Bronson - Levy County, Florida

..is located about 20 miles from Gainesville. Lying in rural Levy County, which is situated in North Central Florida, Bronson is the county seat.

..has a population, according to 1993 census estimates, of approximately 900 people in a county of 27,500.

..is adequately served with transportation to the West by U. S. Highway 19 and by 27 Alternate linking with Interstate 75 which is located about 20 mites North. Levy County has an excellent system of County and State Highways spanning its boundaries.

..is easily accessible to health facilities. The Levy County Health Department is located in Bronson. Nature Coast Regional Hospital, a 40 bed facility, is located 12 mites East in Williston. This hospital provides Emergency Room services and has a 4 bed Intensive Care Unit. Just 20 miles north, the Gainesville VA Medical Center, Shands Hospital at the University of Florida, Alachua General Hospital and North Florida Regional Hospital provide health services to the area.

..is served by the Gainesville Regional Airport located 40 miles north with scheduled daily flights. The Williston Municipal Airport lying 12 miles East of Bronson, provides a fixed base operator, aircraft maintenance and charter services and features two runways of 7,000 and 5,000 feet.

BRONSON

..has a temperate climate with an average annual temperature of 67.80 F and an average rainfall of 56 inches.

..has educational sources consisting of a public elementary and a public high school. The University of Florida, a Vo-Tech Center and 2 community colleges are all located within 25 miles.

..in 1993 celebrated the opening of a newly constructed public library.

..is served by 5 major denominations of churches.

..has growing recreational facilities located within its city limits. In addition, a number of county Parks, and privately owned parks are located within a few miles.

PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Bronson Elementary (K-5)
P. O. Box 220
Bronson, FL 32621
(904)486-5281

Bronson Middle (6-8)
Bronson High (9-12)
P. 0. Box 189
Bronson, FL 32621
(904)486-5261

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REAL ESTATE BROKERS

Janney Realty (904)486-2398
Brice Real Estate (904)486-2925
Killer Real Estate (904)486-2966
Penn-Flo Real Estate (904)486-2582

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RECREATION

The City of Bronson has over 20 acres set aside for recreation with plans for the purchase of additional property. The developed portion of the recreational property is utilized by a variety of sports and activities and the City has on-going plans to expand the facilities.

The forests, natural springs, rivers, and close proximity to the coast make Levy County very attractive to those with an interest in the outdoors. There are over 20 nature-based recreations sites here.

Several natural springs are near Bronson. Blue Springs and Henry Beck, both County Parks, provide swimming and picnicking, concession facilities and are located a few miles away. The Devil's Den and Blue Grotto are natural spring fed caves offering activities to divers.

Additional Information about BRONSON can be obtained by contacting:

BRONSON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, INC.
P. O. Box 1450
Bronson, Florida 32621
(904)486-1003

Additional information about LEVY COUNTY can be obtained by contacting:

LEVY COUNTY DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
P. 0. Box 1112
612 E. Hathaway Avenue
Bronson, Florida 32621

The Development Authority actively promotes new industrial development for Levy County and has compiled a great deal of statistics and information on the municipalities in Levy County as well as the county as a whole.

OTHER SOURCES FOR INFORMATION ABOUT LEVY COUNTY:

County Commissioners (904)486-5216
Clerk of the Court (904)486-5229
County Judge (904)486-5224
Property Appraiser (904)486-5222
Sheriff (904)486-5111
Supervisor of Elections (904)486-5163
Tax collector (904)486-5179

FACTS ABOUT LEVY COUNTY

..Population - approximately 27,500
..Square miles - 1103
..Total Area - 705,280 Acres
..8th largest county in Florida in Land Area
..106 miles of Rivers
..58 miles of coastline
..101 lakes covering 7,4"
..632 Miles of Paved Roads
..395 Miles of Graded Roads
..4955 Single Family Homes
..2737 Mobile Homes
..6434 Families Receiving Homestead Exemption.

According to information complied by the Levy County Development Authority from the 1993 FLORIDA STATISTICAL ABSTRACT and FLORIDA COUNTY COMPARISONS, the population of Levy County grew by 1,534 people between 1990 and 1992. Less than 2% was due to natural increase (the difference between births and deaths). Over 98% of this increase, from 25,923 in the 1990 Census to an estimated 27,457 in 1992, is attributed to net migration with 1,511 more people moving into the county than moving out. By comparison, 74% of state wide population growth was from migration and 26% from natural increase. Almost 70% of county residents live in unincorporated areas. Williston is the largest incorporated community with 2,198 residents, followed by Chiefland - 1,997, Inglis 1,298, Bronson - WS, Cedar Key 679, Yankeetown - 631, Fanning Springs (part) - 232, and Otter Creek - 115.

LEVY COUNTY HISTORY...

The area in Northwest Florida known as Levy County was founded in 1845 and named for Florida's first Senator David Levy Yulee.

There was a period of time when David Yulee changed his name to David Levy. This is how the county name came to be Levy.

The Levy area was once under water, and chunks of hematite, shells and pre-historic animal fossils have been found on farmland and along the Waccasasse River.

The earliest American colonial settlers were loyalists who fled here during the Mexican Revolutionary War and the War of 1812.

The land in early Levy County was cleared for cotton, but soon the value of the timberland was recognized and sawmills appeared with turpentine and resin industries.

There were skirmishes in Levy County during the Civil War, and the town of Cedar Key was occupied by Federal troops. The troops closed the port of Cedar Key vital to Confederate shipping and blocked the passage of cotton being shipped down the Suwannee River.

Atsena Otie, an Island off the coast of Cedar Key, was once studded with red cedar trees. In 1855, Eberhardt Faber built a pencil factory an the North end of the Island where 100 people were employed for mill and logging work. The Federal troops had a depot and hospital on the island too but the hurricane of 1896 leveled many buildings.

There was a turbulence of growth after the Civil War with commercial development and expansion. Citrus groves and vineyards were established, sawmills and turpentine industry flourished, and phosphate mining started in now extinct towns. Towns like Lukens, Sumner, Rosewood, Meredith Albion and Black Dirt are all memories now like the sawmills and the phosphate industry. The Seaboard-Air Line Railroad which connected them all is defunct, and like the vanished communities, the roadbeds have been reclaimed by weeds and vines.

The first County Seat was at Levyville, but was moved to Bronson in 1869. Bronson is centrally located, and lies between the towns of Chiefland and Williston.

The towns of Yankeetown and Inglis are on the Withlacoochee River, Inglis was formally called Blind Horse, named for a blind horse that pulled a ferry there.

Whether under Spanish, British or American flag, Levy County has remained basically a rural agricultural and lumbering area. Even with expansion and the passing of time, there remains a changeless quality to Levy County with the quaint harbor on the Gulf of Mexico, to subtropical swamps, cypress hammocks and pine-studded flatlands. Often overlooked by tourists, Levy County remains one of the least changed counties in Florida.

... as of January 1, 1993

Major Employers in Levy County

Levy County
   School Board 735
   Board of Commissioners 210
State of Florida 290
White Industries 241
Oakview Care Center 159
Wal-Mart 135
Winn-Dixie 100
Central Fla Electric Co-op 95
Nature Coast Reg. Hospital 76
V. E. Whitehurst & Sons 75
Levy County State Bank 66
J-KAK, Inc.
U. S. Post Office 47
Perkins State Bank 47
Florida Rock Industries 46
Piggly Wiggly 41
Hudson Foods 39
E. T. Usher Company 32
Shirmac of Florida 30
Drummond Community Bank 30
A & N Corporation 24
Food Ranch 15

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