Despite the 45-degree weather, Alachua County residents braved the chill to commemorate the founding of their county. Live music filled the air as parents led their children to the face painting booth and couples shared treats from food truck vendors.
Alachua County kicked off its 200th birthday festivities Jan. 11 with an event titled “Discover 200 – A Bicentennial Celebration.” The event featured food trucks, face paintings, balloon animals, historical and county service exhibits and music on two stages at Depot Park and Heartwood Soundstage. UF mascots Albert and Alberta were also in attendance.
Alachua County was first established Dec. 29, 1824, and it’s composed of nine distinct cities: Gainesville, Archer, Alachua, Micanopy, Waldo, Hawthorne, High Springs, Newberry and La Crosse. Gainesville serves as its county seat.
Prior to its establishment, the area now known as Alachua County was home to Indigenous tribes, including the Timucua and Seminoles. The influence of these Indigenous tribes was highlighted in a bicentennial proclamation issued by the Alachua County Board of County Commissioners. According to the proclamation, the county's name, “Alachua,” means “big jug” in Timucuan, which is a reference to the region's sinkhole geography.
Today, Alachua County spans 876 square miles and is home to nearly 290,000 residents, the proclamation stated.
The proclamation also highlighted the cultural, political and educational contributions African Americans have made to Alachua County. Mark Sexton, the Alachua County Communications Director, said the county continues to be involved in its Truth and Reconciliation process, which strives to create a healing atmosphere to address the legacy of racial injustice.
Sexton said it’s important to acknowledge the positives and negatives of the county’s history to learn from the past and to strive toward progress.
“It’s a rich history [and] it’s a history that has grown this place into a great place to live,” he said.
Alachua County Commissioner Marihelen Wheeler, echoed this sentiment and said there has also been an effort to recognize the history of Alachua County’s Indigenous peoples.
In 2017, after acquiring the 211-acre YMCA Camp McConnell near the town of Micanopy, Alachua County renamed the site the Cuscowilla Nature and Retreat Center after the largest Seminole community in the 1700s. Wheeler said the Seminoles gave the county permission to do so, and the park will be used as a center of education about the Timucua and Seminoles.
“We’re trying to focus on the history: the good, the bad and the ugly,” she said. “The 200 years makes us focus back on how far we’ve come in terms of integrating all those cultures into this one county.”
Wheeler said she loves the community and its diversity. There’s a place for everybody, she said.
Mari Woerter, a 33-year-old Alachua County resident, said she heard about the event through her boyfriend, who was performing with his band, The Savants of Soul. She said she liked the food trucks and music at the event.
Many of the musical artists were either from Alachua County or began their music careers locally, with performances spanning genres like R&B, rock, country, blues and hip-hop.
Another attendee of the event, 43-year-old Gainesville resident Ella Tabares, shared Woerter’s appreciation for the music. She said she loved live performances and engaging with the music community.
Tabares said Gainesville has been known as a music town since 2001 when she came for college, and she said she is proud that the city has been able to sustain and grow its music scene.
Tabares said two of her favorite aspects of living in Alachua County are the community of college students and the vibrance of younger generations.
“College students always keep us older people young,” she said. “UF is gonna be around forever and so there’s always gonna be young people and they’re gonna bring their energy and their passion.”
Contact Annie Wang at awang@alligator.org. Follow her on X @wynwg.
Annie Wang is a sophomore journalism student and the Fall 2024 University Administration Reporter. She previously wrote for the University Desk as a General Assignment reporter. In her spare time, she can be found reading and writing book reviews.
