Rockledge

Rockledge, Florida
Location in Brevard County and the state of Florida
Coordinates: 28°19′30″N 80°43′58″W / 28.325, -80.73278
Country	United States
State	Florida
County	Brevard
Area
- City	km²  ( sq mi)
- Land	km² ( sq mi)
- Water	km² ( sq mi)
Elevation	m ( ft)
Population (2000)
- City
- Density	/km² (/sq mi)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes	32955-32956
Area code(s)	321
FIPS code	12-615002
GNIS feature ID	02941323

Rockledge is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 20,170 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 23,295 [1].

Geography

Rockledge is located at 28°19′30″N, 80°43′58″W (28.324938, -80.732686)¹.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 31.5 km² (12.2 mi²). 27.7 km² (10.7 mi²) of it is land and 3.8 km² (1.5 mi²) of it (12.15%) is water.

It is bounded on the north by Cocoa, on the west by the St. Johns River and scrubland, to the south by Viera (unincorporated) and Melbourne, and to the east by the Indian River Lagoon and Merritt Island (unincorporated) on the opposite shore.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 20,170 people, 7,864 households, and 5,677 families residing in the city. The population density was 727.8/km² (1,884.4/mi²). There were 8,353 housing units at an average density of 301.4/km² (780.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 81.06% White, 14.64% African American, 0.28% Native American, 1.66% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.73% from other races, and 1.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.28% of the population.

There were 7,864 households out of which 31.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.8% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.8% were non-families. 22.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.8% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 16.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 90.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $45,218, and the median income for a family was $52,332. Males had a median income of $39,434 versus $25,918 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,700. About 4.0% of families and 6.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.2% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.

History

Rockledge was founded on August 7, 1887, making it the oldest incorporated municipality in Brevard County. Early industry in the area was based on the citrus trade and accommodation for tourists traveling to South Florida via the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway of the Indian River. The town's original hotel, the Brevard Hotel, was razed in the 1990s to make room for condominium and marina development. Current citrus groves are now nominal, producing citrus confections, juice and souvenirs for the tourist trade and for local consumption. Local businesses now focus greatly on technology and aerospace, especially those related to nearby Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral. The city also sees a fair amount of ghost hunters coming to visit Ashley's restaurant, a reportedly haunted establishment. Rockledge takes great pride in Rockledge High School, which has won many state championships in athletics, including the 2001 and 2002 FHSAA football state championships, the 2004 state championship in baseball, and the 2004 state championship in the track and field Girl's 200 Meter Sprint, along with six other state championships in cross country from past years.

Notable residents

• Andy Hutchins, contestant on Jeopardy! Teen Tournament Summer Games 2007
• DeLane Matthews, actress, most notably as Beth Barry on Dave's World (1993-1997)
• Melissa Witek, Miss Florida USA 2005 and contestant on NBC's Treasure Hunters

External links

• City of Rockledge official site
• Old Photos and Postcards from the Rockledge Heritage Foundation

Coordinates: 28.324938° N 80.732686° W

Municipalities and communities of Brevard County, Florida
County seat: Titusville
Cities	Cape Canaveral | Cocoa | Cocoa Beach | Indian Harbour Beach | Melbourne | Palm Bay | Rockledge | Satellite Beach | Titusville | West Melbourne
Towns	Grant-Valkaria | Indialantic | Malabar | Melbourne Beach | Melbourne Village | Palm Shores
CDPs	Cocoa West | June Park | Merritt Island | Micco | Mims | Port St. John | Sharpes | South Patrick Shores
Communities	Barefoot Bay | Canaveral Groves | Courteney | Floridana Beach | Kennedy Space Center | Melbourne Shores | Scottsmoor | Suntree | Viera

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