Deerfield Beach is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States, just south of the Palm Beach County line. As of the 2020 census, the population was 86,859, making it the tenth-largest city in Broward County. Located 41 miles north of Miami, it is a key suburb of the Miami metropolitan area, which was home to 6.14 million people in 2020.
Deerfield Beach's history dates to 1890, when a small settlement named Hillsborough was developed along the Hillsboro River. As the population grew to 20 by 1898, the settlement was now served by its own post office and the town was named Deerfield for the deer that grazed along the river.
By the early 20th century, as the town's population continued to grow, the Florida East Coast Railroad constructed tracks en route to Miami bisecting Deerfield. Deerfield's early settlers were mostly farmers who grew pineapples, tomatoes, green beans, squash and fished along the Intracoastal Waterway. Deerfield remained a largely agricultural community, but in 1939 the town's name was changed to Deerfield Beach to let tourists know it has a beach. In 1952, the original Deerfield Beach Pier was built of wood.
