Before the massacre, Ocoee's Black population numbered approximately five hundred; after the massacre, however, the Black population was nearly eliminated. For more than 40 years, Ocoee remained an all-white sundown town. In 2018, the city commission issued a proclamation formally acknowledging the massacre and declaring that Ocoee is no longer a sundown town. Incorporation and modern history Ocoee was incorporated in 1922 (or 1923) and became a city in 1925. Highway construction was the impetus for Ocoee's growth in the 20th century. State Road 50 (SR 50) was constructed south of downtown Ocoee in 1959 and provided a direct east-west connection between the City and a growing Orlando. The development of what would become Florida State Road 50 made the town more accessible to housing developers. Florida's Turnpike was opened just south of downtown Ocoee in 1964. In late 1990, Ocoee was connected to Orlando by a western extension of Florida State Road 408 (the East-West Expressway) which then joined the Florida's Turnpike south of SR 50. In 2000, the completion of Florida State Road 429 (the Western Expressway) linked Ocoee with Walt Disney World to the south. Geography Ocoee is located at . According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (6.12%) is water. Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 24,391 people, 8,072 households, and 6,554 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 8,405 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 81.47% White, 6.59% African American, 0.35% Native American, 2.93% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 6.22% from other races, and 2.38% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.20% of the population. There were 8,072 households, out of which 44.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.9% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.8% were non-families. 13.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.99 and the average family size was 3.28. In the city, the population was spread out, with 29.2% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 36.2% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 7.3%