.5% from 25 to 44, 30.0% from 45 to 64, and 42.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 61 years. For every 100 females there were 86.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $65,641, and the median income for a family was $83,831. Males had a median income of $50,092 versus $30,948 for females. The per capita income for the city was $61,141. About 3.1% of families and 5.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.1% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over.
Points of interest
- Naples Botanical Garden
- Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens
- Naples Pier
Notable residents
Chris Resop - Major League Baseball playerExternal links
- [Maps and aerial photos]
- * Street map from [Google Maps] or [Yahoo! Maps]
- * Topographic map from [TopoZone]
- * Aerial image or topographic map from [TerraServer-USA]
- * Satellite image from [Google Maps] or [Windows Live Local]
- Local government
- *[Naples official website]
- *[Pelican Bay]
- Cultural and other attractions
- *[Naples Philharmonic Center for the Arts]
- *[Naples Players Community Theatre]
- *[Naples Botanical Garden]
- *[Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens]
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