General Info
Pasco County was established on June 2, 1887, from the southern third of Hernando County. Samuel Pasco, who had recently won a seat in the US Senate, is honored by the county’s name. Dade City served as the temporary county seat until 1889, when voters designated Dade City as the county seat permanently in a popular vote. Dade City was not in the center of the county, so residents in the western part of the county proposed either creating their own county or joining forces with Pinellas County as early as 1917. The late 1970s saw the resolution of the issue. Zephyrhills is the largest city and Dade City serves as the county seat. As per the 2020 census, there were 561,691 people living there.
