The bold new city in the South, the city on the move, the gateway to Florida, the first coastline, the river city: whatever the nickname, Jacksonville is the ideal place. Jacksonville is nicknamed “The Bold City” and you'll see the term Daring everywhere. It received that nickname after a major governmental restructuring of 1968 of the city and county (Duval, which is often heard shouting DUUUVAL in the area), which ended up creating the largest urban land mass in the United States, which is still valid to this day. With so much water here, Jacksonville could easily be called the “City of Bridges”.
Jacksonville is known as the River City because of its location on the St. Johns, the longest river in Florida. This river has been crucial to the city's development, as it played an important role from Jacksonville's inception as a trading post in the 19th century to its growth as a key industrial and transportation center in the 20th century. The River City nickname is still widely used in Jacksonville today, and it appears on logos, signs and business names, such as River City Marketplace.
This enduring nickname reflects the river's continued importance to Jacksonville's identity and heritage. The construction of three military installations during World War II made Jacksonville the third largest Navy military complex in the country. It houses the Jacksonville Fire Museum and has more than 500 artifacts, including an 1806 hand pump. AT&T (formerly BellSouth) is Jacksonville's local telephone provider, and its U-Verse service offers TV, Internet and VoIP phone services to customers served via fiber to the facility or fiber to the node through a VRAD.
Between 1940 and 1980, the Jacksonville Department of Electric and Water Services had already used the phrase in promotional brochures, calling the city the Daring New City of the South. Today, although not the movie center it once was, Jacksonville still has a thriving film industry and a vibrant performing arts scene, including iconic sites such as the historic Florida Theater. Jacksonville's basic services (water, sewer and electricity) are provided by the JEA (formerly the Jacksonville Electric Authority). As a port city, Jacksonville played an important role in the Union blockade of the Confederacy and was occupied by Union troops.
four times. In February 1864, Union forces abandoned Jacksonville and faced the Confederate army at the Battle of Olustee, where they were defeated. Jacksonville is home to a major league sports team, the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). First explored by Spanish explorer Ponce de León in 1513 during his search for the Fountain of Youth (and it is believed that he found it), French explorers would eventually settle in what is now Jacksonville in 1562 as a New World settlement safe from religious persecution.
Jacksonville is home to more than a dozen museums filled with interactive exhibits, first-rate art and hours of fun. As has been typical in other metropolitan areas of the country, suburban growth has continued around Jacksonville, where large areas of land were available for development, attracting more residents, businesses and jobs to the city. Augustine was the first European settlement; the Jacksonville metropolitan area is often included in the wider First Coast. The city, home to the port of Jacksonville, one of the largest container ports on the East Coast, also has international airports, national rail lines and several highways.
In 1988, Jacksonville voters chose to eliminate toll collection and replace revenues with a ½ cent increase in local sales tax.
