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County · code 12105

Polk CountyFlorida

Polk County is a county in Florida formed in 1861 from Brevard and Hillsborough counties, with its seat in Bartow. The county is named after James K. Polk.

  • Founded1861
  • County seatBartow
  • Named forJames K. Polk
  • Land area1,798 sq mi + 213 sq mi water
  • Population725,046 2020 Census
  • Parcels mapped426,311 checked 15 October 2026
Open the free map Click any parcel in Polk County: acreage, parcel id, address and who publishes the map. No sign-in.

Updated

OsceolaHillsboroughOrangeHighlandsLakeSumterPascoOkeechobee Bartow Census outline · seat marked

Where it is

Polk on the map of Florida

Florida has 67 counties and county equivalents, each with its own records office. Shapes with a page are links.

Alachua CountyBaker CountyBay CountyBradford CountyBrevard CountyBroward CountyCalhoun CountyCharlotte CountyCitrus CountyClay CountyCollier CountyColumbia CountyDeSoto CountyDixie CountyDuval CountyEscambia CountyFlagler CountyFranklin CountyGadsden CountyGilchrist CountyGlades CountyGulf CountyHamilton CountyHardee CountyHendry CountyHernando CountyHighlands CountyHillsborough CountyHolmes CountyIndian River CountyJackson CountyJefferson CountyLafayette CountyLake CountyLee CountyLeon CountyLevy CountyLiberty CountyMadison CountyManatee CountyMarion CountyMartin CountyMiami-Dade CountyMonroe CountyNassau CountyOkaloosa CountyOkeechobee CountyOrange CountyOsceola CountyPalm Beach CountyPasco CountyPinellas CountyPutnam CountySt. Johns CountySt. Lucie CountySanta Rosa CountySarasota CountySeminole CountySumter CountySuwannee CountyTaylor CountyUnion CountyVolusia CountyWakulla CountyWalton CountyWashington CountyPolk County Polk
Counties of Florida · Polk highlighted

History

Formed in 1861 from Brevard County and Hillsborough County

An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.

Polk County was created on February 8, 1861, from Brevard and Hillsborough counties. Over the following decades, Polk underwent multiple boundary changes, gaining and losing territory to neighboring counties including Sumter, Orange, Hernando, Lake, Pasco, and Osceola.

Boundary changes from the Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; the 5 that matter most are shown first.

  1. 1861
    Polk County created Polk created from Brevard and Hillsborough.
    from Brevardfrom Hillsborough
    · Fla. Laws 1860, 10th sess., ch. 1201/p. 192; Fla. Rpts., 120:429-431
  2. 1871
    Gained territory Polk gained from Sumter.
    from Sumter
    · Fla. Laws 1871, 4th sess., ch. 1848/p. 36
  3. 1874
    Gained territory Polk gained from Hillsborough.
    from Hillsborough
    · Fla. Laws 1874, 7th sess., ch. 1998/p. 63
  4. 1879
    Lost territory Polk lost to Orange and Sumter.
    to Orangeto Sumter
    · Fla. Laws 1879, 10th sess., ch. 3177/p. 141
  5. 1880
    Lost territory By 1880, Polk lost to Hernando.
    to Hernando
    · Rand, McNally, 1880, 254-255
Show all 12 changes (7 more)
  1. 1861
    Polk County created Polk created from Brevard and Hillsborough.
    from Brevardfrom Hillsborough
    · Fla. Laws 1860, 10th sess., ch. 1201/p. 192; Fla. Rpts., 120:429-431
  2. 1866
    Lost territory Polk lost small area to Hillsborough to accommodate local resident.
    to Hillsborough
    · Fla. Laws 1866, 14th sess., ch. 1622/p. 82
  3. 1871
    Gained territory Polk gained from Sumter.
    from Sumter
    · Fla. Laws 1871, 4th sess., ch. 1848/p. 36
  4. 1874
    Gained territory Polk gained from Hillsborough.
    from Hillsborough
    · Fla. Laws 1874, 7th sess., ch. 1998/p. 63
  5. 1879
    Lost territory Polk lost to Orange and Sumter.
    to Orangeto Sumter
    · Fla. Laws 1879, 10th sess., ch. 3177/p. 141
  6. 1880
    Lost territory By 1880, Polk lost to Hernando.
    to Hernando
    · Rand, McNally, 1880, 254-255
  7. 1883
    Gained territory Polk gained small area from Hernando.
    from Hernando
    · Fla. Laws 1883, 12th sess., ch. 3471/p. 80
  8. 1889
    Gained territory Polk gained from Sumter.
    from Sumter
    · Fla. Laws 1889, ext. sess., ch. 3932/p. 167
  9. 1891
    Gained territory Polk gained small area from Lake and gained from Pasco.
    from Lakefrom Pasco
    · Fla. Laws 1891, 3d sess., ch. 4066/p. 108
  10. 1942
    Lost territory Polk lost to Pasco.
    to Pasco
    · Fla. Stat., 1941, 1:secs. 7.22, 7.26, 7.51, 7.53
  11. 1949
    Gained territory Polk gained from Pasco.
    from Pasco
    · Fla. Laws 1949, 32d sess., gen., ch. 25440, secs. 1-2/pp. 1055-1056; Fla. Laws 1949, ext. sess., ch. 26347/p. 125
  12. 1968
    Exchanged territory Polk exchanged with Osceola.
    with Osceola
    · Fla. Laws 1967, 41st sess., gen., ch. 67-592, secs. 1-3/pp. 1728-1730

Land and parcels

What the maps cover in Polk

Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.

Official
from the office that keeps the record
Good enough
a reliable statewide or national copy
Fallback
a guide only; check the official record
Missing
nothing public found yet

People and land

Polk by the Census

Population
725,046 2020 Census count
Housing units
316,381 2020 Census count
Land area
1,798 square miles
Water area
213 square miles
People per sq mi
403 population ÷ land area

Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Rules and offices

Who to ask before you build, dig or sell

Official county pages only. We link to them; we do not copy them, because they change.

Inside a city or town, permits usually come from that city rather than the county.

Zoning and code

County government

See your own lot on these maps

Open Polk County on Parcel Chart's free map and click your parcel. Save it with a free account; the full record of your place (site map, projects, documents) is Pro, in early access.

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Questions

Common questions about Polk County

When was Polk County founded?
Polk County was founded in 1861, formed from Brevard County and Hillsborough County, and named after James K. Polk.
What is the county seat of Polk County?
The county seat of Polk County is Bartow.
Is there an online parcel map for Polk County?
Yes. Polk County publishes a parcel map of 426,311 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
Has Polk County's boundary or name changed?
Polk County was created in 1861 from Brevard County and Hillsborough County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 11 later changes, chiefly involving Pasco County, Sumter County and Hernando County.
Is my lot in a flood zone?
We do not have flood maps for Polk County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

Nearby

Counties next door