Tallahassee is a city in the state of Florida, with a population of around 200,000 people, this makes Tallahassee the 7th largest city in Florida. Tallahassee is the capital of Florida and because of its location, it has a major trade and agricultural deal with the southwestern state of Georgia. Tallahassee has been the capital since 1824. When Pensacola and St. Augustine, two other cities in the northern part of Florida, could not make an agreement on which one should be the capital, they compromised by building a log cabin serving as a capitol building in the city right between them, Tallahassee. The land structure in Tallahassee is considered to be filled with many hills. Elevation on this 99 square mile piece of land goes from sea level, to a little over 200 feet. The capitol building is even on one of the highest points in the city. Two lake basins are also in the area of this city. These lakes include Lake Jackson, and Lake Lafayette. The Apalachicola National Forest has 650,000 acres of forest, making this the only national forest in the Florida Panhandle. The city of Tallahassee borders the northern part of this forest along with the two lakes.

History

Before the Europeans moved in and took over the area, the land that Tallahassee now sits on was occupied by the Native American people since even before AD 1200. The Native American civilization that inhabited this land is known as the Mississippian culture. The people of this culture are also called ‘Mound Builders’. Mound Builders were given this name for the fact that they would construct mounds of earth based on whatever purpose. Some mounds would be built for religious reasons such as burials, ceremonies, or a way of marking one’s home.

Many missions were established in the Apalachee territory in the 17th century by the Spanish Empire. This was to convert the native people to believe in their religious views of the Roman Catholics and to obtain food and labor to hold together their new found settlement. The largest mission in Tallahassee, even to this day, is the Mission San Luis de Apalachee. The name Tallahassee comes from the ancient language of the indigenous people known as Muskogean. The Muskogean language along with many others is in jeopardy of becoming extinct, one language the Apalachee language already ceases to exist. Tallahassee however in the Muskogean language translates to ‘old fields’ or ‘old town’. When the Europeans discovered Georgia and Alabama, many of the natives of the land moved elsewhere, landing in the land of Tallahassee. These are the same people that gave Tallahassee its name as well, this was in the early 19th century.