Tallahassee

© Roy Digital Design

Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto was probably the first European to arrive to the area of present-day Tallahassee in 1539. He found a flourishing Native American settlement of Apalachees. More explorers followed De Soto later, as well as Spanish missionaries and settlers. The Apalachee village remained the region's major settlement until Tallahassee was founded in 1824 as the capital of the Florida Territory. Later it became the state capital of Florida.

The ordinance of secession was adopted in Tallahassee in 1861. During the Civil war, the city successfully resisted Union attempts to capture it. Not far from the city is a monument that marks the site of the battle of Natural Bridge, which took place in March 1865. During that battle, Tallahassee cadets helped repel a Union attack. Another interesting sight is the capitol, which was built in 1845 and remodeled in 1901. The capitol contains the state library. In Tallahassee you can also see the graves of Prince Achille Murat and his wife. The prince was a nephew of Napoleon I. Not far from town are Apalachicola National Forest and Wakulla Springs.

Tallahasse is a wholesale trade and distribution center for the surrounding lumber, livestock and agricultural area. Lumber and wood products are manufactured there and food is processed. The state government, Florida State University and Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University are major sources of employment. Tallahassee had a population increase of 53% between 1980 and 1990 and it is still one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States.

Tallahassee is also known for its many museums, some of which include the Museum of Fine Arts, Tallahassee Museum, Goodwood Museum & Gardens, the Museum of Florida History, Mission San Luis de Apalachee, Tallahassee Automobile Museum, Old Capitol Museum, Knott House Museum, Riley Museum and The Grove.

The city boasts a wide variety of interesting buildings, parks and other sites. Here are the most important ones: Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park, Carnegie Library at FAMU, Challenger Learning Center, Co-Cathedral of St. Thomas More, Doak Campbell Stadium, Elinor Klapp-Phipps Park, First Presbyterian Church, Florida Governor's Mansion, Florida State Capitol, Florida Supreme Court, Foster Tanner Fine Arts Gallery at Florida A&M University, Innovation Park, Knott House Museum, Lake Ella, Lake Jackson Mounds Archaeological State Park, LeRoy Collins Leon County Public Library, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Railroad Square, Southeastern Regional Black Archives Research Center and Museum, St. John's Episcopal Church, James D. Westcott Building and Ruby Diamond Auditorium.

There are many hotels, café's and restaurants in Tallahassee. The city is in a hilly region in the northwest of Florida. The area is known for its lakes, springs, forests and picturesque gardens. Tallahassee is 1170 km southwest from Washington D.C.