Ocala

Sister cities

• Pisa

History

Ocala is named after Ocale (also Cale, Etocale, and other variants), a Timucua village and chiefdom recorded in the 16th century, the name of which is believed to mean "Big Hammock" in the Timucua language. Another possible meaning of the name is "song or singer of admiration or glorification". Spaniard Hernando de Soto's expedition recorded Ocale in 1539 during his exploration through what is today the Southeastern United States. The site of Ocale has not been found, but historians believe it was located in southwestern Marion County, near the Withlacoochee River. References to Ocale, Olagale, and Etoquale occur in 16th and early 17th century sources, but do not specify a location. A Spanish mission named San Luis de Eloquale was established by 1630. Milanich believes the mission was near the Withlacoochee River. Eloquale is not named in a 1655 list of missions, and Ocale (and its variants) disappeared from history. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Creek people and other Native Americans, as well as free and fugitive African Americans sought refuge in Florida. The Seminole people formed. After foreign colonial rule shifted between Spain and Great Britain and back again, in 1821, the United States acquired the territory of Florida. After warfare to the north, in 1827, the U.S. Army built Fort King near the present site of Ocala as a buffer between the Seminole, who had long occupied the area, and white settlers moving into the region. The fort was an important base during the Second Seminole War and later served in 1844 as the first courthouse for Marion County. The modern city of Ocala, which was established in 1849, developed around the fort site. Greater Ocala is known as the "Kingdom of the Sun". Plantations and other agricultural development dependent…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of , of which is land and (0.01%) is water. Silver Springs State Park was formed as Silver River State Park in 1987, from land the state purchased around the Silver Springs attraction to spare it from development. The state took over Silver Springs itself in 1993 and incorporated it into the park in 2013. Ocala has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa), with hot, humid summers and mild winters.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  17,893
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  16,764
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  13,726
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  13,331
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  12,528
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  10,494
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  9,261
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  9,223