City Town Info

Clearwater, FL


  • Overview
  • Almanac
  • People
  • Local
  • Schools
  • Comments

Clearwater, Florida

Introduction to Clearwater, Florida

First incorporated as a town in 1891, and then reincorporated as a city in 1915, Clearwater is located on the Florida's central Gulf coast in Pinellas County. It is the county seat of Pinellas county. Clearwater is thirty-five minutes west of Tampa, and thirty minutes northwest of St Petersburg.

The original inhabitants of what is now Clearwater were the Tocobagan Indian tribe. The first settlement of the area was around 1835 when the US Army built Fort Harrison as an outpost during the Seminole wars. During the civil war, Clearwater was repeatedly raided by Union gunboats after Clearwater's supplies.

Clearwater is conveniently located near two major airports: Tampa International Airport and St. Petersburg/Clearwater International Airport. It is also near several major highways.

Clearwater was a "finalist community" for the coveted National Civic League "All-America City Award" in 2004. Clearwater is home to the worldwide "spiritual headquarters" of the Church of Scientology, also known as "Flag Land Base". Clearwater was also home to the first Hooters Restaurant. One Fortune 500 company, Tech Data, is headquartered in Clearwater. Many more are headquartered in nearby Tampa and St. Petersburg.

Clearwater High School has received the "Five Star School Award" from the Florida Department of Education as a school that has shown evidence of exemplary community involvement.

Clearwater Arts and Culture

Clearwater provides easy access to all of the fun and leisure attractions of nearby Tampa and St. Petersburg. Some attractions of note in and around Clearwater include:

  • Clearwater's magnificent beaches
  • The Clearwater Fine Arts Show
  • The Clearwater Pier 60 Make A Difference Children’s Fishing Tournament
  • The Clearwater Marine Aquarium
  • The Dunedin Fine Art Center/ David L. Mason Children's Art Museum
  • The Florida Botanical Gardens
  • The Gulf Coast Museum Of Art
  • Heritage Village
  • The Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art
  • The Medieval Brass Rubbing Center and Museum
  • Moccasin Lake Nature Park
  • Sunsets at Pier 60, Pier 60, Clearwater Beach
  • The Pinewood Cultural Park

For sports fans, Clearwater is home to the Philadelphia Phillies for spring training. The Phillies play their spring exhibition games at Clearwater's Bright House Networks Field. Clearwater is also home to a Minor League Baseball (MiLB) team, the Clearwater Threshers of the Florida State League. The Threshers are a Class A Advanced affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies.

There are many other sports attractions in nearby Tampa, including:

  • The Arena Football League's (AFL) Tampa Bay Storm
  • Major League Baseball's (MLB) Tampa Bay Devil Rays
  • The National Hockey League's (NHL) Tampa Bay Lightning
  • The National Football League's (NFL) Tampa Bay Buccaneers

For college sports fans, nearby Tampa is also home to college football's Outback Bowl.

High Points

Clearwater strengths, compared to Peers (similar size places nationally) or State (other places in Florida):

CategoryTrophy
Public Transportation Use
(vs. State)
Top 9%Clearwater Public Transportation Use
Walking and Biking to Work
(vs. Peers)
Top 14%Clearwater Walking and Biking to Work

Comparative Profile of Clearwater, FL

Comparing Clearwater to similar size places nationwide (Peers) and to other places in Florida (State):

Ratings range from 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest).


The People

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
Senior Citizens107
Age of the Population107
Female Share of the Population76
Racial Diversity77
Well-Paid Single Women68
Well-Paid Single Men68
Male Share of the Population45
Children Under 5 Years Old14

Families

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
Portion of People Married33
Average Household Size13

Wealth

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
College Educated Adults57
People in Middle Class or Better56
People Above Poverty55
Median Family Income47

Commute & Sprawl

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
Walking and Biking to Work99
Working at Home98
Public Transportation Use810
Short Commute Times67

Housing

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
Seasonal and Vacation Housing108
People Living Alone109
Studio & One-Bedroom Rentals89
Affordability of Property Taxes85
Housing Recently Built75
Affordability of Rents65

Crime

CharacteristicCompared
to Peers
Compared
to State
Low Property Crime45
Low Violent Crime23

Detailed pages on related topics: Clearwater collegesClearwater travelClearwater mortgages and property.

You are visiting:
All StatesFlorida > Clearwater

Additional Details

Clearwater CollegesClearwater Colleges
Clearwater colleges and trade schools.
Clearwater Hotels & TravelClearwater Hotels & Travel
Clearwater hotels, landmarks, tourism, transportation.
Clearwater MortgageClearwater Mortgage
Clearwater property, mortgage, and real estate.

Help Disaster Victims Worldwide

career story promo - ARC A few minutes of your time could make $20 for the American Red Cross.

  • Fill out a simple survey about your full-time job and career
  • CityTownInfo will donate $20 for each properly completed survey
  • No personal contact info required
  • An easy way to help disaster victims around the world
  • Help others interested in your career
Read our rules and guidelines and get started now!

Read and Post in Our Forum

Read about and discuss Clearwater and other places in Florida

Places Similar to Clearwater

We've crunched the numbers to create PlaceMatch™, which compares thousands of cities and towns to find the places most similar to each.

Find places similar to Clearwater

Additional Resources


Large City Map

Info for Clearwater Government Officials

Are you an official in the Clearwater government or quasi-government agency such as the chamber of commerce, visitors bureau or economic development council? If so, visit our information page for government officials to see how CityTownInfo can support you.

Spread The Word

Webmasters & Bloggers: Please link to this page on Clearwater. Just copy the HTML below and paste it into your web page or blog.


Copyright © 2004-2008, Moving Traffic, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

1