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East Naples, Florida

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East Naples, Florida
Unincorporated community
East Naples is located in Florida
East Naples
East Naples
Location within the state of Florida
East Naples is located in the United States
East Naples
East Naples
East Naples (the United States)
Coordinates: 26°07′35″N 81°45′20″W / 26.12639°N 81.75556°W / 26.12639; -81.75556[1]
CountryUnited States
StateFlorida
CountyCollier
Elevation
[1]
7 ft (2.1 m)
Population
 (2023)
 • Total
(est) 19,024
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes
34112
GNIS feature ID282004[1]

East Naples is an unincorporated community and the county seat of Collier County, Florida, United States. East Naples has been the county seat since 1962, when the Collier County Courthouse was moved from Everglades (see Old Collier County Courthouse).

East Naples is part of the Naples–Marco Island Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

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Collier County, Florida, was established by the Florida Legislature in 1923, split from Lee County and named after advertising entrepreneur Barron Collier. Upon the founding of Collier County, Everglades (later Everglades City) became its county seat.[2] While Naples and its vicinity grew significantly during the next few decades, Everglades remained a small community well removed from the more populated areas.[3] This change was reflected in 1957, when Naples acquired two seats on the county commission rather than one, shifting the balance of power away from Everglades.[4] By August 1958, discussions about moving the county seat from Everglades to Naples occurred, with state representative candidate D.C. "Doc" Brown announcing that he was in favor of it.[5] An effort led by the Naples Junior Chamber of Commerce resulted in the collection of 2,400 signatures for a petition to move the county seat, enough to force an election to settle the matter.[3]

A tally of the results for the county seat election on May 19, 1959, included 811 votes for East Naples, 653 for Everglades, 596 for Naples, and 393 for Immokalee. The Miami Herald suggested that "a possible factor in the lead of East Naples over the older and larger city of Naples was that all county seat location site gift offerings are in East Naples," which included free land for a new county courthouse.[6] Other reasons why East Naples gained favor over Naples is that county officials announced that they would need at least 20 acres (8.1 ha) of land for a new courthouse and that the county jail would still be away from the most populated areas.[7] East Naples and Everglades advanced to a run-off election on June 9, with the former defeating the latter by 1,647 to 1,006 votes.[3]

In 1960, Hurricane Donna overturned or destroyed about two dozen mobile homes at one trailer park alone and unroofed and shattered windows at half of the classrooms at the newly built elementary school, which was also flooded.[8] Donna also severely damaged Everglades, including the Collier County Courthouse.[9] Consequently, the Florida Legislature also approved moving the county seat to East Naples in 1962.[10] The new county courthouse opened in East Naples on September 4, 1962, a structure which cost about $1.6 million to construct.[11]

The Collier County Courthouse was expanded in 1974 and 1990, before another one, costing approximately $39.2 million to build, opened in 2007 at the Collier County Government Center.[12] In 1978, the Collier Museum at Government Center was established, which is an educational facility focusing on the county's history.[13]

Geography

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East Naples, Florida, is in western Collier County. More specifically, it is located immediately east of Naples and near other unincorporated communities such as Golden Gate (to its northeast) and Lely (to its southeast).[14] East Naples is part of the Naples-Marco Island, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which comprises all of Collier County.[15] The community's average elevation is 7 feet (2.1 m),[1] while its zip code is 34112.[16]

Demographics

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Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
19706,152—
198012,12797.1%
199022,95189.3%

Although East Naples remains unincorporated, the United States Census Bureau (USCB) has counted the community's population and sometimes listed it as a census-designated place (CDP). The first census of East Naples occurred in 1970, which recorded a population of 6,152 people.[17] This number increased to 12,127 people in 1980 and 22,951 in 1990,[18][19] before the East Naples CDP was deleted from the census.[20]

The USCB's 2019-2023 American Community Survey (ACS) estimated that East Naples has a population of 19,024. Of those people, 9,636 are males and 9,388 are females. The median age is 56-years-old, with people 65 years of age and older accounting for 41.6% of the population. In terms of household income, the median in East Naples is $70,764. About 96.1% of residents have earned at least a high school diploma or equivalent. The racial demographics of the community are: 70% white, 14.2% mixed race, 6.9% African American, 6.2% other, 1.5% Asian, 1% Native American, and 0.2% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander.[21] The percentage of individuals with Hispanic ancestry is unknown, but 20.1% of people identified as being Mexican as of the mid-2020s, the most common ethnicity in East Naples.[22]

Notable people

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References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: East Naples, Florida
  2. ↑ "Community History". Official Collier County Centennial Website. Collier County, Florida. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Tom Morgan (June 10, 1959). "New County Seat Named". Miami Herald. p. 1-C. Retrieved May 18, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Lower Suncoast Bodies Reform Today". St. Petersburg Times. January 8, 1957. p. 13. Retrieved May 18, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Brown Favors Moving Collier County Seat". Fort Myers News-Press. August 17, 1958. p. 11-B. Retrieved May 18, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ Tom Morgan (May 20, 1959). "East Naples, Everglades Lead County Seat Ballot". Miami Herald. p. 1-C. Retrieved May 18, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Moments in Collier County's History: The Move to East Naples". Collier County Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  8. ↑ Tom Morgan (September 13, 1960). "Losses High, But Naples Says 'Thank God'". Miami Herald. p. 1-C. Retrieved May 18, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ Carol Moseman; Carl Shiver (September 2013). Old Collier County Courthouse (Report). National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. National Park Service. p. 5. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  10. ↑ "About the City". City of Everglades. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  11. ↑ Tom Morgan. "New Courthouse Opens". Miami Herald. p. 1-C. Retrieved May 18, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "From the Archives: The storied history of the Collier County Courthouse". Naples Daily News. April 13, 2025. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Collier Museum at Government Center". Visit Florida. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  14. ↑ Samer Slaiby. "Collier County Cities with Labels, 2009". University of South Florida. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  15. ↑ Thomas Brinkhoff. "Naples – Marco Island". City Population. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Collier County Zip Codes" (PDF). Collier County, Florida. May 6, 2020. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  17. ↑ "Table 10. Population of County Subdivisions: 1970 and 1960". 1970 Census of Population (PDF) (Report). Characteristics of the Population. United States Census Bureau. 1970. p. 11-11. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  18. ↑ "Table 14. Summary of General Characteristics: 1980". 1980 Census of Population (PDF) (Report). General Population Characteristics. United States Census Bureau. 1980. p. 11-9. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  19. ↑ 1990 Census of Population (Report). Selected Characteristics to Supplement STF1 Data: 1990. United States Census Bureau. October 2003. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Florida: 2000". United States Census 2000 (PDF) (Report). Population and Housing Unit Counts. United States Census Bureau. October 2003. p. III-8. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  21. ↑ "East Naples, Southwest Florida, FL demographics: population, income, and more". Point2Homes. September 2025. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
  22. ↑ "Naples, FL (East Naples)". NeighborhoodScout. Retrieved May 19, 2026.
  23. ↑ Peter Botte (March 13, 2019). "Legendary sportscaster Warner Wolf wins legal and 'plantation' fight". Fox News. Retrieved May 18, 2026.
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