During the years that Merritt Island changed from citrus groves, sand bars, and swamps to a major launch site, the local communities reflected dramatic growth. The area had no major city like Houston; further, no one community dominated the Cape area as Huntsville did the environs of Marshall. Instead, the newcomers dispersed over a wide area.
SOURCE: NASA SP-4204 Moonport: A History of Apollo Launch Facilities and Operations (Washington, D.C.: , 1978). By Charles D. Benson and William Barnaby Faherty.