Ocoee () is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida metropolitan statistical area. According to the 2020 US Census, the city had a population of 47,295.
History
Founding and early history
In the mid-1850s, Dr. J.D. Starke, stricken with malaria, took a group of slaves, similarly stricken, to the north side of an open, pine-wooded lake that provided clear and clean water to avoid further malaria outbreaks. The camp built by the group provided a base of operations from which to commute during the day to work the fields near Lake Apopka and rest at night.
As the camp grew into a village, it took the name Starke Lake, a name the lake upon which the group settled bears to this day. The city's population increased further after the American Civil War as Confederate soldiers and their families settled into the area, including Captain Bluford Sims and General William Temple Withers, who wintered at the location. Captain Sims received a land grant for a 74-acre parcel to the west of Starke Lake in what is now the downtown portion of Ocoee on October 5, 1883. In 1886, Captain Sims, along with a group of original settlers, led an effort to have the town platted and changed the name to Ocoee, after a river he grew up near in Tennessee. and this inspired the choice of the city's flower.
Bluford Sims began groundbreaking work in budding wild orange trees while in Ocoee. His commercial citrus nursery was the first in the United States in Ocoee, supplying many other groves in Florida with their first trees, as well as shipping young citrus trees to California. At least 24 Black homes were burned, the institutions constituting the Black community were destroyed, and Perry was lynched. Before the massacre, Ocoee's Black population numbered about 500; after the massacre, however, the Black population was nearly eliminated. For more than 40 years, Ocoee remained an all-White sundown town. In 2018, the city commission issued a proclamation formally acknowledging the massacre and declaring that Ocoee is no longer a sundown town.
Incorporation and modern history
Ocoee was incorporated in 1922
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 Ocoee has a humid subtropical climate zone (Cfa).
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition
{| class="wikitable"
|+Ocoee racial composition<br> (Hispanics excluded from racial categories)<br> (NH = Non-Hispanic)<br>
!Race
!Pop 2010
!Pop 2020
!% 2010
!% 2020
|-
|White (NH)
|19,086
|18,029
|53.64%
|38.12%
|-
|Black or African American (NH)
|5,968
|10,869
|16.77%
|22.98%
|-
|Native American or Alaska Native (NH)
|91
|115
|0.26%
|0.24%
|-
|Asian (NH)
|1,945
|3,051
|5.47%
|6.45%
|-
|Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian (NH)
|19
|40
|0.05%
|0.09%
|-
|Some other race (NH)
|277
|857
|0.78%
|1.81%
|-
|Multiracial (NH)
|799
|2,372
|2.25%
|5.02%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|7,394
|11,962
|20.78%
|25.29%
|-
|Total
|35,579
|47,295
|100.00%
|100.00%
|-
|}
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Ocoee had a population of 47,295. The median age was 37.0 years. 24.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 12.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 90.7 males age 18 and over.
There were 15,859 households in Ocoee, of which 39.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 54.1% were married-couple households, 14.1% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 25.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 16.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 16,495 housing units, of which 3.9% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.3%.
! Race !! Number !! Percent
|-
| White || 20,423 || 43.2%
|-
| Black or African American || 11,142 || 23.6%
|-
| American Indian and Alaska Native || 259 || 0.5%
|-
| Asian || 3,084 || 6.5%
|-
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander || 52 || 0.1%
|-
| Some other race || 5,451 || 11.5%
|-
| Two or more races || 6,884 || 14.6%
|-
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) || 11,962 || 25.3%
|}
2010 census
As of the 2010 United States census, 35,579 people, 11,586 households, and 9,178 families resided in the city.
2000 census
As of the 2000 census,
The Tavares and Gulf Railroad's terminus was in Ocoee. Its former station still stands and is the home of the Ocoee Lions Club.
Education
Residents are zoned to Orange County Public Schools.
High schools serving sections of Ocoee include Ocoee High School, West Orange High School. and Olympia High School.
Notable people
- Brian Barber, former Major League Baseball player for the Philadelphia Phillies
- Bart Bryant, professional golfer
- Aubrey Perry, soccer player
- Grant Riller, professional basketball player
- Caleb Gordon, a rap/hip-hop musician
See also
- List of sundown towns in the United States
- Ocoee Christian Church
References
Notes
External links
- City of Ocoee official website