"A city that cherishes its past, meets the challenges of the present as it charts its future"


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A Place to Visit: Quaint Historic Homes Beautiful Round Lake DeFuniak Historic Chautauqua Building Over 150 Buildings on National Register Unique Shops and Restaurants

Place to Live: Small Town with a Sense of "Community" Excellent Education System Low Crime Rate Progressive City Government

A Place to Invest: Friendly Business Environment Skilled Labor Supply Transportation Access and Full Utilities Industrial Park Sites

DeFuniak Springs is a beautiful city, located in the Northwest Panhandle of Florida with rolling pasture lands, deep pine forests, serene wetlands and sugar-white sand beaches, that have been ranked number one in the continental United States, all just minutes away.

In the heart of our hometown is the perfectly round Lake DeFuniak, said to be one of only two such lakes in the world.

As were many towns in this area, DeFuniak Springs was built in the late 1800s primarily because of the railroad, land development and timber interests of that time.

In 1881, a surveying party comprised of Colonel W.D. Chipley, Major W.J. VanKirk, and W.T. Wright came to the area seeking a route for the Louisville and Nashville Railroad. They planned a town and named it for Frederick DeFuniak, a prominent official of the L & N Railroad.

Among the first of these visitors was Dr. A.H. Gillet of the New York Chautauqua. Dr. Gillet
was seeking a suitable location for the Chautauqua Winter Assembly and felt that DeFuniak Springs would do nicely. The Florida Chautauqua Association was organized in August, 1884, and the first assembly was held from February 10 to March 7, 1885.

From the late 1880s until the early 1920s, DeFuniak Springs was the cultural center of the South-east.

Today, reminders of that golden era are still seen in the Victorian-era architecture around Lake DeFuniak and in the stately Chautauqua Hall of Brotherhood.

Throughout Walton County's history, farming has been the chief occupation of the majority of Walton County residents. The area's most important staple crops are corn, soybeans, peanuts, wheat, sugar cane, sweet potatoes, and forage crops.

The principal industrial development of the county is poultry raising and processing. The dairy and beef cattle business is also an established industry. Timber and related products, especially pine, are primary resources. Tourism is an important industry as well.

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