"City of Oaks"
Incorporated on July 1, 1882,
Bartow is Polk County's second-oldest city, and serves as the county
seat. With a population of 15,000, this small city is a mixture of
the traditional and urban.
Located alongside the Peace River at the intersection of State
Road 60 and US 98, Bartow features hundreds of large brick or frame
houses lining shaded streets. Spanish moss festooning the
grandfather oaks completes the picture of a sleepy deep-south town.
Yet, nearby one can find the high-rise county courthouse,
bustling nerve -center of county and circuit courts, along with a
multi-story county administration building, and the district
headquarters of the Florida Department of Transportation. Between
them, these and other smaller government facilities employ thousands
in downtown Bartow.
Bartow is located in the center of the Bone Valley, North
America's richest deposit of phosphate. Huge strip-mines are being
reclaimed, restoring natural systems, even as miners follow the ore
veins south from the county.
Bartow is run by a Commission/ manager form of government. City
hall is located at 450 North Wilson Avenue, Bartow, FL 33830, and
can be reached by telephone at 863-534-0100. City recreational
facilities include a municipal golf course, two swimming pools, and
several recreation centers and parks.
![[ Bartow, Florida ]](bartow-head_n-a.gif)
