Newberry, Florida, United States

🇺🇸 Newberry is a city located in the south-west corner of Alachua County, Florida, United States. Much of the city borders neighboring Gilchrist County, to the west. The current Mayor is Jordan Marlowe.

Developed as a mining and railroad town in the late 19th century, since the mid-20th century it has developed new commodity crops for agriculture. In 1984 Freddie Warmack was elected as its first black mayor, gaining 60% of the white vote. The city's historic district is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Since 2019, Newberry's city commission has included a National Development Officer for the right-wing John Birch Society.

History Newberry developed as a mining town after phosphate was discovered in the western part of Alachua County in the 1880s. In 1893, the Savannah, Florida, and Western Railway was extended southward from High Springs to Newberry, leading to its development as a railroad town and trading center. A post office established in March 1894 was named Newton, but changed to Newberry in August of that year.

In this period, racial violence against blacks rose in Alachua County, where lynchings took place to enforce white supremacy. A total of 21 people, 19 of them black, were lynched in the county between 1891 and 1926.

By 1896 there were fourteen mines operating nearby. Newberry had hotels, boarding houses, and saloons to accommodate the area's transient and sometimes unruly population. The demand for phosphate ended abruptly in 1914 when war was declared against Germany, the principal customer for Newberry's phosphate. This caused a loss of jobs in the area, and social tensions rose.

The community turned from phosphate production to agriculture and new commodity crops. It was particularly successful in producing watermelons. The Watermelon Festival, first held in 1946 in the year after the end of World War II, continues to be celebrated as an annual event.

Race relations have improved in the town since the late 20th century. Residents elected Freddie Warmack as its first black mayor in 1984; he gained 60% of the white vote.

In 1987 Newberry's Historic District was officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Notable places The City of Newberry is home to both Champions Park of Newberry and the Easton-Newberry Sports Complex. Champions Park of Newberry is one of the premier baseball & softball tournament complexes in the United States today. Attracting more than 30,000 visitors annually for games and tournaments, Champions Park (originally Nations Park) was completed in June 2013 and renamed in May 2014. Located in North Central Florida, Champions Park of Newberry is easily accessible and is conveniently located near Gainesville, Florida. Champions Park has 16 state-of-the-art fields that were built with the player, parent, and family in mind, ensuring that each and every person will have the baseball or softball experience of their dreams.

Easton Newberry Sports Complex, a shared-use facility that combines the Easton Foundation Archery Center with the City of Newberry multiuse Recreation Department, and was selected by the United States Olympic Committee as a Community Olympic Development Program. Easton Newberry Sports Complex is one of only 10 programs nationwide to designated by the USOC for its ability to train coaches and athletes, and provide world-class venues in the sport of archery. The Easton-Newberry Sports Complex serves as a regional archery centre for all skill levels, teaching archers the National Training System of USA Archery and giving all interested archers opportunities for advancement. With 100 acres of multipurpose facilities – including dedicated areas for archery training and events – the site currently reaches 6,200 people each year.

Gatorback Cycle Park is an off-road motorcycle park located north-east of the city.