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Tallahassee, in Leon County in North Florida, has been the capital since 1824.
Before that, the legislature took turns meeting in St. Augustine and Pensacola, the two main cities, and the trip between them took almost 20 days; Tallahassee was chosen as the point midway between the two. Three log cabins served as the first Capitol.
The brick Capitol finished in 1845 is still the core of the Old Capitol; two wings and the dome were added in 1902. The 22-story Capitol behind it was finished in 1977, and the old building was refurbished and opened to the public again in 1982. It now holds the Florida Legislative Research Center and Museum at the Historic Capitol, open Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Sundays and holidays noon to 4:30 p.m., closed Thanksgiving and Christmas Day; 850-410-2230.
On April 1, 2025, Tallahassee had 205,623 people and Leon County 305,866, by the Florida Legislature's figures from the University of Florida's estimates.
Population 297,542. Typical home sale price about $318,900 from March to May 2026; typical condo $187,000 in May 2026. Median household income $66,287; 14.8% of residents are 65 or older. (Source: Redfin; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, published January 2026)
Open the county guide →On March 3, 1845, as the 27th state. Spain founded St. Augustine in 1565, the first permanent European settlement in Florida, and the United States acquired Florida from Spain as a territory in 1821.
Read the answer →Florida's State University System has 12 public universities: Florida A&M University, Florida Atlantic University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Florida International University, Florida Polytechnic University, Florida State University, New College of Florida, the University of Central Florida, the University of Florida, the University of North Florida, the University of South Florida and the University of West Florida.
Read the answer →About 23.4 million. The Florida Legislature, using the University of Florida's estimates, counted 23,379,261 people on April 1, 2025, up from 21,538,187 in the 2020 Census.
On March 3, 1845, as the 27th state. Spain founded St. Augustine in 1565, the first permanent European settlement in Florida, and the United States acquired Florida from Spain as a territory in 1821.
Florida covers 65,758 square miles, 22nd among the 50 states: 53,625 square miles of land and 12,133 of water.
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