Gainesville, city, seat of Alachua County, northern Florida; incorporated as a city 1869. Health care and tourism are major industries. Its various manufactures include sporting goods, batteries, and electronic parts. The University of Florida is here. Points of interest include the Florida Museum of Natural History and the Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art. Seminole people lived here when the area was settled about 1830. The city is named for General Edmund P. Gaines, a figure of the War of 1812 and the Second Seminole War. Population 81,371 (1980); 84,770 (1990); 95,447 (2000).
