Daytona Beach, FL

Big Fun Facts

1. The Daytona Beach area consists of seven cities and towns including Ormond Beach, Daytona Beach, Daytona Beach Shores, Ponce Inlet, Port Orange, South Daytona and Holly Hill.
   
2. While Daytona Beach is the largest city in the area, it is still a relatively small town with a population of 65,000.
   
3. Ormond Beach became known as the "Birthplace of Speed" because of a series of automotive land speed records set there in the early 1900s.
   
4. John D. Rockefeller died at the age of 97 at his winter home The Casements, which is located in Ormond Beach. The Casements offers free tours of its Rockefeller period rooms and serves as a community cultural center.
   
5. The tallest lighthouse in Florida is located at the southernmost tip of the Daytona Beach area in the town of Ponce Inlet.
   
6. The National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) was founded at the Streamline Hotel along Daytona Beach's Highway A1A in 1947.
   
7. Migrating right whales can be seen from the shores of the Daytona Beach area during the winter months.
   
8. Brownie was the "town dog" of Daytona Beach in the 1940s. His grave, marked with a dog-shaped topiary tree, is located in Riverfront Park at the corner of Beach Street and Orange Avenue.
   
9. The headquarters for the Ladies Professional Golf Association is located in Daytona Beach.
   
10. Jackie Robinson played in Major League Baseball's first racially integrated spring training game in 1946 at the now named Jackie Robinson Ballpark in Daytona Beach. Robinson played for the Montreal Royals.