Blountstown, Florida

Blountstown is a city and the county seat of Calhoun County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 2,266.

Name

Blountstown is named for John Blount, a Creek Indian chief who served as a guide for General Andrew Jackson during his incursion of Spanish Florida in 1818 during the First Seminole War. This invasion was not directed at Spain, per se, but at refuge Red Stick Creeks, and allied Seminole, Yuchi, Miccosukee, and Choctaw who had fled to north Florida following the Creek War. Also, a large contingent of Maroons and former Corps of Colonial Marines from the War of 1812 had remained in and around Prospect Bluff, known during that time as the Negro Fort.

Jackson's invasion caused Spain to sell Florida to the United States, since it was apparent that the Spanish Empire could not defend the colony from American invasion. Thus, the Spanish Florida colony became a U.S. Territory in 1821. The city was officially incorporated in 1903. However, the current city started to be permanently settled by American settlers in the 1820s soon after Florida became a U.S. Territory.

In the late 1850s, there was an open and violent feud between two rival factions which included the local Durden family. At one point, the Durdens and their rivals had a "pitched battle" at the courthouse square in Blountstown.

On October 10, 2018, Blountstown was nearly annihilated when Category 5 Hurricane Michael struck the town. The city was without power for almost three weeks and over 80% of homes and businesses were heavily damaged or destroyed. Blountstown High School suffered heavy damage, but Blountstown Elementary School was completely destroyed. In addition, the local timber and farming industries, which are Calhoun County's largest industries, were completely destroyed, costing millions of dollars in economic loss.

Geography

The City of Blountstown is located in east central Calhoun County. Directly to the east lies Bristol in Liberty County. Blountstown and Calhoun County uses the Central Time Zone, as opposed to Liberty County which is in the Eastern Time Zone.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and 0.31% is water.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild winters. According to the Köppen climate classification, the City of Blountstown has a humid subtropical climate zone (Cfa).

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition

{| class="wikitable"

|+Blountstown racial composition<br> (Hispanics excluded from racial categories)<br> (NH = Non-Hispanic)<br>

!Race

!Pop 2010

!Pop 2020

!% 2010

!% 2020

|White (NH)

|1,667

|1,439

|66.31%

|63.50%

|Black or African American (NH)

|698

|539

|27.76%

|23.79%

|Native American or Alaska Native (NH)

|21

|16

|0.84%

|0.71%

|Asian (NH)

|10

|0.40%

|Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian (NH)

|0.08%

|0.00%

|Some other race (NH)

|0.00%

|Two or more races/Multiracial (NH)

|46

|153

|1.83%

|6.75%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|70

|110

|2.78%

|4.85%

|Total

|2,514

|2,266

|100.00%

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Blountstown had a population of 2,266. The median age was 46.6 years. 22.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 27.7% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 87.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 82.2 males age 18 and over.

0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 848 households in Blountstown, of which 33.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 33.6% were married-couple households, 20.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 40.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 36.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Income and poverty

In 2020, there was a 47.0% employment rate and a median household income of $37,083. 28.6% of the population lived below the poverty threshold.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 2,514 people, 968 households, and 610 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the census

The city is home of the Calhoun Correctional Institution.

Education

Calhoun County School District operates public schools.

There are three schools located within the city:

Blountstown Elementary School for kindergarten through fifth grades
Blountstown Middle School for sixth through eighth
Blountstown High School for ninth through twelfth

Notable people

Patricia Dane, Hollywood actress of 1940s and early 1950s; starred in films Grand Central Murder, Johnny Eager and Life Begins for Andy Hardy; wife of bandleader Tommy Dorsey; died in Blountstown in 1995
Corn Griffin, Heavyweight boxer born in Blountstown, whose memorable 1934 TKO loss to James J. Braddock was recreated for the 2005 film Cinderella Man
Carey Loftin, Hollywood stuntman and actor, born in Blountstown
Elam Stoltzfus, Suncoast Emmy award-winning American environmental documentary filmmaker
Fuller Warren, 30th governor of Florida

Images

File:Blountstown FL Sign SR20.jpg|Sign for Blountstown

File:Blountstown FL old crths01.JPG|Old Calhoun County Courthouse

Blountstown, Florida Post Office.jpg|Post Office

File:Lake Hilda from Sherry Avenue.jpg|Lake Hilda

</gallery>

References

External links

City of Blountstown, Florida - official website
The County Record newspaper that serves Blountstown, Florida is available in full-text with images in Florida Digital Newspaper Library