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Location Information:
One of
more popular beaches in the sunshine
state of Florida, Jacksonville Beach
is a city on the Atlantic coast of
Duval County, Florida, east of
Jacksonville. It is part of the
Jacksonville Beaches community,
together with Mayport, Atlantic
Beach, Neptune Beach, and Ponte
Vedra Beach. Like most of northeast
Florida, the Jacksonville Beach area
was originally inhabited by the
Timucua peoples. Though the
Jacksonville Beaches region was one
of the first parts of what is now
the continental United States to see
settlement during the period of
European colonziation, the area of
Jacksonville Beach itself was not
settled until the 19th century.
In the
late 19th century, developers began
to see the potential in Duval
County's oceanfront as a resort. In
1883 a group of investors formed the
Jacksonville and Atlantic Railroad
with the intention of developing a
resort community that would be
connected to Jacksonville by rail.
In 1884 the first residents of what
would become Jacksonville Beach
moved in, and a railway station,
post office, and small tent
community was formed. The community
was named Ruby, after the daughter
of one of the first residents. The
name was changed to Pablo Beach in
1886, and the first hotel was
constructed. It was incorporated as
a town in 1907. The name was changed
to Jacksonville Beach in 1921,
emphasizing the connection with
Jacksonviille.
In 1968 most residents of Duval
County voted to approve
consolidation between the county and
the City of Jacksonville.
Jacksonville Beach, together with
Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, and
the Westside community of Baldwin
voted to retain their own municipal
governments. As such they are not
part of the City of Jacksonville,
but receive county-level services
from Jacksonville, and vote for
Jacksonville's mayor and City
Council. The current mayor is Fland
Sharp. Jacksonville Beach is the
largest town in the Jacksonville
Beaches community. It is the eastern
terminus of U.S. Route 90, which
ends at an intersections with State
Road A1A three blocks from the
Atlantic Ocean.
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