Historic Shoreline Database

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) Historic Shoreline Database contains many directories of related types of information about beach changes in Florida over the past 150 or so years and continues to be updated as new surveys are processed.

One of the main focuses of the database is on mean high water (MHW) locations from field profile surveys provided by department field crews and by individual projects all along the Florida coastline. (Links on this page will open in a new window.)

Historic Shoreline Data

Note: The table below describes what is contained in the database folders and provides links to these folders. All questions related to any dataset should be directed to ORCP_GIS_Support@FloridaDEP.gov

Software, if needed, can be obtained at the following websites:

•  Shareware programs such as Winzip or 7-Zip can be used to unzip files.
•  Software that can be used to view or print AutoCAD DWG or DXF documents.
•  Viewers can convert a pdf file to html through Adobe.

More About Beaches Data

The beach profile data provided on this site is survey data collected by the Beach Survey Services (BSS) surveyors or private company land surveyors for which the data has been reviewed for quality control by one of the Beach's Programs' staff. It is noted that a history of monument control information is not available on this site at this time. A large portion of the survey monuments have been moved over time as a result of changed conditions such as erosion or building construction. This is clearly indicated in the control headings in the individual profile data files.

The reviewed version of the beach profile data is provided at the link above. A standardized horizontal and vertical reference system is employed to maintain consistency and commonality of the data for analytical purposes. This data set will generally be the version that coastal engineers and scientists performing coastal analyses use. It should be noted that there may be profile data that is not yet available in the Historic Shoreline Data set due to time lags in the review process.

All data should be collected and submitted in accordance with the department's Physical Monitoring Standards. 

Disclaimer of Data

The survey data relative to any coastal construction control line (CCCL) legal description and map of record is for information purposes only. Official information must be obtained from the record plat filed in the office of the clerk of circuit court for the appropriate county.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection shall not be held liable for any use thereof of any aerial photo maps, beach and offshore profiles, historical shoreline data, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) or other files contained herein or any computer software such as storm tide and dune erosion numerical models provided, accumulated, maintained or otherwise produced by the department.

The use of any original material forthcoming from the department in any reports or publications shall be given appropriately cited credit. This includes the citation of any pertinent department documentation or reports that may have a bearing on the use of such data.

More Information

For more understanding, the Historic Shoreline Information document provides a brief explanation of some of the Historical Shoreline Database datasets.

Additional technical information can be found on Beach Survey Services.