We analyzed research using Saturday Night Science from Virginia Commonwealth University that mapped Klaverns by city from 1915-1940. This report analyzes the locations of historic KKK organizations to see where they were the most prevalent in Florida.
The city in Florida with the most number of Klaverns was DeLand with 3 Klaverns. The city with the most number of Klaverns per capita was Callahan with 0.0008 Klaverns. There were historically 43 Klaverns in Florida, across 34 places in Florida with at least 1 Klavern during the period of reference.
Hate groups can be hard to measure because, typically, there’s no record of where they exist. But there is data on where there were distinct Klaverns of the Ku Klux Klan in each state. These cities have historically been the most racist in Florida based on the number of KKK Klaverns.
This report does not speak to the current people who live there or the current state of the KKK in the same towns or areas.
1 Klaverns · #1 most historically racist in Florida
1 Klaverns · #2 most historically racist in Florida
2 Klaverns · #3 most historically racist in Florida
Located in
DeSoto County, Florida
Arcadia is a city and county seat of DeSoto County, Florida, United States. The population was 7,637 as of the 2010 census, with an estimated population of 7,722 in 2014. Arcadia’s Historic District is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #4 most historically racist in Florida
Located in
Clay County, Florida
Green Cove Springs is a hydrological spring and a city in Clay County, Florida, United States. The population was 5,378 at the 2000 census. As of 2010, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 6,908. It is the county seat of Clay County.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #5 most historically racist in Florida
Located in
Highlands County, Florida
Avon Park is a city in Highlands County, Florida, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 8,836, and in 2015 the estimated population was 10,086. It is the oldest city in Highlands County, and was named after Stratford-upon-Avon, England.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
3 Klaverns · #6 most historically racist in Florida
Located in
Volusia County, Florida
DeLand is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Volusia County. The city sits approximately 34 miles north of the central business district of Orlando, and approximately 23 miles west of the central business district of Daytona Beach. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 27,031. It is a part of the Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL metropolitan statistical area, which was home to 590,289 people as of the 2010 census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #7 most historically racist in Florida
Located in
Highlands County, Florida
Sebring is a city in Highlands County, Florida, United States, nicknamed “The City on the Circle”, in reference to Circle Drive, the center of the Sebring Downtown Historic District. As of the 2010 census the population was 10,491. It is the county seat of Highlands County, and is the principal city of the Sebring Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #8 most historically racist in Florida
Located in
Putnam County, Florida
Palatka is a city in Putnam County, Florida, United States. The population was 10,558 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Putnam County. Palatka is the principal city of the Palatka Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is home to 72,893 residents. The city is also home to St. Johns River State College, St. Johns River Water Management District Headquarters, and Ravine Gardens State Park. The area is well known for its local festivals, most notably the Florida Azalea Festival and the Blue Crab Festival.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #9 most historically racist in Florida
Located in
Manatee County, Florida
Palmetto is a city in Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was listed as 12,606 It is part of the Bradenton-Sarasota-Venice Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
1 Klaverns · #10 most historically racist in Florida
Located in
St. Johns County, Florida
St. Augustine is a city in the Southeastern United States, on the Atlantic coast of northeastern Florida. Founded in 1565 by Spanish explorers, it is the oldest continuously occupied European-established settlement within the borders of the continental United States.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Florida’s statewide median.
On the map
Where Florida’s historic Klaverns were
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How We Measured The Most Historically Racist Places In The Sunshine State
While there are surveys and public polls on what places might be the most racist, we didn’t want to rely on speculation and opinion. Instead, we looked at the hard numbers from where KKK organizations have existed.
Specifically, we analyzed research out of Virginia Commonwealth University that mapped the Klans in each area and gave a history of their recruitment from 1915-1940.
- Number of historic KKK Klaverns (1915-1940) per current resident
Using Saturday Night Science, we analyzed the locations of historic KKK organizations per capita using current population data.
The full plate
Cities With Historically High KKK Membership In Florida
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Population | Klaverns | Klaverns /100k |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Callahan | 1,187 | 1 | 84 |
| 2 | Cross City | 2,159 | 1 | 46 |
| 3 | Arcadia | 7,647 | 2 | 26 |
| 4 | Green Cove Springs | 6,984 | 1 | 14 |
| 5 | Avon Park | 8,874 | 1 | 11 |
| 6 | DeLand | 27,872 | 3 | 11 |
| 7 | Sebring | 10,356 | 1 | 10 |
| 8 | Palatka | 10,464 | 1 | 10 |
| 9 | Palmetto | 12,856 | 1 | 8 |
| 10 | St. Augustine | 13,440 | 1 | 7 |
| 11 | Punta Gorda | 16,984 | 1 | 6 |
| 12 | Cocoa | 17,261 | 1 | 6 |
| 13 | Plant City | 35,866 | 2 | 6 |
| 14 | Eustis | 18,920 | 1 | 5 |
| 15 | Key West | 25,187 | 1 | 4 |
| 16 | West Palm Beach | 102,283 | 3 | 3 |
| 17 | Winter Haven | 35,070 | 1 | 3 |
| 18 | Lake Worth | 35,903 | 1 | 3 |
| 19 | Fort Pierce | 42,744 | 1 | 2 |
| 20 | Titusville | 44,032 | 1 | 2 |
| 21 | Bradenton | 50,777 | 1 | 2 |
| 22 | Pensacola | 52,505 | 1 | 2 |
| 23 | Sarasota | 52,986 | 1 | 2 |
| 24 | Sanford | 55,296 | 1 | 2 |
| 25 | Port Orange | 57,218 | 1 | 2 |
| 26 | Jupiter | 57,625 | 1 | 2 |
| 27 | Fort Myers | 66,167 | 1 | 2 |
| 28 | Lakeland | 99,942 | 1 | 1 |
| 29 | Gainesville | 126,465 | 1 | 1 |
| 30 | Tampa | 348,934 | 2 | 1 |
| 31 | Miami | 416,432 | 2 | 0 |
| 32 | St. Petersburg | 248,429 | 1 | 0 |
| 33 | Orlando | 250,224 | 1 | 0 |
| 34 | Jacksonville | 837,533 | 2 | 0 |
Source: VCU Mapping the Klan, 1915-1940; current population data. 34 cities with at least one Klavern.
Summary
There You Have It – The Most Historically Racist Cities In Florida
When you’re looking at the places in Florida with the highest number of historical KKK Klaverns per capita, this is an accurate list.
Below is a chart that lists all cities in Florida with at least one KKK organization from 1915-1940.
The cities with the largest number of KKK Klaverns per capita were Callahan, Cross City, Arcadia, Green Cove Springs, Avon Park, DeLand, Sebring, Palatka, Palmetto, and St. Augustine.
