Palm Beach, Florida
Palm Beach is a city located in
Palm Beach County,
Florida, 65 miles north of
Miami. The
Intracoastal Waterway separates it from the neighboring cities of
West Palm Beach and
Lake Worth. Palm Beach was established as a resort by
Henry Flagler, a founder of
Standard Oil, who made the Atlantic coast
barrier island accessible via his
Florida East Coast Railway. The nucleus of Palm Beach was established by Flagler's two luxury resort hotels, the Royal Poinciana Hotel and The Breakers Hotel.
Encyclopedia
Palm Beach is a city located in
Palm Beach County,
Florida, 65 miles north of
Miami. The
Intracoastal Waterway separates it from the neighboring cities of
West Palm Beach and
Lake Worth. Palm Beach was established as a resort by
Henry Flagler, a founder of
Standard Oil, who made the Atlantic coast
barrier island accessible via his
Florida East Coast Railway. The nucleus of Palm Beach was established by Flagler's two luxury resort hotels, the Royal Poinciana Hotel and The Breakers Hotel.
West Palm Beach was built across Lake Worth as a service town, and has become a major city in its own right.
Flagler's houselots were bought by the beneficiaries of the
Gilded Age, and in 1902 Flagler himself built a
Beaux-Arts mansion, Whitehall, designed by the New York-based firm
Carrère and Hastings and helped establish the Palm Beason winter "season" by constant entertaining. The town was incorporated on April 17, 1911.
As of 2000, Palm Beach had a year-round population of 10,468, with an estimated seasonal population of 30,000. As of 2004, the year-round population recorded by the
U.S. Census Bureau is 9,860.
Many of Palm Beach's residents are affluent, with a median household income of $94,562 and a median family income of $137,867. The town's affluence, and its "abundance of pleasures" and "strong community-oriented sensibility" were cited when it was selected in June, 2003 as
America's "Best Place to Live" by
Robb Report magazine.
The city is served by Palm Beach International Airport.
Geography
Palm Beach is located on a sixteen-mile-long
barrier island, centered at .
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 27.0 km² . 10.2 km² of it is land and 16.9 km² of it is water. The total area is 62.45% water.
Demographics
As of the
2000 census, over half the population are 65 years of age or older, with a median age of 67 years. 9.4% are under the age of 18, 1.5% are from 18 to 24, 11.5% are from 25 to 44, and 25.0% from 45 to 64. For every 100 females there are 79.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 77.0 males.
The per-capita income for the town is $109,219. Males have a median income of $71,685 versus $42,875 for females. 5.3% of the population and 2.4% of families are below the
poverty line. 4.6% of those under the age of 18 and 2.9% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
The racial makeup of the town is 96.00%
White, 2.57%
Black or
African American, 0.53%
Asian, 0.04%
Native American, 0.02%
Pacific Islander, 0.21% from
other races, and 0.63% from two or more races. 2.56% of the population are
Hispanic or
Latino of any race.
The 10,468 people in the town are organized into 5,789 households and 3,021 families. The
population density is 1,031.1/km² . There are 9,948 housing units at an average density of 979.8/km² . 7.7% of the households have children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.1% are married couples living together, 3.3% have a female householder with no husband present, and 47.8% are non-families. 42.6% of all households are made up of individuals and 27.6% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 1.81 and the average family size is 2.38.
Points of interest
- Whitehall, the Flagler Museum
- Four Arts Gardens
- Mar-A-Lago
Sports
The
Palm Beach Imperials are an American Basketball Association 2006 expansion franchise.
External links
