Mission and Vision:

Palm Bay Is A City Prepared For Growth With Diverse Business And Job Opportunities.

We Live In An Attractive, Beautiful City Which Is The Safest City In Brevard County, And Continuously Enjoy Recreational And Entertainment Amenities.

Palm Bay City Government Is Financially Sustainable And Provides Customer-Friendly City Services.

Palm Bay Has A Strong Sense Of Community Unity And Pride, Citizens Are Involved In Making A Better Community.

History:

Palm Bay, Florida, boasts rich history, which enhances the unique character of our city. Our very first residents were the Ais, a semi-nomadic tribe of Timucuan Indians, who settled along the Indian River Lagoon and the banks of Turkey Creek. The excellent fishing and plentiful wildlife attracted the Ais Indians. The Ais lived in this region for thousands of years, but they began to die-off quickly following the arrival of the Spanish explorers in the seventeenth century, victims of European diseases such as smallpox and measles, to which they had never been exposed. Others were enslaved or killed by the Spanish conquerors. By the mid 1600s, the Ais had completely vanished, leaving only signs of this lost, rich culture, including shell mounds, pottery, arrowheads, and other artifacts. In 1845, Florida was annexed by the U.S. and became the 27th state in the union. The first white settlers began to trickle into Brevard County around the same time. The 1850 U.S. Census recorded a population of 139 people in Brevard County, but this number would gradually increase as the Indians left and the citrus groves were established. A few of those early homesteaders selected a town called Tillman, located at the mouth of Turkey Creek, and they established the Tillman's Post Office in 1887.

The advent of the railroad in 1894 brought further development to the Town of Tillman. Visitors arriving by rail found a sleepy river village that offered a Post Office, hotel and a few stores. Around the turn of the century, the local population of Tillman totaled approximately 25 hearty souls, which changed in 1910 as the Indian River Land Company began to market this area. Approximately 105 families, many of whom were German and Slavic settlers from the mid-west, bought land in Tillman. In 1914, these early settlers built St. Joseph's Catholic Church on Miller Street, a vibrant parish now located in the heart of Palm Bay to this day. The original Miller Street Church is still standing, and, in fact, is Palm Bay's oldest structure and on the National Register of Historic Buildings.

Around 1925, the 200 residents of Tillman made a significant decision. Having concluded that the name "Tillman" didn't accurately depict the charming town, they petitioned the Postal Department in Washington, DC to change the town name to Palm Bay. The lush palm trees that lined the bay at the mouth of Turkey Creek inspired the enchanting name. With its new name, Palm Bay's population gradually swelled to about 800 families by 1950, six years later the Town of Palm Bay was incorporated under the general laws of the state. It installed its first Town Council and mayor, Harry Pollack. Under his leadership, Palm Bay continued to grow, finally incorporating as a city on January 16, 1960.