# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Tallahassee might not have become the capital of Florida if it didn't lie between the two cities originally vying for the spot. Actually, one of the most interesting facts about Tallahassee is its elevation: it sits at just over 200 feet above sea level, which is high by Florida's standards - the highest spot in Florida, Britton Hill, sits at 345 feet above sea level.

In fact, after Florida became a United States territory in 1822, Pensacola in the west of Florida's panhandle and St. Augustine, 350 airline miles to its east, were the only two cities competing to become the state capital; Tallahassee was not even considered.

After a month of wandering the northern parts of Florida and being unable to come to an agreement, the two commissioners, one from each city, who had been appointed to pick the location, decided to meet in Tallahassee. Despite the fact that the two Native American chiefs living in Tallahassee at the time made it clear to the commissioners that they were not welcome, it did not stop the two from agreeing to recommend that Tallahassee be selected.

Another of the cool facts about Tallahassee is that two of the state's 11 universities are located in Tallahassee: Florida State University with just over 40,000 students and Florida A&M University with nearly 11,000. The schools are part of Florida's university system, and surprisingly, are located only a few blocks from each other.
The school now known as FSU began operating in Tallahassee in 1857 as the West Florida Seminary. It later became known as The Florida Military and Collegiate Institute. During the Civil War, cadets from the school fought in the Battle of Natural Bridge, which fact made Tallahassee the only Confederate capital east of the Mississippi that was not captured during the war.

Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University was founded 30 years later as the state teachers college for African-American students. It began classes with 15 students, and two instructors. Florida A&M University is the only historically black university in Florida's university system.

Originally, officials picked Jacksonville for its location. Though, after the bill creating the school had passed, the state decided to move the location to Tallahassee. The school's first building was prominently located on the highest hill in Tallahassee, sitting at over 200 feet above sea level.
Should the Government Be Doing More to Promote Tourism in America?

Related Stories:

© 2017 Newsmax. All rights reserved.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Facts About Florida's Capital: How Well Do You Know Tallahassee?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Tallahassee might not have become the capital of Florida if it didn't lie between the two cities originally vying for the spot. Actually, one of the most interesting facts about Tallahassee is its elevation: it sits at just over 200 feet above sea level, which is high by Florida's standards.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Visit Tallahassee Leon County Florida Video

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Visit Tallahassee - A city for all seasons

# data[].attributes.headline
YouTube Video: "Everglades National Park 3-Minute Tour"

# data[].attributes.subject
YouTube Video: "Everglades National Park 3-Minute Tour"

# data[].attributes.headline
YouTube Video: "Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex Overview"

# data[].attributes.subject
YouTube Video: "Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex Overview"

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex Overview

# data[].attributes.headline
YouTube Video: "Welcome to St. Augustine, America's Oldest City"

# data[].attributes.subject
YouTube Video: "Welcome to St. Augustine, America's Oldest City"

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Florida Travel: Welcome to St. Augustine, America's Oldest City

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
If you're looking for history, culture and a few days of magic, come visit historic St. Augustine.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A trip to the Kennedy Space Center provides a look into the history and innovation of NASA. The Kennedy Space Center is located on the East coast of Florida near Cocoa Beach and Titusville. It is only a short trip east of Orlando, best reached by traveling the Beachline Expressway, which is also known as toll road 528. The John F. Kennedy Space Center is the world's premiere destination in terms of space travel history and exhibits. Since manned space travel is no longer a regular occurance, many kids likely do not understand the challenges the United States faced in development of the space program. The Kennedy Space Center is a great resource for teaching kids about this history. There are plenty of things to see and do to spark an interest in science for kids of any age. Guests can learn more about some of the many innovations invented in order to safely launch rockets to the moon and back.

Apollo/Saturn V Center

Apollo/Saturn V Center

See a Saturn V Rocket!

The Apollo/Saturn V Center: This is a museum within itself. Most people reach the Apollo/Saturn V Center by the tour bus, since it is one of the stopping locations for both guided bus tours offered. The centerpiece of the museum is an actual Saturn V rocket which was used in the Apollo missions. The rocket is enormous. Just walking the length of the rocket takes some time. There are plenty of small interactive displays within the museum building housing the Saturn V and plenty of photo locations. Each section of the rocket is identified by displays which also describes how the rocket works. Remember, when visiting the Apollo Center that it is a lengthy bus ride from the main Kennedy Space Center. There is one small concession stand, but the lines are usually long and the selection is limited. If you have dietary restrictions, you may want to eat before traveling on the bus. There is, however, a very good gift shop located at the Apollo Center which focuses on spacecraft launch memorabilia.

Space Shuttle Launch Experience

The Shuttle Launch Experience includes both an instruction video presentation about the space shuttle, but also a ride simulator experience. The pre-ride media is worth visiting the attractino alone. Real NASA astronauts who flew in the space shuttle, describe the shuttle launch sequence. The ride simulator is much different from Disney's Mission Space at EPCOT. The seating area is much more open and there is no gravity effect from spinning. The simulator is also probably more accurate to an actual shuttle ride than the fictional experience at Mission Space. The cost for the Shuttle Launch Ride is included with the general admission ticket. There are warnings at the ride entrance for expecting moms and those with health risks. Check the warnings before riding.

Early Space Exploration Area

In this building original items from some of the oldest space missions are available for viewing. Guests can see all of the innovations that NASA scientists had to invent at the time, just to safely launch the early rocket missions. Many of the parts in this building are the original artifacts, not replicas.

NASA Rocket Garden

The Kennedy Rocket Garden

The outdoor NASA rocket garden is a showcase of historical rockets that have been used by NASA to learn and advance technology for space travel. There are Atlas, Titan and other models of historical NASA rockets. This is also a good place for kids to see the rocket capsules up-close. Capsules from the Apollo, Gemini and Murcury era are set up for guests to climb inside for a better understanding of what it may have been like to travel into space.

The Hubble Space Telescope Exhibit

For kids who are interested in outer space, the Hubble Space Telescope exhibit is an excellent place to visit. This exhibit features some of the most stunning images captured by the Hubble Space Telescope. With its position located 350 miles above the earth, the Hubble Space Telescope is able to capture high resolution images from deep in space without the interference of the Earth's atmosphere. Kids and adults will enjoy viewing some great space images and learning more about the space telescope.

Space Shuttle Atlantis

The marquee Space Shuttle Atlantis exhibit is opening in June, 2013. This location will feature an up-close encounter with the original Atlantis space shuttle.

Information About Admission Prices and Bus Tours at the Kennedy Space Center

The admission price and packages with various bus tours is a little confusing at the museum. This is especially true when you are trying to make a decision on which package to purchase at the gates. The general admission price basically includes all of the exhibits at the main museum, near the front entrance, including the IMax theaters and Shuttle Launch Experience Ride. Also included in the general admission ticket is a round trip bus trip to the Apollo/Saturn V Center. Buses depart about every 15 minutes. The general admission bus lines before lunch can get quite long on busy days.

Bus Tours of the Kennedy Space Center

There are also other bus tours which are optional add-ons to a general admission ticket. These tours let visitors access locations within the NASA base, that most people have not seen. A bus trip to the launch pad, the launch pad control room, the Air Force space and missile museum, the NASA causeway, and more are available for purchase. Different bus tours have access to different views throughout the complex. Keep in mind that if you visit on a launch or testing day, there is severely limited access for the buses to many areas. The bus tours offer not only a great way to view the NASA complex, but the base is also one of the largest Federally protected nature areas in Florida. Visitors can see aligators, bald eagles and more on many days. The bus tours take time. If you plan to try to visit all of the museums in the main complex and take all of the bus tours, several days are needed.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Kennedy Space Center | Science with Kids.com

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Kennedy Space Center in Florida is a great place to take kids to learn about rockets, the moon, and space. Not only does the museum display the history of NASA, but it also features today's operations at the NASA space center.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Located on the western short of Matanzas Bay, Castillo de San Marcos (known simply as "The Fort" to locals) is the oldest masonry fort in the continental United States.

The famous Bridge of Lions, a double-leaf bascule bridge that spans the Intra-coastal Waterway connecting Anastasia Island to downtown, features a pair of Medici lions made of Carrara marble.

A popular tourist destination, the Lightner Museum is housed in the former health facilities of the Hotel Alcazar including the spa and Turkish bath.

The original Ripley's Believe It Or Not! museum in St. Augustine is 20,000 square feet and features 19 themed galleries and more than 300 exhibits and artifacts across three floors.

Ponce de Leon's Fountain of Youth has guest books stretching back to 1868.

The St. Augustine Distillery, which handcrafts small-batch rum, vodka and gin, is also home to Florida's first large-format bourbon currently aging in oak barrels.

The city plays backdrop to one of the world's most amazing displays of holiday lights. Each year, the historic district is lit up with nearly two million sparkling white lights.

The St. Augustine Lighthouse, built in 1874, is one of the city's most recognizable landmarks. At 165 feet tall, the lighthouse is a welcoming array of black and white stripes with red detailing.

The St. Augustine Alligator Farm and Zoological Park, founded in 1893, is the only facility in the world exhibiting living examples of all 23 currently recognized species of crocodilian.

In September 2015, the city of St. Augustine celebrated its 450th birthday over a five-day celebration of music, food, dance and libations.

St. Augustine is home to the narrowest street in the country. At just seven feet wide, Treasury Street connects the waterfront Bay Street to the Royal Spanish Treasury.

Featuring a few hundred wax sculptures of famous politicians, historical personalities, sports stars and celebrities, Potter's Wax Museum is the oldest wax museum in the United States.

The Cathedral Basilica, located downtown on Cathedral Place, is home to the first Catholic congregation in North America.

Not far from the city gate, the Oldest Wooden School House is touted as being the oldest wooden school building in the country. Though the exact date of construction is unknown, it first appears on tax records as early as 1716.

Over the years, many notable residents have called St. Augustine home including musician Ray Charles, novelist Zora Neale Hurston and human rights activist Stetson Kennedy.

Built in 1883 as home to Franklin W. Smith, an eccentric Boston millionaire, Villa Zorayda (also known as the Zorayda Castle) was inspired by the 12th century Moorish Alhambra Palace in Spain.

Renovated in 2007, the St. Augustine Amphitheater, a 4,000-seat outdoor concert venue, regularly hosts some of the biggest names in music including James Taylor, Jack Johnson and Aretha Franklin.

Anastasia State Park, located on a peninsula on the Atlantic coast of Anastasia Island, is a 1,600 acre Florida State Park housing a variety of wildlife, tidal salt marsh and marine hammock.

St. Augustine has repeatedly been named among the most haunted cities in America with ghost stories spanning some four-and-a-half centuries.

Located on San Marco Avenue, the historic Old Jail was built by Henry Flagler in 1891 and served as the St. Johns' County jail until 1953.

In the 1880s and beyond, American industrialist Henry Flagler was the driving force behind turning St. Augustine into a winter resort for the wealthy northern elite.

Founded in 1968, Flagler College is a private, four-year liberal arts college housed in the Ponce de Leon Hotel, a luxury hotel built in 1888.

Relocated from Key West in December 2010, St. Augustine Pirate & Treasure Museum on South Castillo Drive is home to one of only three remaining authentic Jolly Roger flags in the world.

St. Augustine is also referred to as "Ancient City," "Old City" and the "Nation's Oldest City."

Housed in one of Henry Flagler's old East Coast Railway buildings in downtown St. Augustine, the San Sebastian Winery has an overall production of over one million bottles.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Located on the western short of Matanzas Bay, Castillo de San Marcos (known simply as "The Fort" to locals) is the oldest masonry fort in the continental United States. The famous Bridge of Lions, a double-leaf bascule bridge that spans the Intra-coastal Waterway connecting Anastasia Island to downtown, features a pair of Medici lions made of Carrara marble.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Quick Facts

THE EVERGLADES

One out of every three Floridians (8 million people) rely on the Everglades for their water supply.

The Everglades comprise the largest subtropical wet-land ecosystem in North America.

The Everglades is a World Heritage Site and an International Biosphere Reserve.

While it is often described as a swamp or forested wet-land, the Everglades is actually a very slow-moving river.

Once spread out over 8 million acres, the Everglades ecosystem reaches from the Kissimmee River to Lake Okeechobee, where waters from the lake slowly move south toward Florida Bay.

Native Americans living in and around the river called it Pahayokee (pah-HIGH-oh-geh), the "grassy waters."

Birds were so plentiful in the Everglades that it was said they "darkened the sky" when they took flight.

America's Everglades is home to 73 threatened or endangered species.

Just months after Florida become a state in 1845, the legislature took the first steps that would lead to draining the Everglades.

Periphyton, the mossy golden-brown substance that is found floating in bodies of water throughout the Everglades, is the dominant life form in the River of Grass ecosystem.

The Everglades is the only place in the world where the American Alligator and the American Crocodile co-exist in the wild.

Mosquitoes play a vitally important link in the Everglades food chain. The larvae of grown mosquitoes provide food for a variety of native fish that are critical to the diet of wading birds.

The ubiquitous grassy plants known as sawgrass (a sedge), have serrated, razor-edged blades of grass that are so sharp, they have been known to cut through clothing.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
THE EVERGLADES One out of every three Floridians (8 million people) rely on the Everglades for their water supply. The Everglades comprise the largest subtropical wet-land ecosystem in North America. The Everglades is a World Heritage Site and an International Biosphere Reserve.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Despite what Will Smith would have you believe, there's more to Miami than just nightclubs and beaches. Read on for more about the city's rich history.

1. The city of Miami gets its name from one of the native tribes that lived in the region in the 1600 and 1700s, the Mayaimi,.

2. It officially became a city in 1896 after local businesswoman Julia Tuttle encouraged one railroad mogul to expand into the area-making Miami the only major U.S. city to be founded by a woman.

3. Across the Biscayne Bay from Miami proper is Miami Beach, which was incorporated in 1915. The land on which Miami Beach was founded wasn't much more than a big sandbar; deeper water channels were dug around it and soil was added to the surrounding area in order to create livable land.

4. Because Miami Beach is largely man-made, its beaches frequently have to be replenished with new sand (a resource some experts say is running out). A diminished shoreline means residents are more vulnerable when big storms hit the region.

5. Miami Beach is home to the world's largest collection of Art Deco architecture.

6. Approximately 14.5 million people visited Miami in 2014. Based on occupancy rates, it's the fourth-best hotel market in the country after Oahu, San Francisco, and New York [ PDF].

7. The Port of Miami is known as the Cruise Capital of the World, serving almost five million passengers annually.

8. Miami has long been a vacation destination for the famous and infamous alike. In 1929, Al Capone bought a home on the area's Palm Island against the wishes of the isle's residents. The mayor at the time, J. Newton Lummus, leapt to Capone's defense once it was revealed that the residence the crime boss purchased had been his.

9. Miami has more than 800 parks in total and is the only U.S. city surrounded by two national ones: Biscayne National Park and Everglades National Park.

10. In the 1940s, Benjamin Green-a pharmacist who served as an airman in WWII-developed one of the world's first sunscreens. Back home, he perfected his formula, adding cocoa butter and coconut oil. His recipe eventually became Coppertone.

11. The first Burger King opened in Miami in 1954. Three years later, the restaurant introduced its now-iconic burger: the Whopper, which sold for a not-so-whopping 37 cents.

12. Though it's best known for its gorgeous white sand beaches, you can find one of the country's biggest (snow) skiing clubs in Miami Beach.

13. Miami is a diver's paradise: dubbed the "Wreckreational Diving Capital of the World," its waters boast 50 different underwater wreck sites for SCUBA enthusiasts to explore.

14. The city's downtown has the largest concentration of international banks of anywhere in the country.

15. In 1996, one Citibank in Miami Beach took banking-on-the-go to a whole new level when it introduced an ATM specifically geared towards roller bladers.

16. Polar vortex got you down? Better head to Miami. Its average temperature during the winter is between 60 and 75 degrees Farenheit, making it the U.S.' warmest location during the season.

17. Based on that data, it should come as no surprise that New Yorkers are flocking to the south Florida metropolis. An average of 22,000 of them move to Miami each year. (By contrast, only a little more than 11,000 move to L.A. and around 5800 relocate to San Francisco.)

18. It has snowed exactly once in Miami's official meteorological history. Flurries were recorded on January 19, 1977. The chances of a white Christmas in Miami? "Less than one percent," according to a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

19. For decades, Miami and Tampa have been locked in a fierce battle over one of south Florida's most iconic dishes: the Cuban sandwich. While it's generally accepted (by historians, anyway) that the dish was invented in the luncheonettes that served cigar workers in Tampa's Ybor City neighborhood, Miami residents have deemed Tampa Cubans "less authentic" because of the addition of mayo and salami to the pork/Swiss/pickles/mustard combo. (Another source of controversy: To press or not to press?)

20. Miami Beach is home to local running legend Robert Kraft, better known to his acolytes as "Raven." On January 1, 1975, Kraft decided he'd try to run eight miles a day on the beach every day for a year. More than 40 years later, he's still going: Kraft hasn't missed a single day of running and, at the age of 64, is about to log his 119,000th mile. (You can learn more about running with Raven here.)

21. In 2013, Ringo Starr launched a public search for the teens he photographed during a visit to Miami. He should have expanded his investigation: it turns out the photo was actually taken in New York. "How do you mistake New York for Miami?" quipped one news anchor. "Oh-it was the '60s. Nobody remembers anything correctly."

22. One man, working all by himself- Latvian immigrant Edward Leedskalnin -built the area's iconic Coral Castle out of 1100 tons of coral rock. The project, a monument to his long lost love, Agnes, took him almost 30 years to complete.

23. The Miami International Airport provides approximately one out of four jobs in the local economy.

24. Among U.S. airports, MIA handles the most cargo and the second-highest number of international passengers.

25. Some members of the storied Country Club of Miami believe that the ghost of Honeymooners star Jackie Gleason haunts their exclusive golf facilities. Gleason was a regular at the club after he moved to Miami in the '50s, and would frequently host fellow celebrities (including Bing Crosby and Bob Hope).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Despite what Will Smith would have you believe, there's more to Miami than just nightclubs and beaches. Read on for more about the city's rich history. 1. The city of Miami gets its name from one of the native tribes that lived in the region in the 1600 and 1700s, the Mayaimi,.