Local Information
Pensacola is a city in Northwest Florida in Escambia County. The Pensacola metropolitan area,
comprising Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, has a population of approximately 500,000.
Pensacola is a sea port on Pensacola Bay, which connects to the Gulf of Mexico. A large United States Navy airbase, the first in the United States, is located southwest of Pensacola (near the community of Warrington) and is home to the Blue Angels flight demonstration team and the National Museum of Naval Aviation. The main campus of the University of West Florida is situated north of the city center.
Pensacola, Florida has had a rich and colorful history dating nearly 450 years, being the first settlement in the continental
United States (1559), and controlled by five countries for which it is nicknamed "The City of Five Flags" due to the five flags
that have flown over it during its history: the flags of Spain (Castile), France, Great Britain, the Confederate States of
America, and the United States. Other nicknames include "World's Whitest Beaches" (due to the white sand prevalent along beaches
in the Florida panhandle), "Cradle of Naval Aviation" (the National Museum of Naval Aviation is located at the Pensacola Naval
Air Station, home of the legendary Blue Angels), "Western Gate to the Sunshine State," "America's First Settlement," and "The
Emerald Coast."
Emerald Coast
The Emerald Coast is an area in the US state of Florida on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, roughly bounded by Pensacola,
Florida on the west and Panama City, Florida on the east. The area is known to have some of the most stunning beaches in the
world, famous for their sugar-white sands and warm, emerald-green waters.
The beaches have the whitest sand in the world where it sparkles in the sun and squeaks
when walked on. Contrary to popular belief, the sand is not bleached by the sun, but comprises Appalachian quartz that filters
down to the coast from the mountains to the north. The emerald-green color of the water is due to the sugar-white color of the
sand laying beneath the clear blue water thus providing the area's namesake feature.
Popular vacation destinations along the Emerald Coast include Pensacola Beach, Gulf Breeze, Navarre Beach, Fort Walton Beach, WaterColor, Panama City Beach, relative newcomer Destin, and Seaside. Other communities on the Emerald Coast include Perdido Key, Navarre, Sandestin, Mexico Beach, Grayton Beach, Inlet Beach, Santa Rosa Beach, and Seagrove.
