Pinellas County (, ) is a county located on the west central coast of the U.S. state of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 959,107. The county is part of the

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough C ...

– St. Petersburg– Clearwater, Florida

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally incorporated as a city or tow ...

. Clearwater is the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

. St. Petersburg is the largest city as well as the largest city in Florida that is not a county seat.

History

Pre-European settlement

When Europeans first reached the Pinellas peninsula, the Tampa Bay area was inhabited by people of the Safety Harbor culture. The Safety Harbor culture area was divided into

chiefdoms A chiefdom is a form of hierarchical political organization in non-industrial societies usually based on kinship, and in which formal leadership is monopolized by the legitimate senior members of select families or 'houses'. These elites form a ...

. One documented chiefdom in what is now Pinellas County was that of the Tocobaga, who occupied a town and large temple mound, the Safety Harbor site, overlooking the bay in what is now Safety Harbor. The modern site is protected and can be visited as part of the County's

Philippe Park Philippe Park is a Pinellas County park located in Safety Harbor, Florida. The park is named after Odet Philippe, who is credited with introducing grapefruit to Florida. It is situated on that was once part of Philippe's plantation. Philippe was ...

Spanish and British Florida

During the early 16th century Spanish explorers discovered and slowly began exploring Florida, including Tampa Bay. In 1528 Panfilo de Narvaez landed in Pinellas, and 10 years later

Hernando de Soto Hernando de Soto (; ; 1500 – 21 May, 1542) was a Spanish explorer and ''conquistador'' who was involved in expeditions in Nicaragua and the Yucatan Peninsula. He played an important role in Francisco Pizarro's conquest of the Inca Empire ...

thought In their most common sense, the terms thought and thinking refer to conscious cognitive processes that can happen independently of sensory stimulation. Their most paradigmatic forms are judging, reasoning, concept formation, problem solving, an ...

to have explored the Tampa Bay Area. By the early 18th century the Tocobaga had been virtually annihilated, having fallen victim to European diseases from which they had no immunity, as well as European conflicts. Later Spanish explorers named the area ''Punta Piñal'' ( Spanish for "Point of Pines" or "Piney Point"). After trading hands multiple times between the British and the Spanish, Spain finally ceded Florida to the United States in 1821, and in 1823 the U.S. Army established Fort Brooke (later

Settlement of West Hillsborough

In 1834 much of west central Florida, including the Pinellas peninsula (then known simply as ''West Hillsborough''), was organized as Hillsborough County. The very next year Odet Philippe, a French Huguenot from Charleston, South Carolina became the first permanent, non-native resident of the peninsula when he established a plantation near the site of the Tocobaga village in Safety Harbor. It was Philippe who first introduced both

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...

culture and

cigar A cigar is a rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco leaves made to be smoked. Cigars are produced in a variety of sizes and shapes. Since the 20th century, almost all cigars are made of three distinct components: the filler, the binder l ...

-making to Florida. Around the same time, the United States Army began construction of

Fort Harrison Fort Harrison, later renamed Fort Burnham, was an important component of the Confederate defenses of Richmond during the American Civil War. Named after Lieutenant William Harrison, a Confederate engineer, it was the largest in the series of f ...

, named after

William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841, and had the shortest pres ...

, as a rest post for soldiers from nearby Fort Brooke during the

Second Seminole War The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between the United States and groups collectively known as Seminoles, consisting of Native Americans and Black Indians. It was part of a ser ...

. The new fort was located on a bluff overlooking

Clear Water Harbor Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, United States, northwest of Tampa and St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2020 census, the city had a populati ...

, which later became part of an early 20th-century residential development (now historic district) called Harbor Oaks. University of South Florida archaeologists excavated the site in 1977 after Alfred C. Wyllie discovered an underground ammunition bunker while digging a swimming pool on his estate. Clearwater would later become the first organized community on the peninsula as well as the site of its first post office. The Armed Occupation Act, passed in 1842, encouraged further settlement of Pinellas, like all of Florida, by offering 160 acres (0.65 km²) to anyone who would bear arms and cultivate the land. Pioneer families like the Booths, the Coachmans, the Marstons, and the McMullens established homesteads in the area in the years following, planting more citrus groves and raising cattle. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

, many residents fought for the

Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...

. Brothers James and Daniel McMullen were members of the Confederate Cow Cavalry, driving Florida cattle to Georgia and the Carolinas to help sustain the war effort. John W. Marston served in the 9th Florida Regiment as a part of the Appomattox Campaign. Many other residents served in other capacities. Otherwise the peninsula had virtually no significance during the war, and the war largely passed the area by. On September 27, 1848, a strong hurricane struck the West Coast of Florida. It separated the barrier island on the coast and created a waterway known today as John's Pass. John Levique, along with Joseph Silva, was the one who discovered it and named it after himself and is now a federally owned canal. Tarpon Springs became West Hillsborough's first incorporated city in 1887, and in 1888 the Orange Belt Railway was extended into the southern portion of the peninsula. Railroad owner

Peter Demens Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

named the town that grew near the railroad's terminus St. Petersburg in honor of his

hometown Hometown, HomeTown, or Home Town may refer to: *A hometown, the town where someone lives or the town that they come from, typically their place of birth. *In developing nations particularly: native place, village of origin in newly urbanized soc ...

. The town would incorporate in 1892. Other major towns in the county incorporated during this time were Clearwater (1891),

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

(1899), and Largo (1905). Construction of Fort De Soto, on Mullet Key facing the mouth of Tampa Bay, was begun in 1898 during the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...

to protect Tampa Bay from potential invading forces. The fort, a subpost of

Fort Dade The current Egmont Key Light dates from 1858. It is the oldest structure in the Tampa Bay area still used for its original purpose. The lighthouse When the first Egmont Key Light was built in 1848, it was the only lighthouse on the Gulf coast ...

on adjacent Egmont Key (which lies in the mouth of Tampa Bay), was equipped with artillery and mortar batteries.

Birth of Pinellas County

Even into the early years of the 20th century, West Hillsborough had no paved roads, and transportation posed a major challenge. A trip to the county seat, across the bay in Tampa, was generally an overnight affair and the automobiles that existed on the peninsula at that time would frequently become bogged down in the muck after rainstorms. Angry at what was perceived as neglect by the county government, residents of Pinellas began a push to secede from Hillsborough. They succeeded, and on January 1, 1912 Pinellas County came into being. The peninsula, along with a small part of the mainland were incorporated into the new county.

Land boom and prohibition

Aviation history was made in St. Petersburg on January 1, 1914 when Tony Jannus made the world's first scheduled commercial airline flight with the St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line from St. Petersburg to Tampa. The popular open-air St. Petersburg concert venue Jannus Live (formerly known as Jannus Landing) memorializes the flight. The early 1920s saw the beginning of a land boom in much of Florida, including Pinellas. During this period municipalities issued a large number of bonds to keep pace with the needed infrastructure, such as roads and bridges. The travel time to Tampa was cut in half—from —by the opening of the Gandy Bridge in 1924, along the same route Jannus' airline used. It was the longest automobile toll bridge in the world at the time.

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholi ...

was unpopular in the area and the peninsula's countless inlets and islands became havens for

rumrunners Rum-running or bootlegging is the illegal business of smuggling alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law. Smuggling usually takes place to circumvent taxation or prohibition laws within a particular jurisdiction. The ...

bringing in liquor from

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribb ...

. Others distilled

moonshine Moonshine is high-proof liquor that is usually produced illegally. The name was derived from a tradition of creating the alcohol during the nighttime, thereby avoiding detection. In the first decades of the 21st century, commercial dist ...

in the County's still plentiful woods.

Great Depression and World War II

As was the case in much of Florida, the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

came early to Pinellas with the collapse of the real estate boom in 1926. Local economies came into severe difficulties, and by 1930, St. Petersburg defaulted on its bonds. Only after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

would significant growth return to the area. During the war, the area's tourist industry collapsed, but thousands of recruits came to the area when the U.S. military decided to use the area for training. Area hotels became barracks. The

Vinoy Park Hotel The Vinoy Renaissance St. Petersburg Resort & Golf Club is an historic Mediterranean Revival-style hotel opened in 1925 as the Vinoy Park Hotel. It is located in St. Petersburg, Florida at 501 Fifth Avenue Northeast, on the bayfront area of downt ...

was used as an

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

training school. The area's women and girls participated in the war effort as well. Hundreds of girls from the area's most prominent families formed a group called the Bomb-a-Dears, holding dances, socializing with recruits, and selling war bonds. After the war many of these same soldiers remembered their wartime experience in Pinellas well, and returned as tourists or residents.

Recent history

With the end of the Second World War, Pinellas would enter another period of rapid growth and development. In 1954 the original span of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge was opened, replacing earlier ferry service. By 1957 Clearwater was America's fastest growing city. The Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council was founded by the late

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of St. Petersburg,

Herman Goldner Herman may refer to: People * Herman (name), list of people with this name * Saint Herman (disambiguation) * Peter Noone (born 1947), known by the mononym Herman Places in the United States * Herman, Arkansas * Herman, Michigan * Herman, Minn ...

, who sought without success during the 1960s to consolidate various municipalities and unincorporated areas in south Pinellas County. Each year the council presents its Herman Goldner Award for Regional Leadership. Tragedy struck on May 9, 1980, when the southbound span of the original Sunshine Skyway Bridge was struck by the freighter MV ''Summit Venture'' during a storm, sending over of the bridge plummeting into Tampa Bay. The collision caused ten cars and a Trailways bus to fall into the water, killing 35 people. The new bridge opened in 1987 and has since been listed as #3 of the "Top 10 Bridges" in the World by the

Travel Channel Travel Channel (stylized as Trvl Channel since 2018) is an American pay television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, which had previously owned the channel from 1997 to 2007. The channel is headquartered in New York, New York, United S ...

. The county operates a

living history Living history is an activity that incorporates historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers and participants a sense of stepping back in time. Although it does not necessarily seek to ree ...

museum called Heritage Village containing more than 28 historic structures, some dating back to the 19th century, where visitors can experience what life was once like in Pinellas. Pinellas County celebrated 100 years of existence on January 1, 2012.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (55.0%) is water. It is the second-smallest county in Florida by land area, larger than only Union County. Pinellas forms a

peninsula A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on a ...

bounded on the west by the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...

and on the south and east by

Tampa Bay Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and shallow estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west-central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The largest freshwater ...

. It is long and wide at its broadest point, with of coastline.

Physical geography

Elevation in the county ranges from mean

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardis ...

to its highest natural point of near the intersection of SR 580 and Countryside Blvd. in Clearwater. Due to its small size and high population, by the early 21st century Pinellas County has been mostly built out, with very little developable land left available. The county has maintained a fairly large system of parks and preserves that provide residents and visitors retreat from the city and a glimpse of the peninsula's original state. Geologically, Pinellas is underlain by a series of

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...

formations, the Hawthorne limestone and the Tampa limestone. The limestone is porous and stores a large quantity of water. The Hawthorne formation forms a prominent ridge down the spine of the county, from east of Dunedin, south to the Walsingham area and east towards St. Petersburg. The 35 miles of beaches and dunes which make up the county's 11

barrier island Barrier islands are coastal landforms and a type of dune system that are exceptionally flat or lumpy areas of sand that form by wave and tidal action parallel to the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of anything from a ...

s provide habitat for coastal species, serve as critical storm protection for the inland communities, and form the basis of the area's thriving tourism industry. The islands are dynamic, with wave action building some islands further up, eroding others, and forming entirely new islands over time. Though hurricanes are infrequent on this part of Florida's coast, they have had a major impact on the islands, with the Hurricane of 1848 forming John's Pass between Madeira Beach and Treasure Island, a hurricane in 1921 creating Hurricane Pass and cleaving Hog Island into Honeymoon and Caladesi Islands, and 1985's Hurricane Elena sealing Dunedin Pass to join Caladesi with Clearwater Beach. Between the barrier islands and the peninsula are several bodies of water, through which traverses a section of the Gulf

Intracoastal Waterway The Intracoastal Waterway (ICW) is a inland waterway along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts of the United States, running from Massachusetts southward along the Atlantic Seaboard and around the southern tip of Florida, then following t ...

. From north to south they are:

St. Joseph Sound St. Joseph Sound is a body of water on the Gulf of Mexico coast of Pasco and Pinellas Pinellas is the name of a peninsula located roughly halfway down the west coast of Florida. It forms the western boundary of Tampa Bay and comprises the bulk ...

between the islands and Dunedin, Clearwater Harbor between Clearwater and Clearwater Beach, and Boca Ciega Bay in the southern third of the county. Connecting Clearwater Harbor to Boca Ciega Bay is a thin, approximately stretch of water known as The Narrows, which runs next to the town of Indian Shores. Extending from northeastern Boca Ciega Bay, Long Bayou separates Seminole from St. Petersburg near Bay Pines. Long Bayou once extended significantly farther up the peninsula until the northern portion was sealed off to create Lake Seminole. Extending further still from Long Bayou, the Cross Bayou Canal traverses the peninsula, crossing Pinellas Park in a northeasterly direction before emptying into Tampa Bay on the northwest side of

St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

Barrier islands and passes

Anclote Key Anclote Key is an island off the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida, the largest island in the Anclote Keys, located at near Tarpon Springs. Its name originates from the Spanish term for "anchor." The island is accessible only by boat and ...

- offshore of Tarpon Springs and the northernmost point in the county * Howard Park- a man-made pocket beach created in the 1960s * Three Rooker Bar- the most geologically recent of Pinellas' barrier islands * Honeymoon Island * ''Hurricane Pass'' * Caladesi Island * ''Dunedin Pass''- shoaled and closed in the 1980s, linking Caladesi Island and Clearwater Beach * Clearwater Beach * ''Clearwater Pass'' * Sand Key- the longest of Pinellas' barrier islands * ''John's Pass'' * Treasure Island * ''Blind Pass'' * Long Key (

St. Pete Beach St. Pete Beach (formerly called St. Petersburg Beach) is a coastal city in Pinellas County, Florida. Known as a tourist destination, St. Pete Beach was formed from the towns of Pass-a-Grille, Belle Vista, St. Petersburg Beach and unincorporated P ...

) * ''Pass-a-Grille Channel'' * Shell Key * Tierra Verde- on the bay side of Shell Key, links the mainland to Fort De Soto. Created by a dredge-and-fill project that merged several smaller Keys, including Cabbage and Pine Keys * ''Bunces Pass'' *

Mullet Key Mullet Key is a historic island near Crystal River, Florida. It is located 3 miles south of the main mouth of the Crystal River, and was inhabited by Native Americans in pre-Columbian times. The island was occupied from roughly 500 to 1500 ...

- home to Fort De Soto and the southernmost point in the county

National protected area

* Pinellas National Wildlife Refuge

State protected areas

Honeymoon Island State Park Honeymoon Island State Park is a Florida State Park located on Honeymoon Island, a barrier island across St. Joseph's Sound from Palm Harbor, Ozona, and Crystal Beach. The park is in land area with submerged and of beach. It lies at the we ...

* Caladesi Island State Park * Anclote Key Preserve State Park

County parks and preserves

Pinellas County parks gallery

File:Andersonparkpano.jpg, Anderson Park Panorama File:Brooker creek nature walkway.jpg, Brooker Creek Nature Preserve walkway File:Chestnutparklaketarpon.jpg, View of Lake Tarpon from John Chestnut Park File:Wall springs st joseph sound.jpg, Wall Springs View of St Joseph Sound from the old observation tower File:Howard Park Tarpon.jpg, Sunset at Fred Howard Park

Other protected areas

Boyd Hill Nature Preserve- A 245-acre park on the shores of Lake Maggiore in south St. Petersburg, operated by the city and featuring a nature center, bird-of-prey aviary, and over three miles of trails through a variety of ecosystems.

Adjacent counties

Pasco County Pasco County is located on the west central coast of the U.S. state of Florida. According to the 2020 census, the population was 561,691. Its county seat is Dade City, and its largest city is Zephyrhills. The county is named after Samuel Pa ...

— north * Hillsborough County — east and south Hillsborough County extends along the shipping channel towards Egmont Key and into the Gulf of Mexico, separating Pinellas County from Manatee County.

Ecosystems

Plant life

Several natural communities exist within the county, including areas of freshwater wetlands (dominated by bald cypresses and ferns), coastal

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in severa ...

swamps, sporadic hardwood hammocks (dominated by laurel oaks and live oaks, cabbage palms, and southern magnolias), low-lying, poorly drained pine flatwoods (dominated by longleaf pines and saw palmettos), and well-drained, upland sandhills (dominated by longleaf pines and turkey oaks) and sand pine scrub (dominated by sand pines, saw palmettos, and various oaks). Offshore ecosystems include the Tampa Bay

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

and numerous gulf

seagrass Seagrasses are the only flowering plants which grow in marine environments. There are about 60 species of fully marine seagrasses which belong to four families ( Posidoniaceae, Zosteraceae, Hydrocharitaceae and Cymodoceaceae), all in the ...

beds. The county also maintains several

artificial reefs An artificial reef is a human-created underwater structure, typically built to promote marine life in areas with a generally featureless bottom, to control erosion, block ship passage, block the use of trawling nets, or improve surfing. Many re ...

Animal life

Numerous bird species can be sighted in Pinellas, either as permanent residents or during the winter migration, including wading birds like great blue herons, egrets, white ibises and

roseate spoonbills The roseate spoonbill (''Platalea ajaja'') is a gregarious wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family, Threskiornithidae. It is a resident breeder in both South and North America. Taxonomy The roseate spoonbill is sometimes placed in its ...

, aquatic birds like brown pelicans, white pelicans, and cormorants, numerous species of

shorebirds 245px, A flock of Dunlins and Red knots">Red_knot.html" ;"title="Dunlins and Red knot">Dunlins and Red knots Waders or shorebirds are birds of the order Charadriiformes commonly found wikt:wade#Etymology 1, wading along shorelines and mudflat ...

, and very-common birds like

seagulls Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders. Until the 21st century, ...

and passerines like the

blue jay The blue jay (''Cyanocitta cristata'') is a passerine bird in the family Corvidae, native to eastern North America. It lives in most of the eastern and central United States; some eastern populations may be migratory. Resident populations are ...

, mockingbird, and

crow A crow is a bird of the genus '' Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientifica ...

Osprey The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...

s are a commonly seen

bird-of-prey In the ''Star Trek'' franchise, the Klingon, Klingon Empire makes use of several ship class, classes of starships. As the Klingons are portrayed as a warrior culture, driven by the pursuit of honor and glory, the Empire is shown to use warships alm ...

, with other birds of prey like

turkey vultures The turkey vulture (''Cathartes aura'') is the most widespread of the New World vultures. One of three species in the genus ''Cathartes'' of the family Cathartidae, the turkey vulture ranges from southern Canada to the southernmost tip of South ...

, red tailed hawks, great horned owls, screech owls,

barn owls The barn owl (''Tyto alba'') is the most widely distributed species of owl in the world and one of the most widespread of all species of birds, being found almost everywhere except for the polar and desert regions, Asia north of the Himalaya ...

, and

bald eagles The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche a ...

, among others, seen as well. Gopher tortoises are found in many areas, the burrows they dig making them a

keystone species A keystone species is a species which has a disproportionately large effect on its natural environment relative to its abundance, a concept introduced in 1969 by the zoologist Robert T. Paine. Keystone species play a critical role in maintaini ...

. Coyotes, though often associated with the American West, are native-to and can be found in Pinellas.

White-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...

wild turkeys The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey, which was originally de ...

bobcats The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the I ...

, otters, and alligators can be found in the county as well.

Sea turtles Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the flatback, green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerhe ...

nest on the shores or Pinellas' barrier islands and have been threatened by development. Offshore, dolphins, sharks, and manatees are numerous as well, while closer inshore stingrays are a common sight, leading those in-the-know to do the "stingray shuffle" (shuffling up the sand to scare nearby stingrays off) when entering gulf waters. Species of fish commonly caught in the waters surrounding the county include spotted seatrout, red drum or redfish, snook, pompano, sheepshead,

Spanish mackerel Scomberomorini is a tribe of ray-finned saltwater bony fishes that is commonly known as the Spanish mackerels, seerfishes or seer fish. This fish closely resembles the King Mackerel. This tribe is a subset of the mackerel family (Scombridae) ...

grouper Groupers are fish of any of a number of genera in the subfamily Epinephelinae of the family Serranidae, in the order Perciformes. Not all serranids are called "groupers"; the family also includes the sea basses. The common name "grouper" ...

, mullet,

flounder Flounders are a group of flatfish species. They are demersal fish, found at the bottom of oceans around the world; some species will also enter estuaries. Taxonomy The name "flounder" is used for several only distantly related species, thou ...

, kingfish, and

tarpon Tarpons are fish of the genus ''Megalops''. They are the only members of the family Megalopidae. Of the two species, one (''M. atlanticus'') is native to the Atlantic, and the other (''M. cyprinoides'') to the Indo-Pacific Oceans. Species a ...

Invasive species

Like much of Florida, Pinellas County is home to several invasive species that propagate easily outside their (and their natural predators') native range. Examples of commonly seen invasives include Brazilian pepper,

water hyacinth ''Pontederia crassipes'' (formerly ''Eichhornia crassipes''), commonly known as common water hyacinth is an aquatic plant native to South America, naturalized throughout the world, and often invasive outside its native range.Australian pine ''Casuarina'' is a genus of 17 tree species in the family Casuarinaceae, native to Australia, the Indian subcontinent, southeast Asia, islands of the western Pacific Ocean, and eastern Africa. It was once treated as the sole genus in th ...

melaleuca ''Melaleuca'' () is a genus of nearly 300 species of plants in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, commonly known as paperbarks, honey-myrtles or tea-trees (although the last name is also applied to species of ''Leptospermum''). They range in size f ...

and air potato. These species are considered serious pests, and varying methods have been tried to eradicate them. Examples of invasive animals include the

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species i ...

, which poses significant health and agricultural problems in Florida and can sometimes be found in Pinellas, and the monk parakeet, small flocks of which can sometimes be seen in flight or building nests on electrical poles or telecommunications towers. Pinellas gained some national attention as the home of the '' Mystery Monkey of Tampa Bay'', a non-native, feral

rhesus macaque The rhesus macaque (''Macaca mulatta''), colloquially rhesus monkey, is a species of Old World monkey. There are between six and nine recognised subspecies that are split between two groups, the Chinese-derived and the Indian-derived. Generally ...

that had been on the loose for approximately three years in the south of the county. No one was sure where the monkey came from, and
Facebook page
set up for the monkey had over 84,000 likes (as of October 2012). The monkey was the subject of a sketch on the March 11, 2010 episode of ''

the Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show fo ...

''. As of February 2012, the monkey had apparently taken up semi-permanent residence behind a family's home at an undisclosed location in St. Petersburg, according to the ''Tampa Bay Times''. Efforts to capture the monkey were reignited after it reportedly bit a woman living near where it had taken up residence, and the monkey was captured in late October 2012 and eventually was sent to live at Dade City's Wild Things, a zoo north of Tampa.

Climate

Pinellas, like the rest of the Tampa Bay area, has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

, resulting in warm, humid summers with frequent thunderstorms, and drier winters. Pinellas County's geographic position- lying on a peninsula between

and the

introduces large amounts of humidity into the atmosphere and serves to moderate temperatures. The geography of the peninsula also causes some variance in the county's average temperatures. St. Petersburg, further south on the peninsula, tends to have warmer daily average lows (by about 3 degrees) than areas such as Dunedin and Palm Harbor further north, though daily highs are very close. The north of the county also has fewer overall days of rain, but higher total annual precipitation when measured in inches, the county's south being prone to shorter, more frequent thunderstorms especially in the late summer. Freezing temperatures occur only every 2–3 years, with freezing precipitation occurring extremely rarely. Springs are usually short, mild, and dry, with occasional late-season cold fronts. Summertime weather is very consistent, with highs in the low 90s °F (around 32 °C), lows in the mid-70s °F (around 24 °C), accompanied by high humidity and an almost daily chance of afternoon thundershowers. The area experiences significant rainfall during its summer months (approximately May through October), with nearly two-thirds of annual precipitation falling between the months of June and September. The area is occasionally affected by tropical storms and hurricanes, but has not suffered a direct hit since 1921. Fall, like spring, is usually mild and dry, with the hurricane season extending through November and sometimes affecting the area. Many portions of south Pinellas, especially near the bay and gulf, have tropical microclimates. Tropical trees such as coconut palms and royal palms and fruit trees like mangoes grow very well in these microclimates.

Demographics

List of cities by population

The following is a list of all cities, towns, and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, suc ...

s in Pinellas County, Florida. Source: 2010 Florida Census of Population and Housing

2020 census

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to off ...

, there were 959,107 people, 413,239 households, and 232,884 families residing in the county.

2010 Census

U.S. Census Bureau 2010 Ethnic/Race Demographics: * White (non-Hispanic) (82.1% when including White Hispanics): 76.9% (17.7% German, 15.5% Irish, 12.6% English, 8.9% Italian, 4.3% Polish, 4.0% French, 2.6% Scottish, 1.9% Scotch-Irish, 1.7% Dutch, 1.4% Swedish, 1.4% Greek, 1.1% Russian, 1.0% French Canadian, 0.9% Norwegian, 0.8% Welsh, 0.8% Hungarian, 0.5% Czech, 0.5% Portuguese, 0.5% Ukrainian) * Black or African-American (non-Hispanic) (10.3% when including

Black Hispanic Black Hispanic and Latino Americans, also called Afro-Hispanics ( es, Afrohispano, links=no), Afro-Latinos or Black Hispanics, or Black Latinos are classified by the United States Census Bureau, Office of Management and Budget, and other U.S. ...

s): 10.0% (0.6% Subsaharan African, 0.5%

West Indian A West Indian is a native or inhabitant of the West Indies (the Antilles and the Lucayan Archipelago). For more than 100 years the words ''West Indian'' specifically described natives of the West Indies, but by 1661 Europeans had begun to use it ...

Afro-Caribbean American Caribbean Americans or West Indian Americans are Americans who trace their ancestry to the Caribbean. Caribbean Americans are a multi-ethnic and multi-racial group that trace their ancestry further in time mostly to Africa, as well as Asia, the ...

Other_or_Unspecified_West_Indian.html" ;"title="Afro-Caribbean">Other or Unspecified West Indian">Afro-Caribbean">Other or Unspecified West Indian *

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race: 8.0% (2.4% Puerto Rican, 2.4% Mexican, 0.9% Cuban) * Asian: 3.0% (0.8% Vietnamese, 0.7% Other Asian, 0.6% Indian, 0.5% Filipino, 0.3% Chinese, 0.1% Korean, 0.1% Japanese) *

Two or more races 2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many cultur ...

: 2.2% *

American Indian and Alaska Native Native Americans, also known as American Indians, First Americans, Indigenous Americans, and #Terminology differences, other terms, are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of the mainland United States (Indigenous peopl ...

: 0.3% * Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander: 0.1% * Other Races: 2.0% (0.6% Arab) In 2010, 6.5% of the population considered themselves to be of only

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

ancestry (regardless of race or ethnicity.) There were 415,876 households, out of which 19.89% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.33% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

living together, 11.86% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.67% were non-families. 35.42% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.14% (4.53% male and 10.61% female) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 2.79. The age distribution is 17.8% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 23.0% from 25 to 44, 30.8% from 45 to 64, and 21.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46.3 years. For every 100 females there were 92.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.8 males. The median income for a household in the county was $45,258, and the median income for a family was $58,335. Males had a median income of $41,537 versus $35,003 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $28,742. About 8.1% of families and 12.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 17.7% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those aged 65 or over. In 2010, 11.2% of the county's population was

foreign born Foreign-born (also non-native) people are those born outside of their country of residence. Foreign born are often non-citizens, but many are naturalized citizens of the country in which they live, and others are citizens by descent, typically ...

, with 50.3% being naturalized American citizens. Of foreign-born residents, 33.6% were born in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, 32.1% were born in

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...

, 20.9% born in

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

, 9.8% in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and th ...

, 3.0% born in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, and 0.6% were born in

Oceania Oceania (, , ) is a geographical region that includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Spanning the Eastern and Western hemispheres, Oceania is estimated to have a land area of and a population of around 44.5 million ...

2000 Census

As of 2000, there were 921,482 people, 414,968 households, and 243,171 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was 1,271/km² (3,292/sq mi), making it the most densely populated county in Florida. There were 481,573 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 85.85%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

(82.8% were

Non-Hispanic White Non-Hispanic whites or Non-Latino whites are Americans who are classified as "white", and are not of Hispanic (also known as "Latino") heritage. The United States Census Bureau defines ''white'' to include European Americans, Middle Eastern Am ...

,) 8.96%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.30% Native American, 2.06% Asian, 0.05%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 1.14% from other races, and 1.64% from two or more races. 4.64% of the population were

or Latino of any race. There were 414,968 households, out of which 22.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.80% were

living together, 10.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.40% were non-families. 34.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.77. In the county, the population was spread out, with 19.30% under the age of 18, 6.40% from 18 to 24, 27.30% from 25 to 44, 24.50% from 45 to 64, and 22.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 91.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.80 males. In 2000, 87.8% of persons age 25 or above were high school graduates, slightly above Florida's average of 84.9% for Florida. 26.7% of persons age 25 or above held a Bachelor's degree or higher, also slightly higher than Florida's rate of 25.6%. The median income for a household in the county was $37,111, and the median income for a family was $46,925. Males had a median income of $32,264 versus $26,281 for females. The

for the county was $23,497. About 6.70% of families and 10.00% of the population were below the

, including 13.90% of those under age 18 and 8.20% of those age 65 or over. In 2000, as Florida's 6th and the nation's 53rd most populous county, Pinellas has a population greater than that of the individual states of

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to t ...

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large po ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U ...

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, ...

, and

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provin ...

, as well as the

District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle (Washington, D.C.), Logan Circle, Jefferson Memoria ...

. With a

(as of the 2000 Census) of 3292 inhabitants/mi², Pinellas County is by far the most densely populated county in the state, more than double that of Broward County, the next most densely populated.

Languages

As of 2010, 87.17% of all residents spoke

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

as their

first language A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother to ...

, while 5.56% spoke Spanish, 0.78% Vietnamese, 0.70%

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

, 0.65% Greek, 0.56%

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

, and 0.52% of the population spoke

Serbo-Croatian Serbo-Croatian () – also called Serbo-Croat (), Serbo-Croat-Bosnian (SCB), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (BCS), and Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS) – is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia an ...

as their

mother language A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother ton ...

. In total, 12.83% of the population spoke languages other than English as their

primary language A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tong ...

Government and politics

The

Board of County Commissioners A county commission (or a board of county commissioners) is a group of elected officials (county commissioners) collectively charged with administering the county government in some states of the United States; such commissions usually comprise ...

governs all unincorporated areas of the county under the state's constitution, with the power to adopt ordinances, approve the county budget, set millages, and provide services. The county's

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

, while governing their own affairs, may call upon the county for specialized services. The county administrator, appointed by and reporting to the Board, oversees most of the day-to-day operations of the county. As of 2020, The members of the Board of County Commissioners are as follows: * Janet Long - At-Large District #1 (2012–present) * Pat Gerard - At-Large District #2 (2014–present) * Charlie Justice - At-Large District #3 (2012–present) * Dave Eggers, Single-Member District #4 (2014–present) * Karen Seel, Single-Member District #5 (1999–present) * Kathleen Peters - Single-Member District #6 (2019–present) * Rene Flowers- Single-Member District #7 (2020–present) * Mark Woodard - County Administrator (2014–present) The county's government website won a "Sunny Award" in 2010 for its proactive disclosure of government data from

Sunshine Review Sunshine Review was an American nonprofit organization that advocated for increased government transparency. Sunshine Review was a website prior to becoming its own nonprofit organization. The wiki-based website was launched in July 2008 as a pr ...

In national politics, Pinellas County, was one of the first areas of Florida to turn Republican. From 1948 to 1988, it went Republican in every presidential election except

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

's 44-state landslide of 1964. However, for the last quarter-century, as part of the I-4 Corridor stretching from Tampa Bay to Orlando, it has been a powerful swing county in one of the nation's most critical

swing state In American politics, the term swing state (also known as battleground state or purple state) refers to any state that could reasonably be won by either the Democratic or Republican candidate in a statewide election, most often referring to pres ...

s. Voter registration is almost tied, with Republicans having a small plurality of registered voters. It is closely divided between predominantly liberal St. Petersburg and its predominantly

suburban A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separa ...

and

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

north and beaches. Due in part to the more populated southern portion around St. Petersburg, it has supported a Democrat for president in all but two elections since 1992. The brand of Republicanism in Pinellas County has traditionally been a moderate one, so the county has become friendlier to Democrats as a result of the national GOP having shifted right. In 2000,

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic ...

became the first Democrat to win a majority of the county's vote since 1964, and only the second since Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 2004, Pinellas County swung the other way when George W. Bush carried the county by a narrow plurality of 49.56% (225,686 votes), with

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party, he ...

following closely behind with 49.51% (225,460 votes)–a margin of just 226 votes. In the 2012 Presidential Election,

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

won Pinellas with 52% of the vote (239,104 votes) to

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts ...

's 46.5% (213,258 votes), slightly narrower than Obama’s

2008 election This electoral calendar 2008 lists the national/federal direct elections held in 2008 in the de jure and de facto sovereign states and their dependent territories. Referendums are included, even though they are not elections. By-elections are ...

results in Pinellas of 53% (248,299 votes) to John McCain’s 45% (210,066 votes). The county is considered a

bellwether A bellwether is a leader or an indicator of trends.bellwether
" ''Cambridge Dictionary''. Ret ...

polity. In the 2012 U.S. Senate election, Pinellas voters helped re-elect

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and power ...

Bill Nelson over challenger Connie Mack IV with 59% of the vote, greater than his statewide average of 55%. In the 2010 U.S. Senate election, Pinellas was one of only four Florida counties won by outgoing Republican Governor

Charlie Crist Charles Joseph Crist Jr. (; born July 24, 1956) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 44th governor of Florida from 2007 to 2011 and as the U.S. representative for from 2017 to 2022. Crist has been a member of the Democratic ...

, a St. Petersburg native, who won 42% of Pinellas voters running as an

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...

in a three-way race with Republican nominee (and eventual winner)

Marco Rubio Marco Antonio Rubio (born May 28, 1971) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Florida, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the ...

and former Democratic U.S. Representative Kendrick Meek, who won 37% and 16.8% of the Pinellas vote, respectively. Statewide, Rubio won almost 49% of the vote to Crist's 29.7% and Meek's 20% in a highly polarized election that would witness Crist depart from the Republican Party and eventually become a Democrat. Portions of Pinellas fall into Florida's 12th and 13th

congressional district Congressional districts, also known as electoral districts and legislative districts, electorates, or wards in other nations, are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional bod ...

s, served by Republican

Gus Bilirakis Gus Michael Bilirakis ( ; born February 8, 1963) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, he first entered Congress in 2007, where he succeeded his father Michael Bi ...

and Democrat Crist. Previously, a large slice of Pinellas, including much of St. Petersburg, had been in the Tampa-based 14th District. A court-ordered remap merged most of the 14th's share of Pinellas into the 13th. This enabled Crist to defeat Republican incumbent David Jolly in the 2016 election, breaking a 62-year GOP hold on what is now the 13th. In state politics, portions of Pinellas are represented in the Florida Senate by Democratic State Senator Arthenia Joyner (District 19) and Republican State Senators Jack Latvala (District 20) and

Jeff Brandes Jeffrey P. Brandes (born February 12, 1976) is an American politician serving as the Florida State Senator from the 24th district since 2016. A member of the Republican Party, he has been elected from the Pinellas County area to the Florida Sena ...

(District 22). In the Florida House parts of the county are represented by Republicans James Grant (District 64), Chris Sprowls (District 65), Larry Ahern (District 66), Chris Latvala (District 67), and Kathleen Peters (District 69) and Democrats Dwight Dudley (District 68) and Darryl Rouson (District 70).

Voter registration

Education

Stetson College of Law Gulfport, Florida

Primary and secondary education

The entire county is served by the Pinellas County School District. The current superintendent is Dr. Michael Grego. The district, the nation's 24th largest, comprises 143 schools, including 72 elementary schools, 18 middle schools, 2 K-8 schools, 17 high schools, and 35 additional facilities including ESE, adult ed, career/technical, and charters. The district also operates the K-12 Pinellas Virtual School. Among the many notable magnet programs in the district are three

International Baccalaureate The International Baccalaureate (IB), formerly known as the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB D ...

(IB) programs, at St. Petersburg High School, Palm Harbor University High School, and Largo High School, Project Lead the Way's (PLTW) engineering program at

East Lake High School East Lake High School is a public high school serving students from grades 9–12 located in Tarpon Springs, Florida, and is part of the Pinellas County Schools. It has a 99% graduation rate which ranks it among the most graduating schools in th ...

, the Center for Advanced Technologies (CAT) at Lakewood High School, the Pinellas County Center for the Arts (PCCA) at Gibbs High School, three middle school Centers for Gifted Studies, at Thurgood Marshall Fundamental, Morgan Fitzgerald, and Dunedin Highland Middle Schools, and Florida's only Fundamental High School, at Osceola High School. The county is also home to many private schools, including

Admiral Farragut Academy Admiral Farragut Academy, established in 1933, is a private, college-prep school serving students in grades K-12. Farragut is located in St. Petersburg, Florida in Pinellas County and is surrounded by the communities of Treasure Island, Gulfpo ...

, Canterbury School, Calvary Christian, Clearwater Central Catholic, Keswick Christian School,

Shorecrest Preparatory School Shorecrest Preparatory School is a private, non-profit, non-sectarian, coeducational, college preparatory day school for students age 3 through Grade 12, located in St. Petersburg, Florida. Founded in 1923, it is the oldest independent day school in ...

, Indian Rocks Christian School and

St. Petersburg Catholic High School St. Petersburg Catholic High School is a private, co-educational Roman Catholic high school in St. Petersburg, Florida. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saint Petersburg. The campus was originally opened in February 1957 as Bishop ...

, among others.

Colleges and universities

Pinellas County is home several institutions of higher learning, including Eckerd College, the University of South Florida St. Petersburg, the multi-campus St. Petersburg College, the Stetson University College of Law in Gulfport, and the main campus of

Schiller International University Schiller International University (SIU) is a private for-profit university with its main campus and administrative headquarters in Tampa, Florida. It is named after the German playwright and philosopher Friedrich Schiller. It has campuses on tw ...

in Largo, after previously being located in

Libraries

The Pinellas Public Library Cooperative (PPLC) serves county residents by coordinating activities, funding and information and facilitating borrowing across 15 of its constituent systems within the county. Individual libraries are primarily funded and operated by their municipalities. PPLC provides digital resources, coordinated marketing, courier service between libraries, and a shared online publicly accessible catalog. The PPLC was created in 1989 to provide access to unincorporated areas of Pinellas County and to municipalities that do not have library services. In March of that year, county residents voted to pay an extra tax to allow them to use city libraries throughout the county. The exceptions to this were the cities of Clearwater, South Pasadena, Kenneth City, Indian Rocks, and Indian Shores, who would have to pay a $100 non-member fee to use the PPLC libraries. Clearwater and others have since joined the cooperative. Librarian Bernadette Storck was hired as the cooperative administrator. Storck was retiring from thirty years working in the Tampa-Hillsborough library System. The cooperative opened on Monday, October 1, 1990 with twelve participating libraries across the county. The Pinellas Public Library Cooperative's vision is "to connect communities." The 14 independent library systems that make up the cooperative are as follows: * Clearwater Public Library System * Dunedin Public Library *

East Lake Community Library East Lake Library is one of 41 branch libraries in the Hennepin County Library System, one of 15 branch libraries formerly in the Minneapolis Public Library System in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Three different buildings have housed the ...

* Gulf Beaches Public Library * Gulfport Public Library * Largo Public Library * Oldsmar Public Library * Palm Harbor Library * Barbara S. Ponce Public Library * Safety Harbor Public Library * St. Petersburg Library System * St. Pete Beach Public Library * Seminole Community Library * Tarpon Springs Public Library Due to community partnerships, PPLC offers free admission to the following museums: Museum of Fine Arts,

Florida Holocaust Museum The Florida Holocaust Museum is a Holocaust museum located at 55 Fifth Street South in St. Petersburg, Florida. Founded in 1992, it moved to its current location in 1998. Formerly known as the Holocaust Center, the museum officially changed to i ...

Great Explorations Children's Museum Great Explorations Children's Museum (formerly Great Explorations - The Hands-On Museum) is a children's museum, program center, and pre-school in St Petersburg, Florida. It was founded in 1986 by The Junior League of St. Petersburg and Hands-On, ...

, Henry B. Plant Museum
Imagine Museum
Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art, Dunedin History Museum, and the Tampa Bay History Center. However, the partnership is currently on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic. The PPLC also offers the Talking Book Library and Deaf Literacy Center as a way to provide library services for whom conventional print is a barrier due to visual, physical or learning disabilities whether permanent or temporary. The Talking Book Library provides recorded audio, Braille and large print books and magazines as well as a collection of descriptive videos to residents of Pinellas and Sarasota counties. The Deaf Literacy Center provides a bilingual/bicultural learning environment for Deaf, deafened and hard of hearing individuals. They offer small group and individualized basic literacy instruction, traditional library and information services, computer literacy, signed storytimes, special workshops, presenters and sign language classes.

Economy

Historical economic strengths

Agriculture was the single most important industry in Pinellas until the early 20th century, with much of the best land devoted to citrus production. Cattle ranching was another major industry. In 1885 the American Medical Society declared the Pinellas peninsula the "healthiest spot on earth", which helped spur the growth of the tourist industry.

Economy today

Anchored by the urban markets of Clearwater and St. Petersburg, Pinellas has the second largest base of manufacturing employment in Florida. Pinellas has diverse, yet symbiotic, industry clusters, including aviation/aerospace, defense/national security, medical technologies, business and financial services, and information technology. Fortune 500 technology manufacturers Jabil Circuit and Tech Data and a Fortune 500 financial company

Raymond James Financial Raymond James Financial, Inc. is an American multinational independent investment bank and financial services company providing financial services to individuals, corporations, and municipalities through its subsidiary companies that engage pri ...

are headquartered in the Gateway area in and adjacent to Pinellas. Other large companies include HSN, Nielsen, and

Valpak Valpak Direct Marketing Systems, LLC, commonly known as Valpak, is a North American direct marketing company owned by Platinum Equity. Valpak provides print, mobile and online advertising, customer data and coupons. Valpak distributes its Blue Env ...

. Service industries such as healthcare, business services and education account for more than 200,000 jobs in the county, generating almost $19 billion in revenue. Other major sectors include retail, with close to 100,000 employees in jobs such as food service, bars, and retail sales generating $12 billion for the local economy in 2010, and industries related to finance, insurance and real estate with approximately 44,000 workers generating $8.5 billion in sales.

Culture

Museums

* Museum of Fine Arts near

the Pier ''The Pier'' is a 2011 Irish romantic drama film written and directed by Gerard Hurley and starring Karl Johnson, Hurley and Lili Taylor. Cast * Karl Johnson as Larry McCarthy *Gerard Hurley as Jack McCarthy *Lili Taylor Lili Anne Taylor ...

in downtown St. Petersburg *

Salvador Dalí Museum The Salvador Dalí Museum is an art museum in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States, dedicated to the works of Salvador Dalí. It is located on the downtown St. Petersburg waterfront by 5th Avenue Southeast, Bay Shore Drive, and Dan Wheldon W ...

in downtown St. Petersburg * The James Museum of Western & Wildlife Art in downtown St. Petersburg *

in downtown St. Petersburg * Morean Arts Center in downtown St. Petersburg * Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American Museum in South St. Petersburg * Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art on the Tarpon Springs Campus of St. Petersburg College *

in St. Petersburg * Dunedin History Museum in Dunedin * Imagine Museum in St. Petersburg *Museum of the Arts and Crafts Movement (MAACM) in St. Petersburg * St. Petersburg Museum of History in downtown St. Petersburg *Chihuly Collection in downtown St. Petersburg *

in St. Petersburg

Performing arts venues

* Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater *

Mahaffey Theater The Mahaffey Theater – Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts is a performing arts facility and concert hall located on the downtown waterfront in St. Petersburg, Florida. The facility first opened on May 6, 1965.The 2,031-seat facility fea ...

in St. Petersburg * Jannus Landing in St. Petersburg * Palladium at St. Petersburg College in St. Petersburg * freeFall Theatre in St. Petersburg * American Stage in St. Petersburg * Studio@620 in St. Petersburg The Florida Orchestra splits its performances between Ruth Eckerd Hall, the Mahaffey Theater, and the Straz Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa. Clearwater Jazz Holiday held every October in Coachman Park in downtown Clearwater; in its 32nd year.

Other points of interest

Long established communities, particularly Old Northeast in St. Petersburg, Pass-a-Grille in St. Pete Beach, Harbor Oaks in Clearwater, and old Tarpon Springs contain notable historic architecture. The area has embraced farmer's markets, with St. Petersburg's Saturday Morning Market drawing large crowds, and other markets located weekly in several other parts of the county also seeing a growth in popularity. Downtowns in St. Petersburg and Dunedin, and many of the beaches, especially Clearwater Beach, all attract a vibrant nightlife. In addition to the above-mentioned Heritage Village in Largo, a number of small local history museums operate within the county: the St. Petersburg Museum of History on the downtown St. Petersburg waterfront, the Gulf Beaches Historical Museum in Pass-a-Grille, the Dunedin History Museum in Dunedin, the Palm Harbor Museum in Palm Harbor, and the Historic Depot Museum in Tarpon Springs all provide visitors a glimpse of the area's history. Two botanical gardens are located within the county: The Florida Botanical Gardens, a part of the Pinewood Cultural Park in Largo, and Sunken Gardens, a former tourist attraction located in and now run by the City of St. Petersburg. Indian Shores is home to the Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary, currently the largest non-profit wild bird hospital in the United States and considered one of the top avian rehabilitation centers in the world. A variety of species can be found at the sanctuary, which is open 365 days a year and is free to the public. On Clearwater Beach is the

Clearwater Marine Aquarium Clearwater Marine Aquarium is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and aquarium in Clearwater, Florida. It is dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation and release of sick and injured marine animals, public education, conservation, and research. ...

, a non-profit dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation and release of injured marine animals and public education. CMA's best-known permanent resident, is Winter, a bottlenose dolphin who was rescued in December 2005 after having her tail caught in a crab trap. Her injuries caused the loss of her tail; CMA successfully fitted Winter with a prosthetic tail which brought worldwide attention to the facility. Winter was the subject of the 2011 film '' Dolphin Tale'', shot partially on location at CMA. On the south end of

, off of Tarpon Springs, is the Anclote Key Light, a lighthouse built in 1887. The light is Pinellas County's only functioning lighthouse, and one of only two in the Tampa Bay Area. The light was deactivated in 1984, but by 2003 had been restored and as of 2013 continues to be in use. The island forms Anclote Key Preserve State Park and is accessible only by private boat. Dunedin is home to the Dunedin Brewery, Florida's oldest

microbrewery Craft beer is a beer that has been made by craft breweries. They produce smaller amounts of beer, typically less than large breweries, and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as having an emphasis o ...

Sports and recreation

Sports teams

The Tampa Bay Area is home to three major professional sports teams and a number of minor-league and college teams. Regardless of the specific city where they play their games, all of the professional teams claim "Tampa Bay" in their name to signify that they represent the entire area. Professionally, baseball's

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home v ...

play at

Tropicana Field Tropicana Field (commonly known as the Trop) is a multi-purpose domed stadium located in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. The stadium has been the home of the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB) since the team's inaugural sea ...

in St. Petersburg, while football's

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The cl ...

and hockey's

Tampa Bay Lightning The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They play ...

both play in nearby

. Two MLB teams come to Pinellas for

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...

: the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

play at BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater while the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

play at

TD Ballpark TD Ballpark, originally Dunedin Stadium at Grant Field, is a baseball field located in Dunedin, Florida. The stadium was built in 1990 and holds 8,500 people. It is the spring training home of the Toronto Blue Jays, as well as home to the Dun ...

. Additionally, Minor League Baseball affiliates of those teams play at their spring training ballparks; the

Clearwater Threshers The Clearwater Threshers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and the Single-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. They are located in Clearwater, Florida, and have played their home games at BayCare Ballpark since ...

play at BayCare Ballpark and the

Dunedin Blue Jays The Dunedin Blue Jays are a Minor League Baseball team of the Florida State League and are the Single-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays Major League Baseball club. They are located in Dunedin, Florida, and play their home games at TD Ballpark, ...

play at TD Ballpark. The Tampa Bay Rowdies of the

USL Championship The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, p ...

play at

Al Lang Stadium Al Lang Stadium is a 7,500-seat sports stadium along the waterfront of downtown St. Petersburg, Florida, United States which was used almost exclusively as a baseball park for over 60 years. Since 2011, it has been the home pitch of the Tampa Ba ...

in St. Petersburg The Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is held every spring on the downtown St. Petersburg waterfront. The PGA Tour plays its Valspar Championship annually in March on the Copperhead Course at the Innisbrook Golf Resort in Palm Harbor.

Recreational areas

* Skyway Fishing Pier State Park - Remnants of the approaches to the original Sunshine Skyway Bridge and the longest fishing pier in the world. * Fred Marquis Pinellas Trail - 37-mile running and cycling trail over a former railroad bed connecting Tarpon Springs to St. Petersburg. Other popular fishing locations include Pier 60 on Clearwater Beach and the Gulf and Bay Piers at Fort De Soto Park, as well as countless spots along the bridges and passes of the area, among many others. Pinellas County's coastal geography, with a long system of

s on the Gulf and small-to-large

islands dotting the waters on all sides, provides for an extensive series of blueways that are enjoyed by kayakers of all ability levels. The county also maintains a series of

artificial reef An artificial reef is a human-created underwater structure, typically built to promote marine life in areas with a generally featureless bottom, to control erosion, block ship passage, block the use of trawling nets, or improve surfing. Many ...

s in the Gulf which are popular spots for fishing and

scuba diving Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for " Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chr ...

The county's two largest freshwater lakes, Lake Tarpon (accessible through Chestnut and Anderson parks) and Lake Seminole (accessible through Lake Seminole Park), are popular for water skiing, jet-skiing, and sailing, as well as for fishing and kayaking. Both the North Beach of

Fort De Soto Park South-southwest of St. Petersburg, Florida, Fort De Soto Park is a park operated by Pinellas County on five offshore keys, or islands: Madelaine Key, St. Jean Key, St. Christopher Key, Bonne Fortune Key and the main island, Mullet Key. The keys ...

(2005) and Caladesi Island (2008) have been named by Dr. Beach as America's Top Beach.

Media

Pinellas County, as a part of the Tampa Bay Area (the nation's 14th largest television market), is served by fourteen local

broadcast Broadcasting is the distribution of audio or video content to a dispersed audience via any electronic mass communications medium, but typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), in a one-to-many model. Broadcasting began wi ...

television stations, as well as a variety of cable-only local stations. More than 70 FM and AM stations compete for listenership in what is the nation's 19th largest radio market. Major daily newspapers serving Pinellas are the ''

Tampa Bay Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a single ...

'', known as the ''St. Petersburg Times'' from 1884–2011 and first in circulation and readership, and ''

The Tampa Tribune ''The Tampa Tribune'' was a daily newspaper published in Tampa, Florida. Along with the competing ''Tampa Bay Times'', the ''Tampa Tribune'' was one of two major newspapers published in the Tampa Bay area. The newspaper also published a ''St. ...

''. The ''Times'' also distributes a free daily (Monday-Friday) tabloid called ''tbt*'' in the most heavily populated areas of the county. '' Creative Loafing Tampa'' is the main

alternative weekly An alternative newspaper is a type of newspaper that eschews comprehensive coverage of general news in favor of stylized reporting, opinionated reviews and columns, investigations into edgy topics and magazine-style feature stories highlighting ...

Transportation

Major highways

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Airports

* St. Petersburg–Clearwater International Airport *

Albert Whitted Airport Albert Whitted Airport is a public airport in St. Petersburg, Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It is on the west edge of Tampa Bay, just southeast of downtown St. Petersburg and east of the University of South Florida St. Petersburg. Hi ...

* Clearwater Executive Airpark *

Tampa International Airport Tampa International Airport is an international airport west of Downtown Tampa, in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The airport is publicly owned by Hillsborough County Aviation Authority (HCAA)., effective December 30, 2021. T ...

is located across the bay in nearby

Railroads

Amtrak Bus Station - Pinellas Park, Florida

The

CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of trac ...

railroad company operates the Clearwater Subdivision in Pinellas County, made up of segments of branch lines of the former

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967 it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coas ...

and the

Seaboard Air Line Railroad The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , which styled itself "The Route of Courteous Service," was an American railroad which existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime rival, t ...

. Beginning in Tampa, the line has daily freight rail traffic through Oldsmar, Safety Harbor, Clearwater, Largo, Pinellas Park, and into St. Petersburg. Regularly-scheduled passenger rail services in Pinellas County ended on February 1, 1984 when

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada. ...

discontinued its rail operations in the county, and the last passenger rail service in the county of any kind, a series of special excursion runs between Tarpon Springs and

, occurred on March 8, 1987.. CSX owned the last remaining trackage in downtown St. Petersburg until March 2008 when it, along with the remaining trackage south of Central Avenue and east of 34th Street South, began to be dismantled. That right-of-way, as well as the right-of-way of several other former CSX railroad lines in the county beginning in the 1990s, was converted into a section of the Pinellas Trail. As of 2012, proposals are currently being developed by community leaders for a light rail system which would connect the regional core cities of Clearwater, St. Petersburg, and Tampa. The proposal, which has won the backing of the Clearwater and St. Petersburg City Councils would rely on a 1% sales tax and would have to go before voters for approval.

Mass transit

The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA) operates 205 buses and trolleys servicing 37 routes across the county, with major stops at all commercial centers. Along the Gulf Beaches, PTSA operates the Suncoast Beach Trolley. PTSA also offers two express routes to downtown Tampa via the Howard Frankland and Gandy Bridges, connecting with Tampa's

HartLine Hillsborough Area Regional Transit (also known as the Hillsborough Transit Authority (HART)) provides public transportation for Hillsborough County, Florida. The agency provides fixed-route local and express bus service, door-to-door paratransi ...

, and connects with Pasco's PCPT in Tarpon Springs to continue service in that county. The system's two main bus terminals are located in downtown Clearwater and downtown St. Petersburg. During fiscal year 2005-06, PSTA transported 11,400,484 passengers.

Emergency management

Fire departments

* Clearwater Fire Rescue * Dunedin Fire Rescue * East Lake Fire Rescue * Gulfport Fire Rescue * Largo Fire Rescue * Lealman Fire District * Maderia Beach Fire Rescue * Oldsmar Fire Rescue * Palm Harbor Fire Rescue * Pinellas Park Fire Rescue * Pinellas Suncoast Fire District * Safety Harbor Fire Rescue * Seminole Fire Rescue * St. Pete Beach Fire Rescue * St. Petersburg Fire Rescue * South Pasadena Fire Rescue * Tarpon Springs Fire Rescue * Treasure Island Fire Rescue

Emergency Medical Services

* Sunstar Paramedics

Law enforcement agencies

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office was founded in 1912 at the founding of the county. The Sheriff's Office absorbed the County Patrol in 1960. the sheriff is Bob Gualtieri. The office provides law enforcement services in the county. These municipalities contract to the Sheriff's Office for patrol services: * Belleair Beach * Belleair Bluffs *

Indian Rocks Beach Indian Rocks Beach, or IRB, is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The population was 4,286 at the 2018 census. Indian Rocks Beach is part of the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area. Located on the b ...

* Madeira Beach * North Redington Beach * Oldsmar * Redington Beach * Safety Harbor *

Seminole The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, ...

* South Pasadena *

Many cities in the county have their own city police departments: * Belleair Police Department * Clearwater Police Department * Gulfport Police Department * Indian Shores Police Department * Kenneth City Police Department * Largo Police Department * Pinellas Park Police Department * St. Petersburg Police Department * Tarpon Springs Police Department * Treasure Island Police Department

Hospitals

All Children's Hospital Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital, formerly All Children's Hospital, is a pediatric acute care children's hospital located in St. Petersburg, Florida. The hospital has 259 beds and is affiliated with the USF Morsani College of Medicine and ...

- St. Petersburg * Bay Pines VA Medical Center- Located between St. Petersburg and Seminole in Bay Pines *

Bayfront Medical Center Bayfront Health St. Petersburg is a 480-bed tertiary care center equipped to provide comprehensive medical and surgical care. The hospital offers many areas of expertise, including surgery and trauma, neuroscience, cardiology, acute rehabilitatio ...

- St. Petersburg. Pinellas County's

trauma center A trauma center (or trauma centre) is a hospital equipped and staffed to provide care for patients suffering from major traumatic injuries such as falls, motor vehicle collisions, or gunshot wounds. A trauma center may also refer to an emerge ...

which operates Bayflite * Edward White Hospital- St. Petersburg (closed November 24, 2014) * HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital- Largo * AdventHealth North Pinellas - Tarpon Springs * Largo Medical Center- Largo *

Mease Countryside Hospital Mease Countryside Hospital is a hospital in Safety Harbor Safety Harbor is a city on the west shore of Tampa Bay in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It was settled in 1823 and incorporated in 1917. The population was 16,884 at the 2010 c ...

- Safety Harbor * Mease Dunedin Hospital- Dunedin * Morton Plant Hospital- Clearwater * Northside Hospital and Tampa Bay Heart Institute- St. Petersburg * Palms of Pasadena Hospital- South Pasadena * St. Anthonys Hospital- St. Petersburg * St. Petersburg General Hospital- St. Petersburg

Communities

Cities

* Belleair Beach (2) * Belleair Bluffs (3) * Clearwater (5) *

(6) * Gulfport (7) *

(8) * Largo (11) * Madeira Beach (12) * Oldsmar (14) *

Pinellas Park Pinellas Park is a city located in central Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The population was 53,093 at the 2020 census. Originally home to northern transplants and vacationers, the hundred year old city has grown into the fourth largest ...

(15) * Safety Harbor (18) *

(19) * South Pasadena (20) *

(21) * St. Petersburg (22) * Tarpon Springs (23) * Treasure Island (24)

Towns

* Belleair (1) * Belleair Shore (4) * Indian Shores (9) * Kenneth City (10) * North Redington Beach (13) * Redington Beach (16) * Redington Shores (17)

Census-designated places

* Bardmoor * Bay Pines * Bear Creek * East Lake * Feather Sound * Greenbriar * Harbor Bluffs * Lealman * Palm Harbor * Ridgecrest * South Highpoint * Tierra Verde * West Lealman

Other unincorporated communities

* Baskin * Crystal Beach * Curlew * Gandy *

Highpoint Highpoint can refer to: * Highpoint, Florida, an unincorporated community near Tampa Bay *Highpoint Shopping Centre in Melbourne, Australia *Highpoint (building), an apartment building in London, United Kingdom. *Highpoint I, a set of 1930s apartme ...

* Innisbrook * Oakhurst * Ozona * St. George * Seminole Park * Wall Springs *

Walsingham Walsingham () is a civil parish in North Norfolk, England, famous for its religious shrines in honour of Mary, mother of Jesus. It also contains the ruins of two medieval monastic houses.Ordnance Survey (2002). ''OS Explorer Map 251 – Norf ...

In popular culture

Movies filmed or set in Pinellas County include: * '' Gifted'' (2017)– set in Pinellas County, with scenes in the Pinellas County Courthouse, but filmed in

Chatham County, Georgia Chatham County ( ) is located in the U.S. state of Georgia, on the state's Atlantic coast. The county seat and largest city is Savannah. One of the original counties of Georgia, Chatham County was created February 5, 1777, and is named after Wi ...

* '' The Infiltrator'' (2016)– Some scenes filmed at Derby Lane Greyhound Track and

* '' Sunlight Jr.'' (2013) Some shots filmed in Clearwater at the Floridian Inn at Gulf-to-Bay Blvd. * '' Spring Breakers'' (2013) Primarily filmed in Treasure Island, St. Pete Beach, and Gulfport. * '' Magic Mike'' (2012)– While the film is set in Tampa, Florida it was actually filmed in St. Petersburg, Treasure Island, and Ybor City alongside set filming in Los Angeles, California. * '' Dolphin Tale'' (2011)– Filmed and set at the

* ''Immortal Island'' (2011) * '' A Fonder Heart'' (2011)– Scenes filmed in Clearwater * ''Misconceptions'' (2008)– scenes filmed at Eckerd College * ''

Grace is Gone ''Grace Is Gone'' is a 2007 American drama film written and directed by James C. Strouse in his directorial debut. It stars John Cusack as a father who cannot bring himself to tell his two daughters that their mother, a soldier in the U.S. Army, ...

'' (2007)– scenes filmed at Fort De Soto * '' Love Comes Lately'' (2007)– scenes filmed at Pass A Grille and St. Pete Beach * '' Loren Cass'' (2006)– scenes filmed throughout St. Petersburg * '' The Punisher'' (2004)– Scenes filmed at Honeymoon Island State Park, Fort De Soto and the Sunshine Skyway Bridge * '' American Outlaws'' (2001)– scenes filmed at Fort De Soto * ''

Ocean's Eleven ''Ocean's Eleven'' is a 2001 American heist comedy film directed by Steven Soderbergh from a screenplay by Ted Griffin. The first installment in the ''Ocean's'' film trilogy, it is a remake of the 1960 Rat Pack film of the same name. The ...

'' (2001)– single scene filmed at the Derby Lane Greyhound Track in St. Petersburg * ''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. It depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip (Great Expectations), Pip (the book is a ''bildungsroman''; a coming-of-age story). It ...

'' (1998)– Scenes filmed at Fort DeSoto Park in St. Petersburg * '' Lethal Weapon 3'' (1992)– scenes filmed at the Soreno Hotel (now gone) in St. Petersburg * '' Cocoon'' (1985)– filmed and set in St. Petersburg * '' Summer Rental'' (1985)– Filmed in St. Pete Beach * ''

Once Upon a Time in America ''Once Upon a Time in America'' ( it, C'era una volta in America) is a 1984 epic crime film co-written and directed by Italian filmmaker Sergio Leone and starring Robert De Niro and James Woods. The film is an Italian–American venture produ ...

'' (1984)– scenes filmed at the historic Don Cesar hotel on St. Pete Beach * ''Porky's'' (1982)– based on actual occurrences at Boca Ciega High School in Gulfport the early 1960s * ''Health (film), HealtH'' (1980)– filmed entirely at the historic Don Cesar hotel on St. Pete Beach

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links

Official website
with info for businesses, residents, and visitors
Southwest Florida Water Management District

Maps of early Pinellas County
University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension in Pinellas County

Pinellas Watershed Excursion
educational interactive guide {{authority control Pinellas County, Florida, 1912 establishments in Florida Charter counties in Florida Counties in the Tampa Bay area Populated places established in 1912

History

Pre-European settlement

Spanish and British Florida

Settlement of West Hillsborough

Birth of Pinellas County

Land boom and prohibition

Great Depression and World War II

Recent history

Geography

Physical geography

Barrier islands and passes

National protected area

State protected areas

County parks and preserves

Pinellas County parks gallery

Other protected areas

Adjacent counties

Ecosystems

Plant life

Animal life

Invasive species

Climate

Demographics

List of cities by population

2020 census

2010 Census

2000 Census

Languages

Government and politics

Voter registration

Education

Primary and secondary education

Colleges and universities

Libraries

Economy

Historical economic strengths

Economy today

Culture

Museums

Performing arts venues

Other points of interest

Sports and recreation

Sports teams

Recreational areas

Media

Transportation

Major highways

Airports

Railroads

Mass transit

Emergency management

Fire departments

Emergency Medical Services

Law enforcement agencies

Hospitals

Communities

Cities

Towns

Census-designated places

Other unincorporated communities

In popular culture

See also

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links