City of Wauchula Official Website

"Welcome to the city of Wauchula, southwest Florida's tranquil treasure of southern hometown charm and lifestyle. Enjoy easy days in this last bastion of beautiful old South Florida with its warm sunny blue skies, scenic panoramas and friendly folks all within easy reach of the best of everything south Florida has to offer.

Only an hour from everywhere, from cosmopolitan Tampa, the finest white sand beaches of the Gulf Coast, the magic of Orlando, to the adventure of Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades beyond, Wauchula is near and here for you.

Live, work and play in warmth of our weather's embrace and spacious freedom, where life's dream is filled with tropical colors and affordable like nowhere else. Visit Wauchula, where the Florida heartland beats strong for you."

Wauchula was named by the Florida Southern Railway when it extended south in 1886 and built a depot in the area, which still exists today. The name was derived from the Miccosoukee Indian word Wa-tu-la-ha-kee, meaning "call of the sand hill crane".

Wauchula was incorporated as a city on September 29, 1902, chartered on May 22, 1907, and the historic City Hall was built in 1926.

Wauchula, the county seat of Hardee County, boasts a population of nearly 5,000 people. The community initially grew up around Fort Hartsuff, one of the many military forts during the Seminole Wars. The town was a veritable metropolis in rural central Florida in the early settlement days.

The Florida Southern Railway named Wauchula in 1886 when it extended its route and set up a depot. The name was derived from the Miccosoukee Indian word Wa-tu-la-ha-kee, meaning "call of the sand hill crane". Banks and stores opened quickly, and like many railroad towns along the Peace River, Wauchula benefited from the phosphate boom, the endless citrus groves, and the roving cattle.

Wauchula was incorporated in 1902, and its City Hall, a Mediterranean revival treasure still standing near the train station, was built in 1926.