A little bit of info about where you are and how it became what it is!
Many thousands of years ago, mammoths roams Florida’s marshes. Some 6,000 years ago, Florida’s earliest inhabitants were Indian tribes. In 1513 a Spanish explorer named Juan Ponce de Leon claimed La Florida, named in honor of the Easter Festival of Flowers in Spain, as Spanish territory. This was the beginning of many years of battles with the Calusa Indians who lived here, France, Great Britain, and the infamous bootleggers, smugglers and pirates who inhabited our area. In the 1800’s groups of families from the north began to settle in Florida. Commercial agriculture was established in Florida, along with cattle raising and the citrus industry. The development of industries throughout the state prompted the construction of roads and railroads. The growth of the transportation industry brought residents from northern states to Florida and thus began the very important tourist industry. By the end of World War I, land developers had discovered the gold mine of the "Sunshine State".
The economy in Florida ran into trouble during the depression and was damaged further when two severe hurricanes hit the state in 1926 and 1928. World War II spurred economic development in Florida. The state became a major training center for soldiers, sailors and aviators of the United States and its allies. This activity increased highway and airport construction, so Florida was once again ready for the stream of visitors who were seeking the warmth and beauty of our state. Florida’s highways throughout the state, along with the major international airports bring many visitors to our state and many new residents.
A little about Ft Myers:
The city of Fort Myers was built along the shores of the Caloosahatchee River as one of the first bases of operations during the Seminole Indian Wars. The city was named in honor of Colonel Abraham C. Myers, the son-in-law of the commander of Fort Brooke in Tampa.
The fort was abandoned in 1858 and reoccupied by Federal troops from 1863-1865. The Southernmost battle of the Civil War, a skirmish between Northern and Southern troops occurred across the river in 1865 and is reenacted annually at the North Fort Myers Cracker Festival. The fort itself was disassembled, and some of the wood used in construction of some of the first buildings in what would become downtown Fort Myers. No more than ten families lived in the original town when it was platted in 1876.
By 1885 Fort Myers was bursting with pride and a bulging population of 349, the second largest town on Florida’s Gulf Coast south of Cedar Key. That same year Thomas Alva Edison was cruising Florida’s west coast and stopped to visit the village.
Captivated with what he saw, Edison built his home and laboratory, Seminole Lodge, on the banks of the Caloosatchee River. He subsequently became Fort Myers’ most famous resident and a strong force in its growth and development. Edison’s Fort Myers Laboratory was originally built for research on goldenrod rubber, but many of Edison’s inventions and research materials are on display. The incandescent light bulb is acknowledged worldwide as Edison’s greatest invention. He had a deep respect for nature, regarding it as an endless source of discovery. Through his sheer determination and dauntless efforts, the beauty and majesty of the royal palms lining Riverside Avenue (now McGregor Boulevard) were imported and planted, and would become the reason for the "City of Palms" nickname. As Edison’s enchantment with Fort Myers grew, he began to spend more time at Seminole Lodge and was often joined there by his friend, Henry Ford. The two distinguished inventors would sometimes go off on a camping trip or a drive to Estero.
By 1903 Ford’s dream, building a gasoline driven automobile, had come true and he became so famous that people were asking to put money into his company. The Ford Motor Company was officially started that year with $28,000 cash, but it took the introduction of the Model-T in 1907 to make the company a financial success. By 1914 the first Ford Car Dealership was opened in Fort Myers.
Fort Myers was and is the historical and governmental hub of Lee County with a current population of over 53,000 The city sprawls out along the shoreline of the Caloosahatchee River, a unique community composed of older homes; planned communities designed with families, golfers or retirees in mind; and extensive environmental preserves including the wetlands of the Six Mile Cypress Slough Preserve. The city itself has become an kalidoscope blend of young and old, but interestingly, it boasts the youngest population in Lee county with a median age of 32 years.
Fort Myers is home to the historic winter residence of Henry Ford and Thomas Edison, whose homes are now museums where people can visit daily, enjoy the extensive gardens, and discover the amazing volume of inventions that Thomas Edison gave to us during his lifetime. Our largest cultural facility is housed in Fort Myers, and the Barbara B. Mann Theatre brings Broadway Shows and Emmy winning entertainers ‘home’ to those of us who live and visit here, while the Lee County Civic Center provides us with concerts, festivals, and a variety of trade shows.. The Lee County Sports Complex is home to the Minnesota Twins during Spring training and a variety of other sporting events through the year. There is a lot more going on in Fort Myers...check out the next few pages!
Something about the ‘beach!’:
A little further south, you’ll find Fort Myers Beach, Estero Island, a vacation mecca eight (8) miles long and at the very most...only one mile wide. With fine white sand providing plenty of fun for those in swimsuits and sandals, the beach fronts on a multitude of restaurants, hotels, and amenities industries that bring a million plus visitors to its shore each year. Favorite 'things to do' are kayaking in the back bay, shelling all along the 8 miles of beach, swimming in the warm and shallow water, building sand castles, fishing off shore on one of the many 'get away' boats available, boating in the Gulf of Mexico and the back bays, and 'gunk holing' in the canals!
Gulf of Mexico waters run from a chilly 66 degrees in January, to higher than 87 degrees in August...while Janurary temperatures range in the balmy 70s with summer ranging in the 90 + areas. The beach however, boasts one of the best on and off shore breezes in the world and as a result...even the hot days are enjoyable as long as you wear plenty of sunscreen!
All of this makes Fort Myers and the beach a choice vacation destination which in many cases ends up becoming a second home of many, and is now the preferred place to retire home for the Baby Boomer generation!
And then there's Cape Coral:
In the early 1950’s the homesteaders, loggers, cattlemen, and fishermen who lived in Southwest Florida referred to, what is now the beautiful city of Cape Coral, as "the other side of the river." But that description soon changed in 1957 when two brothers, Leonard and Jack Rosen, purchased the 113 square mile tract (7,000 acres), known as Redfish Point, for $678,000. They formed the Gulf American Corporation to develop what they promoted as "Waterfront Wonderland" to entice newcomers to the land of sunshine and waterfront living. They plotted the community and brought in the largest single shipment of earth-moving equipment in Florida development history to begin digging more than 400 miles of canals that crisscross our city. At that time Cape Coral was surrounded by marshy areas and most of the land was covered with tall pines and grazing cattle. The soil dredged from the canals was used as fill dirt for home sites to bring the level of the ground up to the required 5’6". The brothers then began their massive marketing campaign that brought many people from the Midwest and Eastern parts of the country to discover the sunshine, water, and warmth of the Gulf Coast. The Rosen brothers sold nearly all of the 350,000 residential building sites to people who lived in other states. The first homes were built in 1958. Cape Coral grew very rapidly recording 10,000 residents within the first 10 years of its existence. In 1964 the Cape Coral Bridge opened, connecting the city with Fort Myers. This made access to Cape Coral much easier and promoted its continued development and growth.
The city of Cape Coral was incorporated in 1970. Cape Coral is Lee County’s biggest and fastest growing city. Cape Coral is the second largest city in Florida in terms of landmass. Cape Coral offers a high quality of life due to its low crime rate (2nd in the state of Florida), affordable housing, excellent health services and education opportunities. Money Magazine ranked Cape Coral as one of the Best Places to Live based on such criteria as low crime, low unemployment, clean air, and local school quality and projected job growth. Utility expansion is underway in the Southwest area of the Cape and road improvements and better economic developments continue to keep up with our rapid growth. Many new schools, shopping centers and community development projects are planned. We are building a better Cape Coral every day. Although known for its affordable housing, currently new million dollar homes are being built here due to desirability, affordability and economic stability in our area. With over 131,000 permanent residents, Cape Coral continues to be one of the fastest growing areas in Florida. The supply and affordability of waterfront sites makes Cape Coral one of the most attractive communities on the Gulf Coast.
Florida Geography:
Florida is a peninsula currently covering 58,560 square miles. Its eastern boundary is the Atlantic Ocean; its western boundary is the Gulf of Mexico. Georgia and Alabama share Florida’s northern boundary. Southern Florida basks in a subtropical climate, with summer tempratures topping 90 degrees, and winter temperatures averaging 68.5 degrees. Florida has more than 30,000 lakes including Lake Okeechobee, the largest in the southern United States (700 square miles).
National surveys now consistently rank Southwest Florida among the fastest growing areas in the United States, where the most promising and growing job opportunities are in the services sector, health care, and hospitality. Why? Because tourism is BIG in FLorida! We welcome over 1.6 million people from all over the world to our coast every year.
So, welcome to our little corner of Paradise, we hope that you enjoy your time here, both work and play, and learn to love it as much as we do! Nowhere else can you find great shopping, wonderful restaurants, beautiful parks, fantastic island retreats, a variety of activities and entertainments, and a lot of national and local history...all within a very short drive, walk, or boat ride!
