Tallahassee

History

Indigenous peoples occupied this area for thousands of years before European encounter. Around 1200, the large and complex Mississippian culture had built earthwork mounds near Lake Jackson which survive today; they are preserved in the Lake Jackson Archaeological State Park.

The Spanish founded St. Augustine in 1565, establishing the oldest continuously occupied European-established settlement in the continental United States. In the 17th century, they developed a network of missions in Apalachee territory to supply food and labor for the colony and to convert Indigenous peoples to Roman Catholicism. The largest, Mission San Luis de Apalachee in Tallahassee, has been partially reconstructed by the state of Florida. The Narváez expedition encountered the Apalachee people but did not reach the site of Tallahassee. In 1539–40, Hernando de Soto's expedition occupied the Apalachee town of Anhaica (in present-day Tallahassee) over the winter. Based on archaeological excavations, the Anhaica site was about 0.5 miles (800 m) east of the present Florida State Capitol. The De Soto encampment is often cited as the first place that Christmas was celebrated in the continental United States.

The name Tallahassee is a Muskogean word often translated as "old fields" or "old town". It was likely an expression used by Creek migrants from Georgia and Alabama who moved into the region in the late 18th and early 19th centuries as U.S. settlement expanded into their homelands, where they found large areas of cleared land previously occupied by the Apalachee. The Creek and later refugees who joined them developed as the Seminole people of Florida. The Talimali Band of Apalachee Indians in Louisiana identify as present-day descendants of the Apalachee.

During the First Seminole War, General Andrew Jackson conducted operations in and around Tallahassee against the Seminoles and other Native people. On November 12, 1817, after Chief Neamathla of the village of Fowltown (just west of present-day Tallahassee) refused orders to relocate, U.S. forces entered the village, burned it, and drove off its inhabitants. The Indians retaliated, killing soldiers and civilians. Jackson reentered Florida in March 1818. According to Jackson’s adjutant, Colonel Robert Butler, they "advanced on the Indian village called Tallahasse [sic] [where] two of the enemy were made prisoner".

State capital

Florida became an American territory in September 1821, in accordance with the Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819.

The first session of the Legislative Council of the Territory of Florida met on July 22, 1822, at Pensacola, the former capital of West Florida. Members from St. Augustine, the former capital of East Florida, traveled 59 days by water to attend. The second session was in St. Augustine, and western delegates needed 28 days to travel perilously around the peninsula to reach St. Augustine. During this session, delegates decided to hold future meetings at a halfway point. Two appointed commissioners selected Tallahassee, then an Apalachee settlement (Anhaica) virtually abandoned after Andrew Jackson burned it in 1818, as a halfway point. In 1824, the third legislative session met there in a crude log building serving as the capitol.

From 1821 through 1845, during Florida's territorial period, the rough-hewn frontier capital gradually developed as a town. The Marquis de Lafayette, French hero of the American Revolution, returned to the United States in 1824 for a tour. The U.S. Congress voted to give him $200,000 (the same amount he had given the colonies in 1778), US citizenship, and the Lafayette Land Grant, 36 square miles (93 km2) of land that today includes large portions of Tallahassee. In 1845, a Greek revival masonry structure was erected as the Capitol building in time for statehood. Now known as the "old Capitol", it stands in front of the high-rise Capitol building built in the 1970s.

Tallahassee was in the heart of Florida's Cotton Belt (Leon County led the state in cotton production) and was the center of the slave trade in Florida. During the American Civil War, Tallahassee was the only Confederate state capital east of the Mississippi River not captured by Union forces, and the only one not burned. A small engagement, the Battle of Natural Bridge, was fought south of the city on March 6, 1865, just a month before the war ended.

During the 19th century, the institutions that later developed into Florida State University were established in Tallahassee; it became a university town. These included the Tallahassee Female Academy (founded 1843) and the Florida Institute (founded 1854). In 1851, the Florida legislature decreed two seminaries be built on either side of the Suwannee River, East Florida Seminary and West Florida Seminary. In 1855, West Florida Seminary was transferred to the Florida Institute building (which had been established as an inducement for the state to place the seminary in Tallahassee). In 1858, the seminary absorbed the Tallahassee Female Academy and became coeducational. Its main building was near the northwest corner of South Copeland and West Jefferson streets, approximately where FSU's Westcott Building is today.

1900–1999

Until World War II, Tallahassee remained a small Southern town with virtually the entire population living within one mile (1.6 km) of the Capitol. The main economic drivers were the colleges and state government, where politicians met to discuss spending money on grand public improvement projects to accommodate growth in places such as Miami and Tampa Bay, hundreds of miles away from the capital.

Tallahassee was also active in protest during the civil rights era. The Tallahassee bus boycott was a citywide boycott that sought to end racial segregation in the employment and seating arrangements of city buses. On May 26, 1956, Florida A&M University students Wilhelmina Jakes and Carrie Patterson were arrested by the Tallahassee Police Department for "placing themselves in a position to incite a riot". Robert Saunders, representing the NAACP, and Rev. C. K. Steele began talks with city authorities, while the local African-American community began boycotting the city's buses. The Inter-Civic Council ended the boycott on December 22, 1956. On January 7, 1957, the City Commission repealed the bus-franchise segregation clause because of the United States Supreme Court ruling in Browder v. Gayle (1956). In the 1960s, there was a movement to transfer the capital to Orlando, closer to the state's growing population centers. That movement was defeated; the 1970s saw a long-term commitment by the state to the capital city, with the construction of the new capitol complex and preservation of the old Florida State Capitol building.

In 1970, the Census Bureau reported the city's population as 74.0% white and 25.4% black. In 1971, the city elected James R. Ford to the 5-member City Commission, and he became the city's first African-American mayor in 1972 (commissioners rotated into the position serving a one-year term).

Bobby Bowden became the head coach of Florida State Seminoles football in 1976, and turned Tallahassee into a city dominated by college football. Bowden became very successful very quickly at Florida State. By his second year, Bowden had to deny rumors that he would leave for another job; the team went 9–2, compared to the four wins total in the three seasons before Bowden. During 34 years as head coach he had only one losing season: his first, in 1976.

In 1977, the 22-story high-rise Capitol building, designed by architect Edward Durell Stone, was completed. Since 2021, it has been the third-tallest state capitol building in the United States. In 1978, the Old Capitol, directly in front of the new Capitol, was scheduled for demolition, but state officials decided to keep it as a museum. In 1986, Jack McLean served as mayor, the second African-American to hold the position.

2000–present

Tallahassee was the center of world attention for six weeks during the 2000 United States Presidential election recount, which involved numerous rulings by the Florida Secretary of State and the Florida Supreme Court.

Tallahassee has been impacted by many natural disasters, including a direct hit by Hurricane Hermine, which caused about 80% of the city proper to lose power, including Florida State University; Hurricane Michael in 2018; and two simultaneous EF2 tornadoes in 2024.

Geography

The approximate coordinates for the City of Tallahassee are 30°27′18″N 84°15′12″W.

The city has an area of 98.2 square miles (254.3 km2), of which 95.7 square miles (247.9 km2) is land and 2.5 square miles (6.5 km2), or 2.59%, is water.

Tallahassee's terrain is hilly by Florida standards, being at the southern end of the Red Hills Region, just above the Cody Scarp. The elevation varies from near sea level to just over 200 feet (61 m), with the state capitol on one of the highest hills in the city. The city includes two large lake basins, Lake Jackson and Lake Lafayette, and borders the northern end of the Apalachicola National Forest.

The flora and fauna are similar to those found in the mid-south and low country regions of South Carolina and Georgia. The palm trees are the more cold-hardy varieties like the state tree, the Sabal palmetto. Pines, magnolias, hickories, and a variety of oaks are the dominant trees. The Southern Live Oak is perhaps the most emblematic of the city.

Cityscape

Tallahassee has many neighborhoods inside the city limits. Some of the most known and defined include All Saints, Apalachee Ridge, Betton Hills, Buck Lake, Callen, Frenchtown (the oldest historically black neighborhood in the state), Killearn Estates, Killearn Lakes Plantation, Lafayette Park, Levy Park, Los Robles, Midtown, Holly Hills, Jake Gaither/University Park, Indian Head Acres, Myers Park, Smokey Hollow, SouthWood, Seminole Manor and Woodland Drives.

Tallahassee is notable for its canopy roads. The residents appreciate them and they offer a tranquil alternative to the normal city expanse of asphalt, cement and signs.

Tallahassee has nine "officially designated" canopy roads that contribute greatly to the southern charm of the city.

Urban planning and expansion

The first plan for the Capitol Center was the 1947 Taylor Plan, which consolidated several government buildings in one downtown area. In 1974, the Capitol Center Planning Commission for the City of Tallahassee, Florida responded to growth of its urban center with a conceptual plan for the expansion of its Capitol Center. Hisham Ashkouri, working for The Architects' Collaborative, led the urban planning and design effort. Estimating growth and related development for approximately the next 25 years, the program projected the need for 2.3 million square feet (214,000 m2) of new government facilities in the city core, with 3,500 dwelling units, 100 acres (40 ha) of new public open space, retail and private office space, and other ancillary spaces. Community participation was an integral part of the design review, welcoming Tallahassee residents to provide input as well as citizens' groups and government agencies, resulting in the creation of six separate design alternatives.

Sprawl and compact growth

The Tallahassee–Leon County Planning Department implements policies aimed at promoting compact growth and development, including the establishment and maintenance of an Urban Service Area. The intent of the Urban Service Area is to "have Tallahassee and Leon County grow in a responsible manner, with infrastructure provided economically and efficiently, and surrounding forest and agricultural lands protected from unwarranted and premature conversion to urban land use." The result of compact growth policies has been a significant overall reduction in the Sprawl Index for Tallahassee between 2000 and 2010. CityLab reported on this finding, stating "Tallahassee laps the field, at least as far as the Sprawl Index is concerned."

Climate

Tallahassee has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cfa), with long, tropical summers and short, mild winters, as well as warm to hot, drier springs and autumns. Tallahassee is in USDA hardiness zone 9a (20 to 25 °F; −7 to −4 °C). Summer maximum temperatures are hotter than locations to the south on the Florida peninsula and it is one of the few cities in the state to occasionally record temperatures above 100 °F (37.8 °C); there are an average of 11.2 days per year that have temperatures at least that high. The record high of 105 °F (41 °C) was set on June 15, 2011.

Summer is characterized by brief intense showers and thunderstorms that form along the afternoon sea breeze from the Gulf of Mexico. The daily mean temperature in July, the hottest month, is 82.9 °F (28.3 °C). Conversely, the winter is markedly cooler, with a January daily average temperature of 51.0 °F (10.6 °C). There is an average of 34.6 nights with a minimum at or below freezing, and on average, the window for freezing temperatures is from November 22 thru March 16, allowing a growing season of 250 days. With the data from the 1991–2020 normals, Tallahassee is in a USDA 9a zone by a small margin, the coldest temperature of the year usually being about 20.2 °F (−6.6 °C). Temperature readings below 15 °F (−9 °C) are very rare, having last occurred on January 11, 2010.

During the Great Blizzard of 1899 the city reached −2 °F (−19 °C) on February 13, which remains Florida's only recorded subzero reading. The record cold daily maximum is 22 °F (−6 °C), set on the same day as the all-time record low. More recently, a 28 °F (−2 °C) daily maximum was recorded in 1985. Conversely, the record warm daily minimum is 81 °F (27 °C) on July 15, 1980. However, the city itself is considerably warmer than the airport where the National Weather Service records its data from, even though the National Weather Service does not record data from it. This is due to an urban heat island, which creates an average disparity of 5.8 °F (3.2 °C) and is especially pronounced during winter.

Snow and ice are rare in Tallahassee, not occurring during most winters. Historically, snow flurries are recorded every three to four years, but measurable snowfall of 0.1 inches (0.3 cm) or more has only happened once in the 1991–2020 time period. Tallahassee has recorded a few very small accumulating snowfalls over the last 100 years; the greatest amount was 2.8 inches (7 cm) on February 13, 1958. Tallahassee's other recorded measurable snowfalls were 1.0 inch (2.5 cm) on February 12–13, 1899, and December 22–23, 1989; 0.4 inches (1.0 cm) on March 28, 1955, and February 10, 1973; 0.2 inches (0.5 cm) on February 2, 1951; 0.1 inches (0.3 cm) on January 3, 2018; and 1.9 inches on January 21–22, 2025.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, there were 196,169 people, 78,283 households, and 34,639 families residing in the city.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 181,376 people, 73,289 households, and 34,516 families residing in the city.

In the 2010 census, 16.7% of which had children under 18 living in them. 27.7% were married couples living together, 14.4% had a female householder with no husband, and 53.7% were non-families. 34.1% of all households were made up of individuals living alone and 6.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.33. Children under the age of 5 were 4.9% of the population, persons under 18 were 16.7% and persons 65 years or older were 10.3%. The median age was 26 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.7 males.

For 2009–2013, the estimated median household income was $39,524, and the per capita income was $23,778. In 2010, the percentage of persons below the poverty level was estimated at 30.2%.

Languages

As of 2000, 92.0% of residents spoke English as their first language, while 4.1% spoke Spanish, 0.6% spoke French, and 0.6% spoke German as their mother tongue. In total, 8.0% of the total population spoke languages other than English.

Higher learning

Educationally, the population of Leon County is the most highly educated population in Florida with 54.4% of the residents over the age of 25 holding a Bachelor's, Master's, professional or doctorate degree. The Florida average is 37.4% and the national average is 33.4%.

Law, government and politics

Politics

Tallahassee has traditionally been a Democratic city, but the party has been supported by different ethnic groups over time, with a major shift in the late 20th century. Leon County has voted Democratic in 24 of the past 29 presidential elections since 1904; but until the late 1960s, most African Americans were disenfranchised from the political system, dating from Jim Crow laws passed by Democrats in Florida (and in all other Southern states) at the turn of the century. At that time, most African Americans were affiliated with the Republican Party, and their disenfranchisement resulted in that party being non-competitive in the region for decades. Subsequently, these demographic groups traded party alignments in the 1960s and 1970s.

Since passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and enforcement of constitutional rights for African Americans, voters in Tallahassee have elected black mayors and black state representatives. It has become one of those Southern U.S. cities that are known for progressive activism. This may be due to the fact that Tallahassee and Leon County have the highest level of college graduates in the state. In addition, after the realignment of party politics during the late 20th century, most of the African-American population in the city now support Democratic Party candidates.

As of December 2, 2018, there were 112,572 Democrats, 58,083 Republicans, and 44,007 voters who were independent or had other affiliations among the 214,662 voters in Leon County.

Leon County's voter turnout percentage has consistently ranked among the highest of Florida's 67 counties, with a record-setting 86% turnout in the November 2008 general election. The county voted for Barack Obama in the presidential election.

Structure of city government

Tallahassee has a form of government with an elected mayor of Tallahassee, elected commissioners, and an at-will employed city manager, city departments, and staff.

The city commissioners as of November 9, 2020, were:

Federal representation and offices

Tallahassee is part of Florida's 2nd congressional district.

The United States Postal Service operates post offices in Tallahassee. The Tallahassee Main Post Office is at 2800 South Adams Street. Other post offices in the city limits include Centerville Station, Leon Station, Park Avenue Station, and Westside Station.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration maintains a National Weather Service in Tallahassee. Their coverage-warning area includes the eastern Florida Panhandle and adjacent Gulf of Mexico waters, the north-central Florida peninsula, and parts of southeastern Alabama and southwestern Georgia.

The 81st Regional Support Command of the United States Army Reserve (USAR) has an Army Reserve Center at 4307 Jackson Bluff Road.

The Naval and Marine Corps Reserve Center (NMCRC) is at 2910 Roberts Avenue host the United States Navy Reserve Navy Operational Support Center Tallahassee (NOSC Tallahassee) and the United States Marine Corps Reserve 2nd Platoon, Company E, Anti-Terrorism Battalion and 3rd Platoon, Company E, Anti-Terrorism Battalion.

Consolidation

Voters of Leon County have gone to the polls four times to vote on consolidation of Tallahassee and Leon County governments into one jurisdiction combining police and other city services with already shared (consolidated) Tallahassee Fire Department and Leon County Emergency Medical Services. Tallahassee's city limits would increase from 103.1 square miles (267 km2) to 702 square miles (1,820 km2). Roughly 36 percent of Leon County's 265,714 residents live outside the Tallahassee city limits.

Each time, the measure was rejected:

The proponents of consolidation have stated the new jurisdiction would attract business by its size. Merging governments would cut government waste, duplication of services, etc. However, Professor Richard Feiock of the Department of Public Administration of Korea University and the Askew School of Public Administration and Policy of Florida State University states that no discernible relationship exists between consolidation and the local economy.

Flag

The former flag of Tallahassee was vaguely similar to the flag of Florida, a white saltire on a blue field, with the city's coat of arms, featuring the cupola of the old capitol building, at the center. The flag is an homage to the Scottish and Ulster-Scots Presbyterian heritage of the original founders of the city, most of whom were settlers from North Carolina whose ancestors had either come to America directly from Scotland, or were Presbyterians of Scottish descent from County Down and County Antrim in what has since become Northern Ireland. The current flag incorporates a stylized 5-point star and the city name on a white background.

Education

Primary and secondary

Tallahassee anchors the Leon County School District. As of the 2009 school year Leon County Schools had an estimated 32,796 students, 2209 teachers and 2100 administrative and support personnel. The superintendent of schools is Rocky Hanna. Leon County public school enrollment continues to grow steadily (up approximately 1% per year since the 1990–91 school year). The dropout rate for grades 9–12 improved to 2.2% in the 2007–2008 school year, the third time in the past four years the dropout rate has been below 3%.

To gauge performance the State of Florida rates all public schools according to student achievement on the state-sponsored Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT). Seventy-nine percent of Leon County Public Schools received an A or B grade in the 2008–2009 school year. The overall district grade assigned to the Leon County Schools is "A". Students in the Leon County School District continued to score favorably in comparison to Florida and national averages in the SAT and ACT student assessment tests. The Leon County School District has consistently scored at or above the average for districts statewide in total ACT and SAT mean composite scores.

Leon County high schools

Public schools belonging to universities

Florida State University Schools ("Florida High") (K–12)

Florida A&M University Developmental Research School (K–12)

Charter schools

Governor's Charter Academy (GCA) (K–8) – Established in August 2012.

School of Arts and Sciences (SAS) (K–8) – Established in 1999

Tallahassee School of Math and Science (TSMS) (K–8) – It was previously known as Stars Middle School and only served middle school. In 2014 it received a new charter, adopted its current name, and expanded to elementary grades.

Higher education

Florida State University (commonly referred to as Florida State or FSU) is an American public space-grant and sea-grant research university. Florida State is on a 1,391.54-acre (5.631 km2) campus in the state capital of Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the state of Florida.

The university is classified as a Research University with Very High Research by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The university comprises 16 separate colleges and more than 110 centers, facilities, labs and institutes that offer more than 360 programs of study, including professional school programs. The university has an annual budget of over $1.7 billion. Florida State is home to Florida's only National Laboratory – the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory and is the birthplace of the commercially viable anti-cancer drug Taxol. Florida State University also operates The John & Mable Ringling Museum of Art, the State Art Museum of Florida and one of the nation's largest museum/university complexes.

The university is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). Florida State University is home to nationally ranked programs in many academic areas, including law, business, engineering, medicine, social policy, film, music, theater, dance, visual art, political science, psychology, social work, and the sciences.

Florida Governor Rick Scott and the state legislature designated Florida State University as one of two "preeminent" state universities in the spring of 2013 among the twelve universities of the State University System of Florida.

FSU's intercollegiate sports teams, commonly known by their Florida State Seminoles nickname, compete in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I and the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). In their 113-year history, Florida State's varsity sports teams have won 20 national athletic championships and Seminole athletes have won 78 individual NCAA national championships.

Founded on October 3, 1887, Florida A&M University (commonly referred to as FAMU) is a public, historically black university and land-grant university that is part of the State University System of Florida and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. FAMU's main campus comprises 156 buildings spread over 422 acres (1.7 km2) atop the highest geographic hill in Tallahassee. The university also has several satellite campuses, including a site in Orlando where its College of Law is located and sites in Miami, Jacksonville and Tampa for its pharmacy program. Florida A&M University offers 54 bachelor's degrees and 29 master's degrees. The university has 12 schools and colleges and one institute.

Economy

Companies based in Tallahassee include: Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, the Municipal Code Corporation, the State Board of Administration of Florida (SBA), the Mainline Information Systems, and United Solutions Company.

Employment

As of 2024, the unemployment rate in Tallahassee was 3.3% and per capita personal income was $55,363; Tallahassee's top employers were:

Arts and culture

Entertainment and performing arts

Tallahassee is home to many entertainment venues, theaters, museums, parks, and performing arts centers, including the Railroad Square Art Park.

Museums

Tallahassee is known for its many museums. It is home to the Museum of Fine Arts at Florida State University, Tallahassee Museum, Goodward Museum & Gardens, Museum of Florida History, Mission San Luis de Apalachee, Tallahassee Automobile Museum, Old Capitol Museum, Knott House Museum, and The Grove.

Music

The first notable musician in Tallahassee was Ray Charles, raised in Greenville. Between terms at the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind, he visited family in Tallahassee and performed in Frenchtown.

George Clinton, founder of Parliament-Funkadelic, has lived in Tallahassee since 1994.

Faheem Rashad Najm, better known as T-Pain, was born and raised in Tallahassee. He is known for popularizing the creative use of the Auto-Tune pitch correction effect.

Emo music group Mayday Parade originated in Tallahassee and several members still live there.

Post-grunge band Creed formed in Tallahassee during 1994.

Festivals and events

Downtown Getdown (Florida State Seminoles Pep Rally)

First Friday festivals at Railroad Square

Greek Food Festival

Springtime Tallahassee

Tallahassee Wine and Food Festival

Winter Festival

Sports

Florida State Seminoles

In 2016- 2017, the Florida State Seminoles of Florida State University generated the thirteenth-most revenue in collegiate athletics with $144,514,413 of total revenue.

Media

Print

The Tallahassee Democrat, Tallahassee's largest newspaper, published daily

The FSView & Florida Flambeau, covers Florida State University

The Talon, covers Tallahassee State College

The Famuan, covers Florida A&M University

Television

WCTV (CBS) channel 6.1, (MeTV) channel 6.2, (The365) channel 6.3, (ION) channel 6.4, (Justice) channel 6.5, (MyTV) channel 6.6, (Shop LC) channel 6.7, licensed to Thomasville, Georgia

WFSU-TV (PBS) channel 11.1, (Florida Channel) channel 11.2, (Create) channel 11.3, (Kids 360) channel 11.4

WTFL-LD (Telemundo) channel 15.1, (Start TV) channel 15.2, (Catchy Comedy) channel 15.3

WTLF (CW) channel 24.1, (Comet) channel 24.2, (Roar) channel 24.3, (Nest) channel 24.4, (Antenna TV) 24.5

WTXL-TV (ABC) channel 27.1, (Bounce) channel 27.2, (Grit) channel 27.3, (Mystery) channel 27.4, (CourtTV) channel 27.5, (Busted) channel 27.6, (HSN) channel 27.7

WXTL-LD (Daystar) channel 36.1, (Daystar Espanol) channel 36.2

WNXG-LD channel 38 (WCTV simulcast channels 6.1 - 6.6 in ATSC 3.0)

WTWC-TV (NBC) channel 40.1, (Fox) channel 40.2, (Charge) channel 40.3

WVUP-CD (CTN) channel 45.1, (CTNi) channel 45.3, (Buzzer) channel 45.4, (Biz TV) channel 45.5

WTLH (H&I) channel 49.1, (CW) channel 49.2, (Comet) channel 49.3, licensed to Bainbridge, Georgia

WFXU (Independent and My Network TV) channel 57.1, licensed to Live Oak

Public services

The Public Safety Complex at 911 Easterwood Drive is a joint venture between Leon County and the City of Tallahassee. The facility serves multiple purposes and was designed to withstand an F4 tornado or a Category 3 hurricane. It was completed in 2013 with a budget of almost $30 million using concrete forms and structural steel with brick masonry exteriors. Most of the 90,000 square feet (8,400 m2) has raised flooring and laminated glass windows.

The site also contains an EMS logistics building and land for a future fire station.

The Consolidated Dispatch Agency (CDA) in the Public Safety Complex acts as a centralized hub for 911 calls, providing faster, more efficient emergency responses by uniting police, fire, and EMS. Key benefits include improved coordination between agencies, quicker processing of emergency calls, enhanced responder safety, and more accurate, faster dispatching of the closest units to crises.

In addition to the CDA, the building contains offices for the city's Regional Transportation Management, EMS, emergency operations and the fire department headquarters.

Law enforcement

Established in 1826, the Tallahassee Police Department once claimed to be the oldest police department in the Southern United States and the second-oldest in the U.S., preceded only by the Philadelphia Police Department (established in 1758). The Boston Police Department was established in 1838 and larger East Coast cities followed with New York City and Baltimore in 1845. However, this is proven incorrect. Pensacola, Florida, for example, had a municipal police force as early as 1821.

There are over 800 sworn law enforcement officers in Tallahassee. Law enforcement services are provided by the Tallahassee Police Department, the Leon County Sheriff's Office, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Florida Capitol Police, Florida State University Police Department, Florida A&M University Police Department, the Tallahassee State College Police Department, the Florida Highway Patrol, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The Tallahassee Growth Management Building Inspection Division is responsible for issuing permits and performing inspections of public and private buildings in the city limits. These duties include the enforcement of the Florida Building Codes and the Florida Fire Protection Codes. These standards are present to protect life and property. The Tallahassee Building Department is one of 13 Accredited Building Departments in the United States.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Marshals Service, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Secret Service and Drug Enforcement Administration have offices in Tallahassee. The Federal Correctional Institution, Tallahassee and the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida are based in Tallahassee.

Fire & emergency protection

The Tallahassee Fire Department provides fire protection and emergency response for Tallahassee, as well as all unincorporated areas of Leon County. Six volunteer fire departments within unincorporated areas of Leon County supplement the response of Leon County EMS and the TFD and exist to provide more timely responses.

Leon County Emergency Medical Services provides emergency response and transport using Advanced life support for all areas of Leon County including Tallahassee. Their headquarters is located in the Public Safety Complex.

Medical care

Hospitals in the area include Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare, Capital Regional Medical Center and HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital of Tallahassee.

Disasters

The Leon County Emergency Operations Center is located in the Public Safety Complex. They prepare for and coordinate response to disasters.

Public health

The Florida Department of Health operates the county health department in Tallahassee and in all Florida counties.

Social services

The Florida Department of Children and Families provides social services in Tallahassee and in all Florida counties.

Water, sewer and stormwater

The City of Tallahassee Utilities department is responsible for water delivery, wastewater treatment, and stormwater management within the city limits.

Transportation

Aviation

Tallahassee International Airport (KTLH)

Dale Mabry Field (closed 1961)

Tallahassee Commercial Airport (closed 2011)

Mass transit

StarMetro provides bus service throughout the city.

Intercity bus

Greyhound, Megabus and RedCoach based in downtown Tallahassee.

Railroads

Freight service is provided by the Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad, which acquired most of the CSX main line from Pensacola to Jacksonville on June 1, 2019. FG&A also purchased the CSX branch from Tallahassee to Attapulgus, Georgia, connecting with the CSX Montgomery-Savannah main line at Bainbridge, Georgia. FG&A's headquarters office is in Tallahassee.

Tallahassee Railroad, completed in 1837, now the state-owned Tallahassee-St. Marks Historic Railroad State Trail from Tallahassee southward to St. Marks, about 20 miles (32 km).

Carrabelle, Tallahassee and Georgia Railroad, founded in 1891, merged into the Georgia Florida and Alabama Railway in 1906. The Tallahassee-Carrabelle segment was abandoned in 1948. In 2009, a 2.4-mile (3.9 km) segment of the abandoned railroad was opened as the Tallahassee-Georgia Florida and Alabama (GF&A) Trail in the Apalachicola National Forest.

The streamlined Gulf Wind coach and Pullman passenger train, operated jointly by the L&N and Seaboard railroads, served Tallahassee from 1949 to 1971, when the newly formed Amtrak cancelled the train.

Amtrak's Sunset Limited served Tallahassee from April 1993 until service east of New Orleans was suspended in August 2005, following Hurricane Katrina, which caused extensive damage to CSX lines from Louisiana to Florida. The service has never been reinstated, and as of mid-2019 had a "next to zero chance" of being revived by Amtrak. In 2021, Amtrak announced plans restore service as early as 2022 along part of the route from New Orleans to Alabama, but not into Florida. The Tallahassee and Pensacola metropolitan areas are the largest in the state without passenger rail service.

Major highways

Interstate 10 runs east–west across the north side of the city. Tallahassee is served by five exits including: Exit 192 (U.S. 90), Exit 196 (Capital Circle NW), Exit 199 (U.S. 27/Monroe St.), Exit 203 (U.S. 319/Thomasville Road and Capital Circle NE), and Exit 209 (U.S. 90/Mahan Dr.)

U.S. Route 27 enters the city from the northwest before turning south and entering downtown. This portion of U.S. 27 is known locally as Monroe Street. In front of the historic state capitol building, U.S. 27 turns east and follows Apalachee Parkway out of the city.

U.S. Route 90 runs east–west through Tallahassee. It is known locally as Tennessee Street west of Magnolia Drive and Mahan Drive east of Magnolia.

U.S. Route 319 runs north–south along the east side of the city using Thomasville Road, Capital Circle NE, Capital Circle SE, and Crawfordville Road.

State Road 20

State Road 61

State Road 363

Orchard Pond Parkway, the first privately built toll road in Florida.

Namesakes

CSS Tallahassee, 1864 Confederate cruiser

USS Tallahassee (BM-9), 1908 US Navy monitor, originally named USS Florida

USS Tallahassee (CL-61), 1941 US Navy light cruiser, converted to the aircraft carrier USS Princeton

USS Tallahassee (CL-116), 1944 US Navy light cruiser

Tallahassee, main character in the movie Zombieland

Tallahassee, album recorded by The Mountain Goats

Tallahassee Tight, early-20th-century blues singer

T-Pain, musician, originally "Tallahassee Pain"

"Tallahassee Lassie", Freddy Cannon song

"Tallahassee", Bing Crosby & Andrews Sisters song

Sister cities

Tallahassee has 5 sister cities as follows:

Konongo-Odumase, Ashanti, Ghana

St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles

Sligo, County Sligo, Ireland

Rugao, Jiangsu, China

Ramat HaSharon, Tel Aviv District, Israel