Port Orange is a city in Volusia County, Florida. The city is part of the DeltonaDaytona BeachOrmond Beach metropolitan area. Port Orange is a principal city in the Fun Coast region of the state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 62,596.
Port Orange was settled by John Milton Hawks, who brought freed African Americans to work at his sawmill after the U.S. Civil War. Esther Hawks established an integrated school in the area. The colony struggled soon after its creation and most colonists left. The area that became known as Freemanville is a legacy of the settlers who stayed in the area.
The approximate coordinates for the City of Port Orange is located at 2978N 81010W / 29.11889N 81.00278W / 29.11889; -81.00278 (81.002906).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 28.7 square miles (of which 26.6 square miles (is land and 2.0 square miles ((is water.
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild winters. According to the Kppen climate classification, the City of Port Orange has a humid subtropical climate zone (of the 2020 United States census, there were 62,596 people, 26,547 households, and 16,244 families residing in the city.
As of the 2010 United States census, there were 56,048 people, 23,447 households, and 14,977 families residing in the city.
One of the larger businesses in Port Orange is Thompson Pump and Manufacturing. The city has started courting high-tech companies as well, prompting the simulation training defense contractor, Raydon Corporation, to move its headquarters and all operations there in 2010.
Public primary and secondary education is handled by Volusia County Schools. Port Orange schools are A-rated by the state, and one of the high schools, Spruce Creek High School, has made the list of one of the top 100 high schools in the nation for several years in a row, as well as offering students the International Baccalaureate program.
Port Orange is the home of the Florida campus of Palmer College of Chiropractic. The campus in Port Orange was founded in 2002 by James E. Hether, D. C.
The Kenneth W. Parker Amphitheater hosts events such as the annual Lakeside Jazz Festival.
The main railroad line through Port Orange is the Florida East Coast Railway. Port Orange contained a separate passenger and freight station along Dunlawton Avenue which were merged together, in 1924. Passenger service ended in Port Orange in 1932, though it continued as a flag stop until the long strike of 1963. Freight service ended in 1964 when railroads shifted freight operations more within yards rather than freight stations.
Freight service continues to operate along the Florida East Coast Railway, but makes no stops within Port Orange.