Boca Raton Florida

Boca Raton Florida -

Situated on Florida's Atlantic Sea coast, in Palm Beach County, the city and resort of Boca Raton has a population of about 75,000 and an area of 29 square miles, it was inaugurated as a city in 1925.

The cities name has always been a cause of dispute with various explanations as to its origin, many believe it to be from the Spanish 'Rat's Mouth' whilst others go with the theory that 'Boca' is from the word inlet and that 'Raton' refers to the rocky coastline in the region.

The first settlers in the area around Boca Raton are believed to have been the Tequesta Indians, and these ancient peoples may have inhabited the region as far back as one thousand year ago.

The modern day city sprouted up in the area of a new hotel built by a society architect called Addison Mitner, whose intention it was to establish the area as a playground for the well-heeled and famous. Thus the community grew and in the early days mostly consisted of workers from the hotel. A number of pineapple plantations founded by Japanese farmers to the west of the city early in the 20th Century further fuelled the growth. Later during WW2 the region was utilised as a training ground for the bomber crews of B52 aircraft, much of the land was later incorporated into the Florida State University.

Boca Raton remained a fairly small community up to the nineteen fifties when 2 theme parks opened - 'Ancient America' and 'Africa USA' a Jeep Safari park with a variety of wild animals on display.

The 1960's saw a period of considerable development in Boca Raton and by the early 1970's the population of the city had reached 30,000. The city further grew in importance after the arrival of the huge IBM company which arrived in Boca Raton and dveloped the first IBM personal computer there. Attracted by this success, more businesses set up shop in the city.

The downtown area of Boca Raton underwent massive redevelopment throughout the 1980's and 1990's including the opening of the Mitzner Park shopping centre in 1991.

Modern day Boca Raton is a cosmopolitan city and resort enjoying a tropical lifestyle and offering visitors a wide range of facilities and attractions. Boca Raton boasts an unmatched series of beachfront parks such as the massive Spanish River Park where visitors can enjoy fantastic grassy picnic areas. It is a particularly popular area for golfers and the huge variety of local courses is a major plus for the city, the local courses include among others, The Boca Dunes Golf and Country Club, The Boca Raton Municipal Golf Course, The Boca Raton Executive Country Club and The Red Reef Golf Course. Boca Raton is also renowned for its fine restaurants of which it has many.

Boca Raton Real Estate -

There are a wide range of housing options available to those wishing to settle in Boca Raton, the city is renowned for its luxury gated, country club style communities, mostly influenced by the cities founder Addison Mitzner. For all you Boca Raton real estate requirements check out: Boca Raton Real Estate

Boca Raton Map -

To the right is a location map for the Florida city of Boca Raton. The map is zoomable which enables you to view streets and features in and around Boca Raton, thus you can get a detailed street map of Boca Raton.

You can also use the buttons on the top left of the map to pan around and view other surrounding areas. Also shown on the map are West Palm Beach, Boynton Beach, Pompano Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Hollywood.

Boca Raton is located in Palm Beach County about 25 miles south of Palm Beach International Airport and about 20 miles north of Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport.

Florida Cities - Boca Raton Fl