26 Interesting facts about Florida

The U.S. city with most lightning strikes per capita is Clearwater. Tweet This

Gatorade was named after the University of Florida Gators. Tweet This

On 1 January 1914, Tony Jannus flew the world’s first scheduled passenger flight from St. Petersburg, FL to Tampa. Tweet This

In 1944, Miami Beach pharmacist Benjamin Green invented the first suntan cream. Tweet This

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Key West has the highest average temperature in the U.S.A. Tweet This

Saint John’s River is one of the very few rivers in the world that flow north instead of south. Tweet This

Miami installed the first ATM in the world especially for rollerbladers. Tweet This

80 percent of the U.S. shrimp supply comes from Florida. Tweet This

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Fort Lauderdale is also called Venice of America because of its 184 miles (300 km) local waterways. Tweet This

Key Largo claims to be the Dive Capital of the world. Tweet This

Fort Zachary Taylor in Key West, FL was controlled by the Union during the Civil War and successfully blocked Confederate ships. Tweet This

In 1989, the Dame Point Bridge became the longest concrete span in the Western Hemisphere. Tweet This

Annual Mug Race is the world’s longest river sailboat race: 42 miles (68 km) from Palatka to Jacksonville. Tweet This

The Florida Museum in Coral Gables is the only U.S. museum devoted to Hispanic and Latin American Art. Tweet This

Florida is the only state with two different rivers holding the same name – Withlacoochee. Tweet This

Avocado trees were first planted in Florida as early as 1833. Tweet This

Florida has over 100 million citrus trees. Tweet This

In 1945, Florida Department of Citrus developed the process for making frozen concentrated orange juice. Now Florida is among top 3 orange juice producers worldwide. Tweet This

Florida produces annually close to 1 billion pounds watermelons (400,000 ton). Tweet This

Florida is surprisingly well-populated for such a marshy and hurricane-prone state. Tweet This

Florida was the arena of one of the United States’ most aggressive “Indian removal” campaigns – Seminole Wars. Tweet This

Sunshine Skyway Bridge is almost 200 feet (60 m) above the water. Tweet This

The name of Hypoluxo City comes from a Seminole expression meaning “water all around, no get out.” Tweet This

Alligator is Florida’s official state reptile. Tweet This

Crocodile is an endangered species in Florida, counting less than 500. Tweet This

Florida Puma is one of the rarest and most endangered mammals in the world with only couple dozen left. Tweet This