Lake County is a county in the central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 383,956. Its county seat is Tavares, and its largest city is Clermont. Lake County is included in the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Lake County was created in 1887 from portions of Sumter and Orange counties. It was named for the many lakes contained within its borders (250 named lakes and 1,735 other bodies of water). In the 1800s, the two main industries in the area were growing cotton and breeding cattle. In the latter part of the 19th century, people started to grow citrus trees. Citrus was introduced by Melton Haynes. Throughout the 1940s and 50s, citrus production increased and grew into the area's leading industry. The December 1989 United States cold wave destroyed most of the citrus groves, dealing an economic blow from which many growers could not recover. Grove owners sold massive amounts of land to developers, resulting in increasing urban sprawl. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (18.9%) is water. Sugarloaf Mountain is the highest point in peninsular Florida, at 312 feet (95 m) above sea level. Adjacent counties Volusia County – northeast Orange County – east Seminole County – east Osceola County – southeast Polk County – south Sumter County – west Marion County – northwest National protected areas Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge (part) Ocala National Forest (part) Demographics As of the 2020 United States census, there were 383,956 people, 137,446 households, and 94,332 families residing in the county. As of the census of 2010, there were 297,047 people and 130,190 households residing in the county. The population density was . There were 163,586 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 83.4% White (68.7% non-Hispanic White), 11.5% Black or African American, 0.6% Native American, 2.3% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, and 2.1% from two or more races. 16.7% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 88,413 households, out of which 23.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.90% were married couples living together, 8.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.30% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.70% had someone living