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<p class="irlsubtitle">{{SUBPAGENAME}} information, articles and news about the [[Indian River Lagoon Estuary]]</p>
 
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[[File:Seal of brevard.png|border|160px|thumb|right|Brevard County Seal]]
[[File:Brevard logo.png|border|160px|thumb|right|Brevard County Logo]]
Brevard County is located on Central Florida's East Coast. It is bounded by the St. Johns River plain on the west and the Atlantic Ocean on the east. Strongly influenced by the John F. Kennedy Space Center, Brevard County is also known as the Space Coast and was designated with the telephone area code 321, as in 3-2-1 liftoff.  
Brevard County is located on Central Florida's East Coast. It is bounded by the St. Johns River plain on the west and the Atlantic Ocean on the east. Strongly influenced by the John F. Kennedy Space Center, Brevard County is also known as the Space Coast and was designated with the telephone area code 321, as in 3-2-1 liftoff.  
[[File:Space Shuttle Columbia launching.jpg|320px|thumb|right|alt=Space Shuttle Columbia launching from Kennedy Space Center|Space Shuttle Columbia]]
In 1982, Brevard construction workers at Windover Farms uncovered a human burial ground over 8000yrs old.<ref name="WindoverDig" /> The Florida Legislature established Brevard County in 1854. The county is named after Theodore Washington Brevard, an early Florida settler and state comptroller.<ref name="BrevardHistory" /> As of the 2010 census, the population was 543,376, making it the 10th most populated county in Florida.<ref name="QF" />
[[File:Seal of brevard.png|border|320px|thumb|right|alt=Seal of Brevard County, Florida|Brevard County Seal]]
72 mile long Brevard County has a total area of 1,557 square miles (4,030 km2), of which 1,016 square miles (2,630 km2) is land and 541 square miles (1,400 km2) (34.8%) is water.<ref name="GR1" /> Most of Brevard's water is the Atlantic Ocean, the St. Johns River, and the [[Indian River Lagoon Estuary]]. The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) is the nation's navigational channel through [[Mosquito Lagoon]] and [[Indian River]] in Brevard County. Dredging for the 10-12ft deep Intracoastal Waterway created 41 spoil islands in the Brevard portion of the Indian River.<ref name="Spoilhistory" />


The county is named after Theodore Washington Brevard, an early Florida settler and state comptroller.<ref name="TWBrevard" /> The official county seat has been located in Titusville since 1894. In 1989, a secondary center of county administrative offices was built in Viera, to serve the more populous southern part of the 72 mile long county. As of the 2010 census, the population was 543,376, making it the 10th most populated county in Florida.<ref name="QF" />
Brevard County government has historically labeled the Atlantic beach areas differently; North Reach includes 9.4 miles (15.1 km) in Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Beach; Patrick Space Force Base beach is 4.1 miles (6.6 km); Mid Reach includes the 7.6 miles (12.2 km) in Satellite Beach; South Reach includes the 3.8 miles (6.1 km) in Indialantic and Melbourne Beach; South Beaches includes 14.5 miles (23.3 km) south of Melbourne Beach to Sebastian.<ref name="Brevardbeach" />
[[File:Brevard logo.png|border|320px|thumb|right|alt=Brevard County Logo|Brevard County Logo]]
There are 250 square miles (650 km2) of federally protected wildlife refuges in Brevard County. These lands include [[Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge]], [[Canaveral National Seashore]], St. Johns National Wildlife Refuge, Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge, St. Johns River Water Management District conservation areas, Brevard Environmentally Endangered Lands, and Florida's ''Outstanding Florida Water'' aquatic preserves.  


Containing 71% of the [[Indian River Lagoon Estuary|Indian River Lagoon National Estuary]], and almost 50% of it's length<ref name="SOIRL2020" />,  Brevard County is home to the entire [[Banana River]], most of the [[Mosquito Lagoon]], and the North and Central zones of the [[Indian River]]. On November 8th, 2016 Brevard County residents voted to collect a .5% sales tax to fund it's [[Save Our Indian River Lagoon]] restoration program.
Containing 71% of the [[Indian River Lagoon Estuary|Indian River Lagoon National Estuary]], and almost 50% of it's length<ref name="SOIRL2020" />,  Brevard County is home to the entire [[Banana River]], most of [[Mosquito Lagoon]], and the North and Central zones of the [[Indian River]]. On November 8th, 2016 Brevard County residents voted to collect a .5% sales tax to fund it's [[Save Our Indian River Lagoon]] restoration program.


Click an arrow below to view the pages in each category.
View the [[Brevard County|Brevard County - Indian River Lagoon Encyclopedia Article]] for more about Brevard County.
Click an arrow below to view the pages in each Brevard County category.
<categorytree mode="pages" depth="1">Brevard County</categorytree>
<categorytree mode="pages" depth="1">Brevard County</categorytree>
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==History==
==See Also==
The history of Brevard County begins with the prehistory of native cultures living in the area for thousands of years prior to the arrival of Europeans in the 16th century. The Windover Archeological Site, discovered in 1982, was found during excavation to have the largest collection of human remains and artifacts of the early Archaic Period (6,000-5,000 BCE), or more than 8,000 years before present. It has been designated as a National Historic Landmark.
* [[Brevard County]]
 
* [[Indian River Lagoon Estuary]]
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,557 square miles (4,030 km2), of which 1,016 square miles (2,630 km2) is land and 541 square miles (1,400 km2) (34.8%) is water.<ref name="GR1" /> Most of the water is the Atlantic Ocean, the St. Johns River and the Indian River Lagoon.
* [[Banana River]]
 
* [[Indian River]]
Located halfway between Jacksonville and Miami, Brevard County extends 72 miles (116 km) from north to south, and averages 26.5 miles (42.6 km) wide.
* [[Mosquito Lagoon]]
 
The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) along the eastern edge of Brevard County is the major waterway route in Brevard County. Dredging for the Intracoastal Waterway created 41 spoil islands in the Brevard portion of the Indian River.<ref name="Spoilhistory" /> Additional waterways include Lake Washington, Lake Poinsett, Lake Winder, Sawgrass Lake, St. Johns River, Mosquito Lagoon, and the Banana River.
 
The county government has historically labeled the beach areas differently. The North Reach includes 9.4 miles (15.1 km) in Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Beach. The Patrick Air Force Base beach is 4.1 miles (6.6 km). The Mid Reach includes the 7.6 miles (12.2 km) in Satellite Beach. The South Reach includes the 3.8 miles (6.1 km) in Indialantic and Melbourne Beach. The South Beaches include 14.5 miles (23.3 km) south of Melbourne Beach to Sebastian.<ref name="Brevardbeach" />
 
The county has nine major stormwater drainage canals. Some of these, such as the C-1 and C-54, are 100 feet (30 m) wide, giving them the capacity to handle excessive rainfall that may accompany tropical storms or hurricanes.
 
The following canals are regularly used for transportation and drainage:
 
* Canaveral Barge Canal, Courtenay – transportation
* Faulk Canal, Rockledge
* Grand Canal, Tropic
* [[Haulover Canal]], Mims – transportation
* Melbourne Tillman Canal, Melbourne West – drainage
* Old Canal, Wilson
* C-1 (Canal 1), which is maintained by the Melbourne-Tillman Water Control District
* C-54 Canal – on the south Brevard County Line – drainage
* L-15 Canal – Crane Creek Drainage District which has a watershed of about 12,000 acres (4,900 ha).
 
==Ecosystem==
 
Brevard County works together with the federal and state government to control pollution and preserve wetlands and coastal areas through lands dedicated to conservation and wildlife protection.
 
There are 250 square miles (650 km2) of federally protected wildlife refuges. These lands include Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, the Canaveral National Seashore, the St. Johns National Wildlife Refuge, the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge, several conservation areas managed by the St. Johns River Water Management District, Brevard County's Environmentally Endangered Lands Program Sanctuaries, and lands dedicated by the State as conservation areas.
 
===Fauna===
There are 4,000 species of animals locally. Common mammals include North American river otters, bobcats, white-tailed deer, raccoons, marsh rabbits, and opossum. Feral pigs, introduced by Europeans, present an occasional traffic hazard. Lovebug season occurs twice annually in May and August–September. Motorists, usually, encounter swarms of these while driving during a four-week period. Deer flies are particularly noticeable from April through June. There were 596 manatees in Brevard County in 2009, out of a total of 3,802 in the state. This is a decline from 2007 when there was a total of 859 out of a state total of 2,817. Bottlenose dolphin are commonly seen in the Intracoastal Waterway. The venomous brown recluse spider is not native to the area but has found the environment congenial. The Florida Butterfly Monitoring Network has counted species of butterflies monthly for a year since 2007. In 2010, it counted 45 species. Included are zebra swallowtail butterflies. Fish and reptiles include alligators, red snapper, sea turtles, scrub lizards, and rat snakes. There are an estimated 3,500 gopher tortoises in the county. They are on the endangered list.
 
===Avian===
Turkey vultures, a migrating species, are protected by federal law. They migrate north in the summer and return in September.
 
The county's most common winter bird is the lesser scaup, a diving duck. In 2008, half a million were counted. In 2010, 15,000 were estimated. Local bird counts indicate that there are at least 163 species of birds in the county. Other birds include the red-shouldered hawk, the loggerhead shrike, the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker, Cooper's hawks, pileated woodpeckers, Savannah sparrows, rails (which also includes coots), Florida scrub jays (an endangered species), wood storks, grackles, great horned owls, northern mockingbirds, brown thrashers, catbirds, green-winged teals, greater yellowlegs, western sandpipers, least sandpipers, dowitchers, and American white pelicans. Peak migration in the fall is from the last week in September through the first week in October. Fall migration tends to be stronger than spring because birds typically take different flyways.
 
===Flora===
Live oak trees, various grasses, and juniper plants were sufficiently common to generate pollen noticeable by some people in February 2011. Native trees include cabbage palm (the state tree of Florida), fringetree, coral bean, sweet acacia, geiger tree, firebush, beautyberry, coral honeysuckle, and blanket flower. Native plants include sea grape, red mulberry, purslane, dandelion, Spanish bayonet, blackberry, Jerusalem artichoke, dogwood, and gallberry.


On the east coast of the state, mangroves have normally dominated the coast from Cocoa Beach southward. Northward these may compete with salt marshes moving in from the north, depending on the annual weather conditions.
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==Web Links==
==Web Links==
* [https://www.brevardfl.gov/HistoricalCommission/Home Brevard County Historical Commission]
* [https://www.brevardfl.gov/SaveOurLagoon/Home Save Our Indian River Lagoon]
* [https://www.brevardfl.gov/SaveOurLagoon/Home Save Our Indian River Lagoon]
* [https://spoilislandproject.org/ Indian River Lagoon Spoil Island Project]
* [https://myfloridahistory.org/default Florida Historical Society]
* [https://www.brevardfl.gov/HistoricalCommission Brevard County Historical Commission]
==References==
==References==
<references>
<references>
<ref name="WindoverDig">[https://myfloridahistory.org/frontiers/article/1 Florida Historical Society - The Windover Dig]</ref>
<ref name="QF">[https://web.archive.org/web/20110607113614/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/12/12009.html 2010 US Census Quick Facts]</ref>
<ref name="QF">[https://web.archive.org/web/20110607113614/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/12/12009.html 2010 US Census Quick Facts]</ref>
<ref name="TWBrevard">[https://www.brevardfl.gov/HistoricalCommission/HistorySummary Brevard County Historical Commission Summary]</ref>
<ref name="BrevardHistory">[https://www.brevardfl.gov/HistoricalCommission/HistorySummary Brevard County Historical Commission Summary]</ref>
<ref name="SOIRL2020">[https://www.brevardfl.gov/docs/default-source/soirl/final-2020-save-our-indian-river-lagoon-project-plan-update.docx?sfvrsn=c19bfb61_4 2020 Save Our Indian River Lagoon Plan Update (DOC)]</ref>
<ref name="SOIRL2020">[https://www.brevardfl.gov/docs/default-source/soirl/final-2020-save-our-indian-river-lagoon-project-plan-update.docx?sfvrsn=c19bfb61_4 2020 Save Our Indian River Lagoon Plan Update (DOC)]</ref>
<ref name="GR1">[https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990]</ref>
<ref name="GR1">[https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990]</ref>
<ref name="Spoilhistory">[http://spoilislandproject.org Spoil Island Project History]</ref>
<ref name="Spoilhistory">[http://spoilislandproject.org Spoil Island Project History]</ref>
<ref name="Brevardbeach">[http://www.brevardcounty.us/natres/BeachErosionStaffReport.pdf Brevard Beach and Dune Erosion]</ref>
<ref name="Brevardbeach">[https://www.brevardfl.gov/NaturalResources/Beaches/RestorationProjects Brevard Beach Restoration Projects]</ref>
</references>
</references>
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[[Category:Florida]]
[[Category:Florida]]

Latest revision as of 14:18, December 26, 2021

Brevard County is located on Central Florida's East Coast. It is bounded by the St. Johns River plain on the west and the Atlantic Ocean on the east. Strongly influenced by the John F. Kennedy Space Center, Brevard County is also known as the Space Coast and was designated with the telephone area code 321, as in 3-2-1 liftoff.

Space Shuttle Columbia launching from Kennedy Space Center
Space Shuttle Columbia

In 1982, Brevard construction workers at Windover Farms uncovered a human burial ground over 8000yrs old.[1] The Florida Legislature established Brevard County in 1854. The county is named after Theodore Washington Brevard, an early Florida settler and state comptroller.[2] As of the 2010 census, the population was 543,376, making it the 10th most populated county in Florida.[3]

Seal of Brevard County, Florida
Brevard County Seal

72 mile long Brevard County has a total area of 1,557 square miles (4,030 km2), of which 1,016 square miles (2,630 km2) is land and 541 square miles (1,400 km2) (34.8%) is water.[4] Most of Brevard's water is the Atlantic Ocean, the St. Johns River, and the Indian River Lagoon Estuary. The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) is the nation's navigational channel through Mosquito Lagoon and Indian River in Brevard County. Dredging for the 10-12ft deep Intracoastal Waterway created 41 spoil islands in the Brevard portion of the Indian River.[5]

Brevard County government has historically labeled the Atlantic beach areas differently; North Reach includes 9.4 miles (15.1 km) in Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Beach; Patrick Space Force Base beach is 4.1 miles (6.6 km); Mid Reach includes the 7.6 miles (12.2 km) in Satellite Beach; South Reach includes the 3.8 miles (6.1 km) in Indialantic and Melbourne Beach; South Beaches includes 14.5 miles (23.3 km) south of Melbourne Beach to Sebastian.[6]

Brevard County Logo
Brevard County Logo

There are 250 square miles (650 km2) of federally protected wildlife refuges in Brevard County. These lands include Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Canaveral National Seashore, St. Johns National Wildlife Refuge, Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge, St. Johns River Water Management District conservation areas, Brevard Environmentally Endangered Lands, and Florida's Outstanding Florida Water aquatic preserves.

Containing 71% of the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary, and almost 50% of it's length[7], Brevard County is home to the entire Banana River, most of Mosquito Lagoon, and the North and Central zones of the Indian River. On November 8th, 2016 Brevard County residents voted to collect a .5% sales tax to fund it's Save Our Indian River Lagoon restoration program.

View the Brevard County - Indian River Lagoon Encyclopedia Article for more about Brevard County.

Click an arrow below to view the pages in each Brevard County category.

Subcategories

This category has the following 3 subcategories, out of 3 total.

Pages in category "Brevard County"

The following 3 pages are in this category, out of 3 total.