Winter Beach is a census-designated place (CDP) in Indian River County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, Winter Beach had a population of 3,136. It is part of the Sebastian–Vero Beach Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Geography
Winter Beach is located in eastern Indian River County. It is bordered to the north by Wabasso and to the south by Gifford. To the east, across the Indian River, is the town of Indian River Shores on Orchid Island.
U.S. Route 1 passes through the center of Winter Beach, leading north to Sebastian and south to Vero Beach, the county seat.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the Winter Beach CDP has a total area of , of which , or 0.22%, are water.
Climate
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Winter Beach has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.
History
Winter Beach was originally established as the town of Woodley in the late 1890s. In 1902, the community's name was changed to Quay, in honor of Senator Matthew S. Quay of Pennsylvania. Senator Quay had introduced a Senate bill to widen and deepen the Intracoastal Waterway, which the community thought would be of benefit. Senator Quay was a winter resident of St. Lucie Village, just north of Fort Pierce, where his old home still stands. In 1922 the name of the community was changed for promotional purposes to Winter Beach, "Where the Sunshine Spends the Winter". In 1925, Indian River County was established, and Winter Beach almost became the county seat, however the then-town of Vero (now Vero Beach) became an incorporated city and was selected as the county seat. Portions of Winter Beach were still enumerated as Quay in the 1940 census.
Demographics
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Winter Beach had a population of 3,136. The median age was 57.3 years. 16.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 35.2% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 92.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 91.7 males age 18 and over.
85.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 14.4% lived in rural areas.
There were 1,283 households in Winter Beach, of which 19.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 67.1% were married-couple households, 12.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 14.6% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 18.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.