Daytona Beach, Florida

Summary

Daytona Beach is a coastal resort city in Volusia County, Florida, United States. Located on the East Coast of the United States, its population was 72,647 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Deltona–Daytona Beach–Ormond Beach metropolitan area, and is a principal city of the Fun Coast region of Florida.

Daytona Beach, Florida
City of Daytona Beach
From top, left to right: Welcome sign when entering Daytona Beach; Daytona Beach Bandshell; Ocean Walk Shoppes; Daytona Beach Pier; Daytona International Speedway
From top, left to right: Welcome sign when entering Daytona Beach; Daytona Beach Bandshell; Ocean Walk Shoppes; Daytona Beach Pier; Daytona International Speedway
Official seal of Daytona Beach, Florida
Nicknames: 
"The World's Most Famous Beach", "The Spring Break Capital of the World"
Location in Volusia County and the state of Florida
Location in Volusia County and the state of Florida
Daytona Beach is located in Florida
Daytona Beach
Daytona Beach
Location in Florida and the United States
Daytona Beach is located in the United States
Daytona Beach
Daytona Beach
Daytona Beach (the United States)
Coordinates: 29°12′39″N 81°01′22″W / 29.21083°N 81.02278°W / 29.21083; -81.02278[1]
CountryUnited States
StateFlorida
CountyVolusia
Founded1870
IncorporatedJuly 1876
Government
 • TypeCommission–Manager
 • MayorDerrick Henry
Area
 • City68.19 sq mi (176.62 km2)
 • Land65.59 sq mi (169.89 km2)
 • Water2.60 sq mi (6.74 km2)
 • Urban
190.65 sq mi (493.8 km2)
Elevation13 ft (4 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • City72,647
 • Density1,107.54/sq mi (427.62/km2)
 • Urban
402,126 (104th U.S.)
 • Urban density1,893.6/sq mi (731.1/km2)
 • Metro
609,939 (90th U.S.)
 • CSA
3,045,707 (20th U.S.)
Time zoneUTC−5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP Codes
32114–32126, 32198
Area code386
FIPS code12-16525[4]
GNIS feature ID0281353[3]
Websitewww.codb.us

Daytona Beach is historically known for its beach, where motorized vehicles are permitted on some hard-packed sand beaches.[5] Motorsports on the beach became popular, and the Daytona Beach and Road Course hosted races for over 50 years, replaced in 1959 by Daytona International Speedway. The city is the headquarters of NASCAR.

Daytona Beach hosts large groups of tourist, and notable events include Speedweeks which attracts 200,000 visitors to the Daytona 500. Other events include the NASCAR Coke Zero Sugar 400, Daytona Beach Bike Week, Biketoberfest, and the 24 Hours of Daytona endurance race.

History edit

 
A palisaded Timucua village
 
Daytona Beach in 1924
 
Daytona Beach in 1932
 
Daytona Beach in 1932

The area where Daytona Beach is located was once inhabited by the indigenous Timucuan Indians who lived in fortified villages. The Timucuas were nearly exterminated by contact with Europeans through war, enslavement and disease and became extinct as a racial entity through assimilation and attrition during the 18th century. The Seminole Indians, descendants of Creek Indians from Georgia and Alabama, frequented the area prior to the Second Seminole War.

During the era of British rule of Florida between 1763 and 1783, the King's Road passed through present-day Daytona Beach. The road extended from Saint Augustine, the capital of East Florida, to Andrew Turnbull's experimental colony in New Smyrna. In 1804 Samuel Williams received a land grant of 3,000 acres (12 km2) from the Spanish Crown, which had regained Florida from the British after the American Revolutionary War. This land grant encompassed the area that would become Daytona Beach. Williams built a slave-labor-based plantation to grow cotton, rice and sugar cane. His son Samuel Hill Williams would abandon the plantation during the Second Seminole War, when the Seminoles burned it to the ground.

The area now known as the Daytona Beach Historical District was once the Orange Grove Plantation, a citrus and sugar cane plantation granted to Samuel Williams in 1787. The plantation was situated on the west bank of the tidal channel known as the Halifax River, 12 miles north of Mosquito Inlet. Williams was a British loyalist from North Carolina who fled to the Bahamas with his family until the Spanish reopened Florida to non-Spanish immigration. After his death in 1810, the plantation was run by his family until it was burned down in 1835. In 1871, Mathias Day Jr. of Mansfield, Ohio, purchased the 3,200-acre tract of the former Orange Grove Plantation. He built a hotel around which the initial section of town arose. In 1872, due to financial troubles, Day lost title to his land; nonetheless, residents decided to name the city Daytona in his honor, and incorporated the town in 1876.[6][7]

In 1886, the St. Johns & Halifax River Railway arrived in Daytona. The line would be purchased in 1889 by Henry M. Flagler, who made it part of his Florida East Coast Railway. The separate towns of Daytona, Daytona Beach, Kingston, and Seabreeze merged as "Daytona Beach" in 1926, at the urging of civic leader J. B. Kahn and others. By the 1920s, it was dubbed "The World's Most Famous Beach".

Daytona's wide beach of smooth, compacted sand attracted automobile and motorcycle races beginning in 1902, as pioneers in the industry tested their inventions.[8] It hosted land speed record attempts beginning in 1904, when William K. Vanderbilt set an unofficial record of 92.307 mph (148.554 km/h).[9] Land speed racers from Barney Oldfield to Henry Segrave to Malcolm Campbell would visit Daytona repeatedly and make the 23 mi (37 km) beach course famous.[10] Record attempts, including numerous fatal endeavors such as Frank Lockhart (Stutz Black Hawk, 1928) and Lee Bible (Triplex Special, 1929), would continue until Campbell's March 7, 1935 effort, which set the record at 276.816 mph (445.492 km/h) and marked the end of Daytona's land speed racing days.[11]

On March 8, 1936, the first stock car race was held on the Daytona Beach Road Course, located in the present-day Town of Ponce Inlet. In 1958, William France Sr. and NASCAR created the Daytona International Speedway to replace the beach course. Automobiles are still permitted on most areas of the beach, at a maximum speed of 10 mph (16 km/h).

The city of Daytona Beach made national headlines when it designated the several–mile radius around Main Street on the barrier island portion of the city as a blighted area and has targeted it for redevelopment by private developers. This follows the Supreme Court decision of the eminent domain case in Kelo v. City of New London, which upheld the right of municipalities to use eminent domain to take private property for redevelopment by private entities.[12]

Geography edit

 
Daytona Beach
 
Daytona Beach, "beachside" on left (east) of the Halifax River, mainland on right (west)

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 64.93 sq mi (168 km2). of which 58.68 sq mi (152 km2) is land and 6.25 sq mi (16 km2) is water, with water thus comprising 9.6% of the total area.

The city of Daytona Beach is split in two by the Halifax River lagoon, part of the Intracoastal Waterway, and sits on the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered on the north by Holly Hill and Ormond Beach and on the south by Daytona Beach Shores, South Daytona and Port Orange.

Notable weather events that have caused damage or injury in Daytona Beach include Hurricane Donna in 1960, the 1998 Kissimmee tornado outbreak, and Hurricane Charley in 2004.[citation needed] In 1992, a 28-mile (45 km) long rogue wave with a 9 feet (2.7 m) high crest hit Daytona Beach, causing property damage and 75 reported injuries.[13][14]

Climate edit

Daytona Beach has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa), which is typical of the Gulf and South Atlantic states. As is typical of much of Florida, there are two seasons in Daytona Beach; the warmer, wetter season (late May through October) and the cooler and drier season (November through April).

In summer, temperatures are relatively stable and there is an average of only 8 days annually with a maximum at or above 95 °F (35 °C); the last 100 °F (38 °C) reading was seen on August 2, 1999. The Bermuda High pumps hot and unstable tropical air from the Bahamas and Gulf of Mexico, resulting in daily, but brief thundershowers. This results in the months of June through September accounting for a majority of the average annual rainfall of 51.25 in (1,302 mm).

In winter, Daytona Beach has weather conditions typical of other cities on the Florida peninsula. On average, the coolest month is January, with a normal monthly mean temperature of 58.8 °F (14.9 °C). It is the only month where the average high temperature falls below 70.0 °F (21.1 °C). Occasional cold fronts can bring freezes, which from 1991 to 2020 were seen on an average of 3.0 nights annually; however, minima below 25 °F (−4 °C) are very rare, and were last seen on December 28, 2010. Like much of Florida, Daytona Beach often can be very dry in late winter and early spring, and brush fires and water restrictions can be an issue.

Official record temperatures range from 15 °F (−9 °C) on January 21, 1985, up to 102 °F (39 °C) on July 15, 1981, and June 24, 1944; the record cold daily maximum is 33 °F (1 °C) on Christmas day 1983, while, conversely, the record warm daily minimum is 82 °F (28 °C) on September 1 and 10–11, 2008 and August 25, 2020. Annual rainfall has ranged from 31.36 in (797 mm) in 2006 and 1956, up to 79.29 in (2,014 mm) in 1953. The most rainfall to have occurred in a calendar day was 12.85 in (326 mm) on October 10, 1924, which contributed to 24.82 in (630 mm) of rain that fell that month, the most of any calendar month.

Climate data for Daytona Beach, Florida (Daytona Beach International Airport), 1991–2020 normals,[15] extremes 1923–present
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 92
(33)
89
(32)
92
(33)
96
(36)
100
(38)
102
(39)
102
(39)
101
(38)
99
(37)
95
(35)
90
(32)
88
(31)
102
(39)
Mean maximum °F (°C) 82.0
(27.8)
83.9
(28.8)
87.3
(30.7)
89.7
(32.1)
93.8
(34.3)
95.0
(35.0)
95.4
(35.2)
95.3
(35.2)
92.7
(33.7)
89.5
(31.9)
85.2
(29.6)
82.5
(28.1)
96.9
(36.1)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 69.0
(20.6)
71.7
(22.1)
75.5
(24.2)
80.2
(26.8)
85.0
(29.4)
88.6
(31.4)
90.2
(32.3)
89.8
(32.1)
87.3
(30.7)
82.2
(27.9)
76.1
(24.5)
71.5
(21.9)
80.6
(27.0)
Daily mean °F (°C) 58.8
(14.9)
61.4
(16.3)
65.2
(18.4)
70.2
(21.2)
75.6
(24.2)
80.2
(26.8)
81.9
(27.7)
81.9
(27.7)
80.1
(26.7)
74.4
(23.6)
67.0
(19.4)
61.8
(16.6)
71.5
(21.9)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) 48.5
(9.2)
51.1
(10.6)
54.8
(12.7)
60.1
(15.6)
66.2
(19.0)
71.8
(22.1)
73.5
(23.1)
74.1
(23.4)
72.9
(22.7)
66.7
(19.3)
57.9
(14.4)
52.1
(11.2)
62.5
(16.9)
Mean minimum °F (°C) 31.4
(−0.3)
34.6
(1.4)
38.9
(3.8)
46.4
(8.0)
55.7
(13.2)
66.3
(19.1)
70.0
(21.1)
70.4
(21.3)
66.7
(19.3)
52.0
(11.1)
42.2
(5.7)
35.7
(2.1)
29.7
(−1.3)
Record low °F (°C) 15
(−9)
24
(−4)
26
(−3)
32
(0)
40
(4)
52
(11)
60
(16)
63
(17)
52
(11)
39
(4)
25
(−4)
19
(−7)
15
(−9)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 2.73
(69)
2.34
(59)
3.63
(92)
2.23
(57)
3.69
(94)
6.94
(176)
6.01
(153)
6.58
(167)
7.15
(182)
4.85
(123)
2.76
(70)
2.34
(59)
51.25
(1,302)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) 8.0 6.7 7.6 6.3 7.4 14.7 13.7 14.8 14.5 10.8 7.2 7.6 119.3
Source: NOAA[16][17]
Climate data for Daytona Beach
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average sea temperature °F (°C) 61.0
(16.1)
59.0
(15.0)
64.9
(18.3)
71.4
(21.9)
76.5
(24.7)
79.5
(26.4)
80.1
(26.7)
80.4
(26.9)
82.6
(28.1)
77.5
(25.3)
71.1
(21.7)
64.9
(18.3)
72.4
(22.5)
Mean daily daylight hours 11.0 11.0 12.0 13.0 14.0 14.0 14.0 13.0 12.0 11.0 11.0 10.0 12.2
Average Ultraviolet index 4 6 8 10 10 11 11 10 9 7 5 4 7.9
Source #1: NOAA Coastal Water Temperature Guide[18]
Source #2: Weather Atlas[19]

Demographics edit

Historical population
CensusPop.Note
1910331
1920825149.2%
193016,5981,911.9%
194022,58436.1%
195030,16733.6%
196037,39524.0%
197045,32721.2%
198054,17619.5%
199061,92114.3%
200064,1123.5%
201061,005−4.8%
202072,64719.1%
U.S. Decennial Census[20]

2010 and 2020 census edit

Daytona Beach racial composition
(Hispanics excluded from racial categories)
(NH = Non-Hispanic)
Race Pop 2010[21] Pop 2020[22] % 2010 % 2020
White (NH) 33,179 37,355 54.39% 51.42%
Black or African American (NH) 21,254 22,945 34.84% 31.58%
Native American or Alaska Native (NH) 185 169 0.30% 0.23%
Asian (NH) 1,354 1,902 2.22% 2.62%
Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian (NH) 21 36 0.03% 0.05%
Some other race (NH) 144 468 0.24% 0.64%
Two or more races/Multiracial (NH) 1,113 3,003 1.82% 4.13%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 3,755 6,769 6.16% 9.32%
Total 61,005 72,647

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 72,647 people, 28,763 households, and 14,607 families residing in the city.[23]

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 61,005 people, 25,093 households, and 12,234 families residing in the city.[24]

2000 census edit

As of 2000, 18.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 30.1% were married couples living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 51.6% were non-families. Of all households, 39.4% were made up of individuals, and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.06 and the average family size was 2.77.

In 2000, 17.6% of the population was under the age of 18, 16.6% was from 18 to 24, 25.6% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 19.7% was 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.5 males.

In 2000, the median income for a household in the city was $25,439, and the median income for a family was $33,514. Males had a median income of $25,705 versus $20,261 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,530. 23.6% of the population and 16.9% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 34.9% of those under the age of 18 and 12.1% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Languages edit

As of 2000, English spoken as a first language accounted for 90.37% of all residents, and 9.62% spoke other languages as their first language. The majority were Spanish speakers who made up 4.01% of the population; French was the third most spoken language, which made up 0.90%; German was at 0.86%; and Arabic was at 0.66% of the population.[25]

Economy edit

 
Daytona Beach looking north from the pier

Tourism is a major part of the Daytona Beach economy, with over 8 million visitors in 2004.[citation needed] Other sources of revenue include manufacturing, and Daytona Beach has industrial sites within an enterprise zone and sites within a foreign trade zone adjacent to Daytona Beach International Airport.

Companies and organizations that have their corporate headquarters or a major presence in the area include:

Shopping edit

Top employers edit

According to the City's 2019 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,[26] the top employers in the city are:

# Employer # of Employees
1 Volusia County School District 7,623
2 Halifax Health 4,050
3 Volusia County, Florida 3,408
4 AdventHealth Daytona Beach 2,288
5 Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University 2,003
6 Daytona State College 1,250
7 The City of Daytona Beach, Florida 921
8 Bethune Cookman University 843
9 Florida Hospital Healthcare Partner 697
10 SMA Healthcare 677

Arts and culture edit

 
Museum of Arts and Sciences

The Museum of Arts and Sciences is the primary cultural facility for Daytona Beach and Volusia County. Other museums located in the city include the Southeast Museum of Photography and the Halifax Historical Museum. The Museum of Arts and Sciences is actually a collection of museums and galleries and includes the Klancke Environmental Complex, the Cuban Museum, Root Family Museum featuring one of the largest Coca-Cola collections in the world, the Dow American Gallery and the Bouchelle Center for Decorative Arts which together form what is probably one of the finest collections of furniture and decorative arts in the Southeast. It also includes the Cici and Hyatt Brown Museum of Art, which houses the largest collection of Florida art in the world. There are also changing exhibitions and a children's science center opened in 2008. Since 1952, the non-profit Daytona Beach Symphony Society has sponsored performances by U.S. and international orchestras, opera and dance companies each season at the Peabody Auditorium.[27]

 
Flock of seagulls gathered near the shoreline in Daytona Beach, FL (December 2022)

Special events edit

The city attracts over 8 million tourists each year. Special events that draw visitors to Daytona Beach include:

During motorcycle events (Bike Week and Biketoberfest), several hundred thousand bikers from all over the world visit the greater Daytona Beach area. The city is also often associated with spring break, though the efforts of the local government to discourage rowdiness, combined with the rise of other spring break destinations, have affected Daytona's preeminence as a spring break destination. It is the destination of Dayton 2 Daytona, an annual event that draws over 3,000 University of Dayton college students since 1977.

National Historic Places edit

 
Tarragona Arch
 
The beach in Daytona Beach near the border with Ormond Beach

Other points of interest edit

 
Daytona Beach "beachside", looking east toward Atlantic Ocean from the Seabreeze Bridge

Sports edit

 
The start of the 2015 Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway
 
Daytona Beach Golf Course, South Course

Motorsports edit

Annual races at Daytona International Speedway include 24 Hours of Daytona and Daytona 500.

Baseball edit

The Daytona Tortugas, a minor league baseball team of the Low-A Southeast, play at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. Established in 1993, the team has six championships.[citation needed]

Parks and recreation edit

Beaches and parks edit

 
Driving on the packed sand at Daytona Beach

Daytona Beach has over 23 miles (37 km) of public beaches, and more than ten waterfront parks.[28] Cars can be driven on some of the beaches.[28][29]

Notable golf courses include Daytona Beach Golf Course, established in 1922, and LPGA International.

Government edit

Local government edit

Under Daytona Beach's commission-manager form of government, voters elect a City commission which consists of seven members who serve four-year, staggered terms. Six are elected by district, the mayor is elected citywide.

The city commission establishes ordinances and policies for the city. It also reviews and approves the city budget annually. The commission appoints a city manager, who carries out the will of the commission and handles day-to-day business.

Federal, state, and county representation edit

The United States Postal Service operates a post office at 500 Bill France Boulevard in Daytona Beach.

The Daytona Beach Armed Forces Reserve Center is home of the Florida Army National Guard 1st Battalion, 265th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, Battery D.

Daytona Beach is part of Florida's 6th congressional district.[30] It is part of Florida's 25th and 26th State House of Representatives Districts and the 6th and 8th State Senate Districts.

Florida's 6th congressional district, which extends from the southern Jacksonville suburbs to New Smyrna Beach and includes St. Augustine and Daytona Beach, is currently represented by Republican Michael Waltz.

Education edit

Primary and secondary schooling edit

Public primary and secondary education is handled by Volusia County Schools. Daytona Beach has two public traditional high schools, two middle schools and six elementary schools. Some of the larger private schools include Father Lopez Catholic High School.

Elementary schools edit

  • Bonner Elementary
  • Ortona Elementary
  • Champion Elementary
  • Palm Terrace Elementary
  • R.J. Longstreet Elementary
  • Turie T. Small Elementary
  • Westside Elementary

Middle schools edit

  • David C. Hinson Middle
  • Campbell Middle

High schools edit

Colleges and universities edit

 
The life-sized Wright Flyer statue is located at the Daytona Beach campus of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

Vocational schools edit

  • The Airline Academy – Offers flight training for pilots and other airline professionals.
  • Keiser College
  • Phoenix East Aviation – Offers flight training for pilots.
  • WyoTech (formerly AMI) motorcycle repair, and marine repair training.[31]

Media edit

Newspapers edit

Radio edit

AM

FM

Television edit

Infrastructure edit

Law enforcement edit

Law enforcement in Daytona Beach is provided by the 241-member Daytona Beach Police Department (DBPD) headed by police chief Craig Capri. In a unique and controversial program to help fund the Police Explorer program, run by a subsidiary of the Boy Scouts of America, T-shirts with the words Scumbag Eradication Team: Not in Our Town are sold at the police headquarters.[33]

The T-shirts contain a caricature of Retired Chief Chitwood standing next to a toilet bowl with the legs of multiple individuals sticking out. The T-shirt has been cited in at least one lawsuit against the DBPD alleging police brutality, the lawyer in the case in which the client sustained broken ribs and a fractured eye socket during an arrest for an open container of beer, claims the T-shirt shows the DBPD condones violence.[34]

The Volusia County Sheriff's office, headed by Mike Chitwood is a countywide law enforcement agency with 446 sworn positions, 438 civilian employees, 300 volunteers and an annual operating budget of $73 million that has jurisdiction in unincorporated areas of Volusia County and provides additional law enforcement support to Daytona Beach during such events as the Daytona 500 and aids in joint investigations of certain crimes.[35]

The Volusia County Beach Patrol provides law enforcement as well as EMT services along Volusia County beaches including the beaches in the city of Daytona Beach.[36]

Healthcare edit

Healthcare in Daytona Beach is dominated by Halifax Health (formerly known as Halifax Hospital). The Halifax Hospital Taxing District was established in 1927 by an Act of the Florida Legislature as a public hospital district.[37] There are dozens of individual practitioners and Professional Associations (PA) in the Daytona Beach area.

Utilities edit

Basic utilities in Daytona Beach (water and sewer) are provided by the City Government.

The city has a successful recycling program with separate pickups for garbage, yard waste and recycling. Collection is provided by several private companies under contract to Volusia County, Florida.

Transportation edit

Airports edit

 
Aerial view of Daytona Beach International Airport.

Passenger airline services are located at Daytona Beach International Airport (DAB), which is centrally located within the city adjacent to Daytona International Speedway. The site was first used as an airport with terminals being constructed in 1952 and 1958. The present facility was constructed in 1992 at the cost of $46 million, and includes both a domestic terminal and an International terminal. Despite the new facilities, DAB has found difficulty in attracting and retaining carriers; Continental Airlines, AirTran Airways, and United Airlines discontinued flights to Daytona in 2007 and 2008.[38] LTU & American Airlines also serviced Daytona Beach during the 1980s and 1990s, both of which ended all flights in 1994 & 1997.

Current passenger airlines serving DAB include Delta Air Lines (with nonstop service to Atlanta) and American Airlines (with non-stop service to Charlotte). Both carriers offer connecting service from those cities to destinations worldwide. International flights from DAB fly to destinations in the Bahamas through air taxi and charter services Airgate Aviation and IslandPass; non-stop flights are available from DAB to Marsh Harbour, Treasure Cay, and North Eleuthera. Sunwing Airlines also operates seasonal flights from Toronto Pearson International Airport.[39] DAB is also heavily used for general aviation, largely due to Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University, whose campus is located at the airport.

Larger airports nearby are Orlando International Airport and Jacksonville International Airport, each of which is approximately 90 minutes away.

Buses edit

 
The Volusia County Parking Garage in Daytona Beach provides a place for visitors to park and walk around.
  • Daytona Beach is served by Greyhound Bus Lines, which has a terminal located at 138 South Ridgewood Avenue (US 1). The Greyhound routes from Daytona Beach connect with hubs in Jacksonville and Orlando.
  • Votran is the local bus service provided by Volusia County.

Automobiles edit

Daytona Beach is easily accessible by I-95 that runs north and south and I-4 connecting Daytona Beach with Orlando and Tampa. US 1 (Ridgewood Avenue) also passes north–south through Daytona Beach. US 92 (International Speedway Boulevard) runs east–west through Daytona Beach. SR A1A is a scenic north–south route along the beach.

The Volusia County Parking Garage is located at 701 Earl Street at North Atlantic Avenue (SR A1A). The garage is strategically located, next to the Ocean Center, Daytona Lagoon, and across the street from the Hilton Hotel and Ocean Walk Shoppes. Over one thousand parking spaces are available inside the garage, which also houses an intermodal transfer station for VoTran.

Bridges edit

There are four bridges over the Halifax River (and Intracoastal Waterway) at Daytona Beach. They include (starting from furthest downstream) the Veterans Memorial Bridge (which carries CR 4050 traffic), the Broadway Bridge (which carries US 92 traffic), the Main Street Bridge (which carries CR 4040 traffic), and the Seabreeze Bridge (which carries SR 430 traffic). All four bridges charge no toll to traffic.[40] In June, 2016, the Veterans Memorial Bridge was closed as part of a three-year project to demolish the drawbridge and replace it with a high span bridge.[41]

Rail edit

 
Daytona Beach railroad station, ca. 1926

Passenger railroad service to Daytona Beach was established no later than 1889 by the Jacksonville, St. Augustine and Halifax River Railway, predecessor of the Florida East Coast Railroad (FEC). Long-distance trains such as the City of Miami and the South Wind (both from Chicago), East Coast Champion (from New York City) and the Havana Special (New York City) made stops at Daytona Beach.[42][43][44] Long distance routes were diverted to Atlantic Coast Line Railroad and Seaboard Air Line Railroad routes on the Florida interior south of the Jacksonville Union Station, following the beginning of a labor dispute on the FEC in 1963.[45][46] Passenger trains continued calling at Daytona Beach until July 31, 1968, when the FEC terminated passenger operations system-wide.[47] The FEC currently operates freight trains through Daytona Beach.

Daytona Beach is served by Amtrak by way of an Amtrak Thruway connection between the beachside and Amtrak's DeLand station, 28 miles (45 km) to the west. There, the service connects northbound with train 92, the Silver Star, and train 98, the Silver Meteor. Southbound connections from Daytona Beach are limited to Silver Meteor southbound train 97. The DeLand – Daytona Beach service is Amtrak's only Florida Amtrak Thruway route provided by a taxi-cab, rather than a bus.

Notable people edit

In popular culture edit

Novels set in Daytona Beach include:

  • Day Number 142 (1974) by Edgar A. Anderson
  • Last Cruise of the Nightwatch (1956) by Howard Broomfield
  • Kick of the Wheel (1957) by Stewart Sterling

There have been a number of movies based on Daytona Beach, usually with a racing theme. The most recent example was the 1990 hit Days of Thunder, parts of which were filmed in Daytona Beach and nearby DeLand. Chris Rea wrote the song "Daytona" which was in his 1989 album The Road to Hell. Suzi Quatro's song "Daytona Demon" is often believed to refer to the city.[49] Also, about half of the video for the song "Steal My Sunshine" by Len was filmed at Daytona Beach.

Daytona Beach was also the destination of a group of plagued teenagers in the movie Final Destination 2.

Daytona Beach was also one of the settings in the 2008 film Marley & Me.

Daytona Beach was the setting of the Season 2 finale of the web series The Most Popular Girls in School.

See also edit

References edit

Citations edit

  1. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Archived from the original on August 24, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  2. ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on March 18, 2021. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  3. ^ a b "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Archived from the original on February 12, 2012. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  4. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved 2015-06-28.
  5. ^ "Daytona Beach Travel Guide - Top Hotels, Restaurants, Vacations, Sightseeing in Daytona Beach : Professional Travel Guide". August 28, 2009. Archived from the original on August 28, 2009. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
  6. ^ Cardwell, Harold D.; Cardwell, Priscilla D. (2004). Historic Daytona Beach. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0-7385-1675-9.
  7. ^ Zaffiro-Kean, Eileen. "A fun look at Daytona Beach's founding years and early decades". Daytona Beach News-Journal Online. Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
  8. ^ Dickens, Bethany (October 1, 2014). "Episode 27 Leather Cap and Goggles". A History of Central Florida Podcast. Archived from the original on March 4, 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
  9. ^ Kettlewell, Mike. "Daytona", in Northey, Tom, ed. World of Automobiles (London: Orbis, 1974), Volume 5, p.501.
  10. ^ Kettlewell, pp.501–2; Northey, Tom, "Land-speed record: The Fastest Men on Earth", in Northey, Tom, ed. World of Automobiles, Volume 10, pp.1161–1165.
  11. ^ Northey, p.1165.
  12. ^ "Daytona Business Owners Fight Eminent Domain". NPR.org. Archived from the original on January 8, 2018. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
  13. ^ "Volusia County". Archived from the original on August 17, 2009. Retrieved December 3, 2008.
  14. ^ "The Daytona Beach Wave of July 3–4, 1992: A Shallow Water Gravity Wave Forced by a Propagating Squall Line" (PDF). Ams.allenpress.com. January 1995.
  15. ^ Mean monthly maxima and minima (i.e. the highest and lowest temperature readings during an entire month or year) calculated based on data at said location from 1991 to 2020.
  16. ^ "NOWData – NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  17. ^ "Summary of Monthly Normals 1991–2020". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
  18. ^ "Coastal Water Temperature Guide". NOAA. Archived from the original on September 5, 2017. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
  19. ^ "Daytona Beach, Florida, USA – Monthly weather forecast and Climate data". Weather Atlas. Archived from the original on May 28, 2019. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
  20. ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Archived from the original on July 1, 2021. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  21. ^ "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Daytona Beach city, Florida". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 22, 2024. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
  22. ^ "P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE - 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) - Daytona Beach city, Florida". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 22, 2024. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
  23. ^ "S1101 HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES - 2020: Daytona Beach city, Florida". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 22, 2024. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
  24. ^ "S1101 HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES - 2010: Daytona Beach city, Florida". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 22, 2024. Retrieved October 24, 2023.
  25. ^ "Data Center Results". Apps.mla.org. Archived from the original on March 1, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
  26. ^ https://flauditor.gov/pages/mun_efile%20rpts/2019%20daytona%20beach.pdf[permanent dead link]
  27. ^ "Homepage – Daytona Beach Symphony Society". Daytona Beach Symphony Society. Archived from the original on June 6, 2013. Retrieved August 25, 2014.
  28. ^ a b Daytona Beach Area Convention & Visitors Bureau (2017). "The Beach". Archived from the original on August 23, 2017. Retrieved August 23, 2017. Our 23 miles of sandy, white beaches are open to pedestrians 24/7 with free access! Cars are permitted in designated areas of the beach from sunrise to sunset, tidal conditions permitting.
  29. ^ Daytona Beach Area Convention & Visitors Bureau (2017). "Beachfront Parks in Daytona Beach". Archived from the original on August 23, 2017. Retrieved August 23, 2017. Highlights include Lighthouse Point Park and Smyrna Dunes Park on opposite sides of Ponce Inlet offering a combined 125 acres of fun with some areas welcoming pets for a walk, run or a swim. Topping out at 40 acres in Ormond Beach is Michael Crotty Bicentennial Park with areas for favorite sports – football, baseball, basketball, soccer, tennis and volleyball.
  30. ^ "Find Your Representative in the U.S. House of Representatives". House.gov. Archived from the original on April 27, 2015. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
  31. ^ "WyoTech Daytona". wyotech.edu. Archived from the original on May 30, 2013. Retrieved July 5, 2013.
  32. ^ "HOT 94.1 | Daytona's Station For Hip Hop & R&B | Daytona Beach, FL". Hotdaytona.com. Archived from the original on December 20, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
  33. ^ "Scumbag T-Shirt Raises Money For Police Youth Program". Wftv.com. Archived from the original on November 2, 2008. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
  34. ^ "FloriDUH | Sun Sentinel Blogs | Suit against top cop cites "Scumbag" T-shirt". Weblogs.sun-sentinel.com. August 17, 2009. Archived from the original on March 26, 2010. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
  35. ^ "Volusia county sheriff's office". Volusia.org. Archived from the original on July 15, 2010. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
  36. ^ "Beach Safety". Volusia.org. Archived from the original on June 26, 2010. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
  37. ^ "Taxing Districts". hfch.org. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011.
  38. ^ "DBIA History". Volusia County, Florida. Archived from the original on March 26, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-16.
  39. ^ "IslandPass". IslandPass, LLC. Archived from the original on June 7, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-16.
  40. ^ "FDOT Florida Bridge Information" (PDF). Florida Dept. of Transportation. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 16, 2011.
  41. ^ "Veterans Memorial Bridge and Proposed Future Memorial Plaza". Volusia.org. September 22, 2016. Archived from the original on March 1, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
  42. ^ "Florida East Coast Railway". Official Guide of the Railways. National Railway Publication Company. 90 (7). December 1957.
  43. ^ "Florida East Coast Railway". Official Guide of the Railways. National Railway Publication Company. 91 (3). January 1962.
  44. ^ Bramson, Seth H. Speedway to Sunshine: the story of the Florida East Coast Railway, Boston Mills Press, 2010, p. 227. ISBN 9781554077533.
  45. ^ Atlantic Coast Line Railroad timetable, December 14, 1962, Table 15
  46. ^ Atlantic Coast Line Railroad timetable, December 13, 1963, Table 14
  47. ^ Bramson, Seth H. Speedway to Sunshine: the story of the Florida East Coast Railway, Boston Mills Press, 2010, pp. 153. ISBN 9781554077533.
  48. ^ "Jane Morgan". www.waybackattack.com. Archived from the original on June 23, 2023. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  49. ^ Ausländer, Phillip; Performing Glam Rock: Gender And Theatricality in Popular Music; p. 210. ISBN 0472068687

General sources edit

  • Kettlewell, Mike. "Daytona", in Northey, Tom, ed. World of Automobiles, Volume 10, pp. 501–503. London: Orbis, 1974.
  • Northey, Tom, "Land-speed record: The Fastest Men on Earth", in Northey, Tom, ed. World of Automobiles, Volume 10, pp. 1161–1166. London: Orbis, 1974.

External links edit

  • City of Daytona Beach
  • Daytona Beach Chamber of Commerce
  • Daytona Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau
  • A History of Central Florida Podcast – "Leather Cap and Goggles", "Rum Runner"