Nicknames of Florida Coastal Areas
By Jeff Moffitt
@moffittjc (118442)
Gainesville, Florida
August 10, 2016 7:00am CST
Florida is a worldwide tourist destination, so millions of people from around the world have visited the 'Sunshine State.' The state is known for it's beautiful beaches, coastal areas, and abundant sunshine. But did you know that Florida's various coastal areas have nicknames? There are nine of them. Those of us who live in Florida may know many of them, but I wonder if anyone knew the names of all nine 'areas?' I knew about half, mostly on the Atlantic side of the state where I grew up. Here are the names of the Florida coastlines and where they are located:
1. The First Coast - Jacksonville/St. Augustine area
2. The Space Coast -- Cape Canaveral area
3. The Treasure Coast -- Indian River, St. Lucie, Martin and Palm Beach counties
4. The Gold Coast -- Ft. Lauderdale/Miami area
5. The Paradise Coast -- Monroe County and the Florida Keys
6. The Sun Coast -- Tampa, Sarasota, Ft. Myers, Naples areas
7. The Nature Coast -- the mostly undeveloped coast north of Tampa
8. The Forgotten Coast -- in the Panhandle, mostly undeveloped land
9. The Emerald Coast -- Panama City Beach/Pensacola areas
Interestingly, every coastal county in Florida belongs to one of the above nine coastal areas, except Volusia County (Daytona Beach). Not sure why they are not 'included' in a coastal area, but I imagine the northern part of Volusia County identifies more with the First Coast, and the southern part of the county identifies more with the Space Coast.
Were you aware of all these coastal names in Florida?
10 people like this
12 responses
@BelleStarr (61047)
• United States
10 Aug 16
I was since we have a home in Ocala and when we are there they talk about the different areas especially during the weather but I am always confused by it!! lol
2 people like this
@BelleStarr (61047)
• United States
11 Aug 16
@moffittjc Yes, we are there from January through April. Maybe you can join us when we get together with some other mylotters this year. I met Paintsonslate and JeanneBaney last year. Both lovely women. We went up to Kanapaha Botanical Garden for a visit and thoroughly enjoyed it.
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
@BelleStarr That would be really nice to meet some fellow myLotters! Let me know when you're back down! I'm up for a road trip to Ocala!
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
You have a place in Ocala now? I'm right up the road in Gainesville!
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
10 Aug 16
Is that the area of Florida you visited? (the Gold Coast). What city/town were you in?
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
@miniam I figured once you said you visited the Gold Coast that you were probably somewhere around Ft. Lauderdale! I hope you had a good time while you were here!
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@miniam (9154)
• Bern, Switzerland
10 Aug 16
@moffittjc
I only know it was some hotel in fort Lauderdale,this is 10-15 years ago
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@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
11 Aug 16
@moffittjc Yes, I think most people would know about the White Cliffs. The only area of Florida I've visited is Miami and Fort Lauderdale, which I now know is the Gold Coast.
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
@jaboUK You've got to come back and visit Florida again, so you can visit the GOOD parts of the state!
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
Well, living all the way across the pond in the UK, I wouldn't expect that you would know any of our coastal nicknames! Just like if you asked me if I knew the names of any of the coastal areas of Britain! lol
By the way, the only coastal area I know of in the UK is the white cliffs of Dover, which I've actually visited before!
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@JamesHxstatic (29242)
• Eugene, Oregon
10 Aug 16
I had only heard of a few of those nicknames and did not know there were so many. I had my fifth birthday in Fort Lauderdale. We lived there for about a year. Boca Raton was an air force base during the war. I recall all the warships sailing through nearby and got stung by a jellyfish once too.
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
I never knew Boca Raton was an air force base! I do know that Manalapan, a barrier island of Boynton Beach, was where the Navy did jungle warfare training during WWII. Actually, it would make sense that there was an air force base in Boca, as my dad said when he was a kid he and his friends would find and dig up unexploded bombs all along the beach, remove their detonators, and then take the bombs home and keep them as souvenirs! lol
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
@JamesHxstatic Probably from my grandfather (his dad), who was also in the Navy. My father ended up going into the Navy as well, and ended up becoming a fighter pilot.
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@JamesHxstatic (29242)
• Eugene, Oregon
11 Aug 16
@moffittjc Where the heck did they learn to remove detonators?
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
I'm sure all the coastal areas of the US have nicknames. I'm also pretty sure that many of them (especially along the east coast of the US) are probably called the gold coast or treasure coast, since so many old merchant ships laden with precious medals and coins have shipwrecked all up and down the eastern seaboard.
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
@DianneN Ahhh...a different type of wealth than what the Florida Gold Coast is named for! lol
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@DianneN (246828)
• United States
11 Aug 16
@moffittjc Could be. The Gold Coast in CT is due to the wealth close to NYC.
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@HazySue (39264)
• Gouverneur, New York
10 Aug 16
@moffittjc No, I was not aware of the nicknames and I live in Florida.
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
Are you inland, or on the coast somewhere?
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
12 Aug 16
@HazySue Oh cool, just down the road from me! Are you a full-time resident, or a snowbird? By the way, I was just down at Silver Springs last weekend!
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@HazySue (39264)
• Gouverneur, New York
12 Aug 16
@moffittjc I am inland in the Ocala area.
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@lologirl2021 (5542)
• United States
10 Aug 16
I live in one of the coasts LOL. I am very aware of these coastal names. Love Florida and have lived here my entire life. I will be visiting the first coast next month and that will be exciting as i have never been there before just drove through it.
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
If you don't mind me asking, which coast are you on! I grew up in Boynton Beach along the Treasure Coast, but now I live inland up in Gainesville. When you head to the First Coast, will you be in the Jacksonville area, or the St. Augustine area?
@Marilynda1225 (79731)
• United States
10 Aug 16
I wasn't aware that Florida had 9 coastal names. I think the only one I've heard of is the Gold Coast
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@Marilynda1225 (79731)
• United States
11 Aug 16
@moffittjc I've only been to Orlando (Disney vacation) and when I was young my parents took us to Daytona and I remember a trip along the Tamiami Trail (don't even know if they are close to each other). I have relatives in Florida but I've never had a chance to visit
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
@Marilynda1225 Daytona is in the northeast part of the state, and the Tamiami Trail is in the southern part of the state. Actually, the Tamiami Trail starts in Miami, cuts across the Everglades to the west coast of Florida, and then travels the coast up to the Tampa area. But in general, Daytona and the Tamiami Trail aren't very close to each other! Now, on the other hand, Orlando and Daytona are pretty close to each other, maybe an hour's drive or a little longer. Straight shot on I-4 will get you from Disney to Daytona!
@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
Have you visited the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area before? I'm from Palm Beach, so I grew up on the Treasure Coast!
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@JESSY3236 (18923)
• United States
11 Aug 16
I didn't know that they have nicknames. Is there treasure on The Treasure Coast? Is there any X's marked there?
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
There has been lots of treasure found there, hence how it got it's name. The Treasure Coast area of Florida is the point where the Gulf Stream current in the Atlantic Ocean flows closest to the shoreline, and back in the days of sailing ships (who used the current to help propel and navigate them), this meant lots of shipwrecks since the current would push the ships too close to the shoreline, especially in storms.
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I enjoy learning something new. Have a blessed day@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
I've lived here in Florida my entire life, and I never knew numbers 5,6,7,& 8! So I learned something new too!
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@JohnRoberts (109857)
• Los Angeles, California
10 Aug 16
No, and I visited Florida last year. I knew the one side was called the Gulf Coast. You would think they would have a map designating all those names at the travel centers.
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
10 Aug 16
Yeah, in addition to the nine coastal "areas," we have several "sides" of Florida as well. They are the Atlantic Coast and the Gulf Coast. Many consider the Panhandle a third "section" of the state, and even though they are technically part of the Gulf coast of Florida, they like to have their own identity. What part of Florida did you visit?
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@JohnRoberts (109857)
• Los Angeles, California
10 Aug 16
@moffittjc Just about all of Florida save Orlando as I had no interest in Disney and other theme parks. Entered the state from the west with Pensacola the first major city then drove all down the Gulf Coast through Tampa-St Pete and Sarasota then cut over on the Everglades road to Miami. Used Miami as a base to see the Everglades and Key West. Then went up the coast to Jacksonville. Went into the interior to Tallahassee and a few stops.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Aug 16
@JohnRoberts Wow, it sounds like you've seen more of the state than I have, and I live here! LOL But I've been to Orlando, so I guess I've got you beat there!
@ModernDayWriter (3318)
• New Delhi, India
10 Aug 16
I am sure these names have stories too
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@moffittjc (118442)
• Gainesville, Florida
10 Aug 16
Most are self-explanatory, but others do have a story behind them. Where I grew up was called the Treasure Coast, because lots of sunken treasure has been found off the coast, from old English and Spanish merchant ships that were marooned or shipwrecked in the shallow waters of our beaches.
