Okaloosa County GenWeb Florida

Okaloosa County is a county located in the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, extending from the Gulf of Mexico to the Alabama state line. As of 2015, the population was 198,664. Its county seat is Crestview.
Okaloosa County was created by an act passed on September 7, 1915. Okaloosa is a Choctaw word meaning "black water". "Oka" means water, and "lusa" is black in the Choctaw language.
Northwest Florida was an untamed wilderness and after the Civil War it became home to a handful of hardy homesteaders. They made their way south on foot, ox carts, boats, and mule wagons to establish small sustenance farms. These resourceful settlers made ends meet by fishing, hunting, and trading. Small outposts sprang up and served as gathering places for these isolated pioneers. Okaloosa pioneers gathered often to exchange ideas, goods and news. Soon, these trading posts became small towns, which in turn, grew into the cities and towns we recognize today.
The formation of Okaloosa County can be closely tied to Laurel Hill resident and State Representative, William Mapoles. In 1915 it was Mapoles who introduced a bill to the Florida House of Representatives that called for the creation of a new county from the existing counties of Santa Rosa and Walton. Mr. Mapoles named the county after a steamboat called “The Okaloosa” named after a Choctaw word meaning black water. This Okaloosa steamboat brought passengers up and down the Blackwater River from Milton to Pensacola. A temporary county seat was established in Milligan until a special election was held in 1917 and Crestview was chosen as the new permanent seat.



                                                   GEOGRAPHY
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,082 square miles (2,800 km2), of which 930 square miles (2,400 km2) is land and 152 square miles (390 km2) (14.0%) is water. Fort Walton Beach and three United States Air Force bases, (Duke Field in the North and Eglin AFB and Hurlburt Field are in the south).

Adjacent Counties:
Covington County, AL - North
Escambia County, AL -North
Walton County, FL - West
Santa Rosa County, FL - East

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OKALOOSA COUNTY, FLGENWEB