Hawthorne () is a city in Alachua County, Florida, United States, incorporated in 1881. Indigenous peoples of the Americas had been living in the area since around 100 CE; Hawthorne grew around their trading trails. Throughout its history, Hawthorne has been known for its agriculture, railroad, and rural lifestyle. Hawthorne's population was 1,478 at the 2020 census, with an area of . History People have been living in the Hawthorne area since the mid-Woodland period; a Cades Pond culture (100–600 CE) mound is near the city, and an Alachua culture (600–1700 CE) campsite was found in Hawthorne with aboriginal ceramics and lithics. Timucua-speaking natives were living in North Florida when the Spanish arrived during the 16th century. Natives in Alachua County were allied with Chief Potano, and those in Palatka were allied with Chief Utina. In 1774, William Bartram traveled between western Alachua County and the Palatka area on what he called an "old Spanish highway", an "old Indian and trading trail" which passed through the Hawthorne area. Hawthorne's history is tied to its crossroads. A road between Micanopy and Palatka via the Hawthorne area appears on an 1837 map. During the 1840s, a mill was constructed on Little Orange Creek, east of the center of present-day Hawthorne. The Pleasant Grove Baptist Church was founded at this time, and a post office opened at the mill in 1854. In 1869, the area's first school opened in a log cabin. Phosphate was discovered near Hawthorne during the late 1870s. Near the same time, the first subdivision, the Town of Hawthorn, was platted. The area had been previously known as Jamestown—named after James M. Hawthorn. A second subdivision, Waits Crossing, was platted in 1881. The subdivisions provided north–south and east–west rights-of-way, which brought rail service. Track was first laid by the Peninsula Railroad in Hawthorne in 1879 for a north–south line intended to connect Waldo and Ocala. Near the same time, track laid by the Florida Southern Railroad reached Hawthorne; its east–west line was intended to connect Palatka and Gainesville. Each railroad company had a depot in the Hawthorne area, about a half-mile apart. A Hawthorn post office was established in 1880, and its spelling was changed to Hawthorne in 1950. In 1881, 36 years after Florida became a state, the state legislature created the municipal corporation of Hawthorne. Florida Southern began selling land granted to it by the state almost a