Miami

The Tequesta tribe lived in what is now Miami before Spain claimed it. In 1566, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, Florida's first governor, claimed the area from the Tequesta for Spain. Spain ruled Florida until Spain gave it to the United States in 1821. Florida became a state in 1845. On July 28, 1896, Miami officially became a city. It was named after the Mayaimi tribe.

Miami experienced rapid growth during the Florida land boom of the 1920s. However, this land boom was affected by the 1926 Miami hurricane. Many Cubans migrated to Miami after Fidel Castro rose to power in Cuba following the 1959 Cuban Revolution, and the population rapidly increased. The majority of these Cuban immigrants now live in Little Havana.

During the 1980s, Miami was a primary location for drug trafficking from South America, mainly Colombia. This brought in millions of dollars into the city's economy, and it allowed the construction of luxury hotels, skyscrapers, nightclubs and car dealerships.[11]

Miami has a tropical monsoon climate. Summers have average temperatures of 33 °C (91 °F) during the day and 25 °C (77 °F) at night, with average monthly rainfall around 8 in (200 mm). Winters have average temperatures of 25 °C (77 °F) during the day and 16 °C (61 °F) at night, with average monthly rainfall around 2 in (51 mm).

Miami-Dade County Public Schools is the school district for public schools in Miami. There are also some private schools there. There are many colleges and universities in and around Miami. A few of these include: Florida International University, University of Miami, Miami Dade College, and Florida Atlantic University.

There are several professional sports teams that play in and around Miami, including the Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball, the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association, the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League, the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League, and Inter Miami CF of Major League Soccer.

Also, three universities in and around Miami are members of NCAA Division I, the top division of college sports in the U.S.:

• Miami Hurricanes, in the suburb of Coral Gables – Atlantic Coast Conference
• FIU Panthers, in the city of Miami – Sun Belt Conference; moved to Conference USA in July 2013
• Florida Atlantic Owls, in Boca Raton – Sun Belt Conference

The population of Miami, Florida as of 2011 is 1.3 Million, with 41.4% suffering from poverty. According to the DNA North American Studies Institute, the racial-makeup of Miami is:

• 54.75%: European.
• 23.14%: African.
• 20.39%: Mixed.
• 1.72%: Others.

**Others** includes Asians, Arabs, and among others.

Notes

1. Bahamians were farming along the Miami River before 1830. Richard Fitzpatrick established a plantation there in 1830, but abandoned it when the Second Seminole War (1835–1843) began. The U.S. Army established Fort Dallas there in 1836, but left the fort in 1841. William English reopened Fitzpatrick's plantation after the war and sold city lots, but left the area at the end of the 1840s. The Army returned to the fort in 1849–1851, and again for the Third Seminole War (1855–1858).[3][4]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Miami.

• City of Miami official site Archived 2006-08-08 at the Wayback Machine