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History · Layton

Layton was first counted by the census in 1970

Most of Layton was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1985. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1971 on, and the census since 1970.

1970first census
0on the National Register
2%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Layton’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Layton began

When was Layton founded?

1970

Layton first appears in the census in 1970.

First census: 100 in 19702020 census: 21056 years
Founding year: the first census.The full story ↓

What stands out about Layton’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Layton’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Layton’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewFlorida East Coast Hotel Co., Long Key …: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Layton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Layton.

Read it all →

In the late 19th century, Long Key was used as a coconut plantation. By 1910, Layton was becoming famous as a fishing destination, thanks in part to promotion by sportswriter, Zane Grey. However, the developing tourist infrastructure on Long Key, including a station on the Overseas Railroad, was largely destroyed by the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935.

After World War II, Mary V. Layton (1907-1993) and Delbert “Del” Layton (1906-1987), who ran a grocery business in Miami, bought 40 acres (160,000 m2) on Long Key and started developing the property as "Layton's Long Key Fishing Camp", which grew substantially over the succeeding years.

The City of Layton was officially incorporated on September 18, 1963.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Layton, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s3 items
Florida East Coast Hotel Co., Long Key fishing camp1912Florida East Coast Hotel Co., Long Key fishing campFlorida East Coast Hotel Co., Long Key Fishing Camp, Long Key, Fla., L. P. Schutt, Mgr1912Florida East Coast Hotel Co., Long Key Fishing Camp, …Long Key Fishing Campc. 1919Long Key Fishing Camp
1920s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today9 recent
Bonsai - panoramio (4)2013Bonsai - panoramio (4)Bonsai - panoramio (3)2013Bonsai - panoramio (3)Bonsai - panoramio (2)2013Bonsai - panoramio (2)Beautiful Gumbo Limbo Tree2013Beautiful Gumbo Limbo TreeAmazing Plant2013Amazing PlantHoliday2012HolidayLayton FL city limits sign012011Layton FL city limits sign01Layton FL MM 69-012011Layton FL MM 69-01Sunset viewed from2007Sunset viewed from
On the map

Layton on the map, 1971 to 1983

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Layton. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Layton on the 1971 USGS mapLayton on the 1983 USGS map1971Long Key sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Layton.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Florida East Coast Hotel Co., Long Key fishing camp
Retake this viewFlorida East Coast Hotel Co., Long Key fishing camp, 1912

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Layton’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Layton, census by census

0100200198020002020210

Grew from 100 people in 1970 to 210 in 2020.

6 censuses, 1970–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Layton’s Wikipedia page.

Questions about Layton’s history

What year was Layton founded?

The Layton post office opened in 1970, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (10), the Library of Congress (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.