The First Coast is a region of Florida, in the _United States. It extends along the Atlantic, or eastern, coast of the state, from the Georgia border, past the southern end of Anastasia Island, to Marineland. The name First Coast is an intentional double entendre; it not only signifies that the oldest permanent European settlement (St. Augustine) lies within its boundaries, but also that it is the "first coast" of Florida that a voyager would encounter while traveling along the eastern seaboard of the United States.
The name was coined in the 1970s, when a group of representatives from local Chambers of Commerce wanted to market the region of Northeast Florida in a manner similar to other Florida regions, which had chosen such appellations as "Sun Coast", "Emerald Coast", and "Treasure Coast". Though it potentially could have faded into oblivion like many other marketing ideas, the name finally took off during the mid-1980s, and was probably permanently cemented by the opening of First Coast High School in Jacksonville in 1990. It was further solidified when the newscasts of the NBC and ABC affiliates in Jacksonville merged to become First Coast News in 1999.
It includes all of the counties of Baker, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Nassau, and St. Johns. The principal cities of Florida's First Coast include Fernandina Beach, Jacksonville, Orange Park, and St. Augustine. The terrain consists of a coastal plain with low hills along the bluffs of the St. Johns River. Trail Ridge, an ancient seashore, borders the western boundary of the First Coast and separates the region from the Okefenokee Swamp. Culturally, the region is closer to the Deep South than much of peninsular Florida. As of 2000, the region had a population of 1,500,950.
