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AREA HISTORY

Naples

 

 

During the 1800s, U.S. survey teams exploring the southwest coast of Florida sent detailed reports to the U.S. Senate.Descriptions of the area captured the interest of General John S. Williams, a senator from Louisville, KY.Captivated by the potential, Williams recruited Walter Haldeman, wealthy, adventurous publishing magnate and owner of the Louisville Courier Journal. In 1885 the pair chartered a boat and sailed down the southwest coast of Florida. When they encountered a magnificent beach with a natural bay just beyond to the east, they knew they'd found their paradise.

By 1889, Williams and Haldeman had built homes on the beach, constructed a pier, and established a 16-room hotel. Eventually, Haldeman paid $50,000 to Williams for the Naples Development Company, effectively making him owner of the town, which included 8600 acres of land. Around 1912, land developer Ed Crayton from St. Petersburg, Florida, purchased most of the Haldeman property, initiating a new chapter in Naples history. In 1926, Naples received electric power; in 1927, rail service. In 1928 the Tamiami Trail was completed, linking Tampa, Naples and Miami. Ed Crayton worked on developing Naples until his death in 1938. Only the 1929 market crash and World War II slowed the inevitable growth.Collier CountyCollier County was one of a dozen new counties created during the dizzying Florida land boom of the 1920s. It is the state's 62nd county and the third largest in total land area.

Vacationers and residents alike are often surprised to discover that this area's rich and colorful past actually stretches back thousands of years. Humans have lived here for centuries, beginning with the first hunters and gatherers who drifted down the Florida peninsula at the close of the last Ice Age in search of bigger game and warmer winters.

Remote and inaccessible, the first permanent settlements did not take root until the 1880s with tiny pioneer communities dotted along the coast at Everglade, Naples, Marco and Chokoloskee. Further inland at Immokalee and Corkscrew, farming and ranching became the principal means of livelihood.

Modern development began in the 1920s and by the end of the decade, railroads and the Tamiami Trail had pierced the rugged wilderness to begin unlocking the area's enormous agricultural and resort potential. Florida's first commercial oil well was drilled here in 1943, and the County's pine and cypress logging industry flourished well into the 1950s.

Collier County's economy boomed along with its population shortly after World War II. In the short span of thirty years, the number of residents swelled from 6,488 to an astonishing 85,971 by 1980.

A vigorous economy and sustained prosperity from agribusiness, tourism and real estate have made Collier County one of the fastest-growing areas in the country and a pacesetter in defining Southwest Florida's sophisticated new lifestyle.

 

Fort Myers

Located on the south bank of the Caloosahatchee, Fort Myers has been home to soldiers, ranchers, cowboys, snowbirds and inventors.  Named after Col. Abraham Myers, Fort Myers was founded in 1850 as a military outpost during the Seminole Wars.  The Fort saw service again as a Union outpost during the Civil War and was officially retired from military service in 1865.  Almost immediately the abandoned Fort Myers became home to settler families, land speculators and Florida Crackers (our cowboys and cowgirls). By 1885, the Town of Fort Myers was established, the Fort Myers Press was printing and world famous inventor Thomas Alva Edison called Fort Myers his winter home. 

During this period Fort Myers became the county seat of the newly formed Lee County and tourism boomed as offshore tarpon fishing enticed sport fishermen and adventurers from around the world. Fort Myers saw amazing growth through the 1920s until the combination of a failing real estate market and crashing stock market sent Fort Myers into depression.  During this time Fort Myers was aided through federal works projects that changed the face of downtown.  The new Federal Post Office building, the Edison Bridge and the Yacht Basin all made significant improvements to the struggling downtown. It was a return to Fort Myers’ military heritage that would bring all of Southwest Florida out of depression and into prosperity. 

The establishment of Buckingham Field and Page Field during World War II brought thousands of service men and women to Lee County and gave local business a much need boost with government contracts and services for the two bases.Since the 1950’s Southwest Florida and Fort Myers have seen amazing growth and prosperity and have become premiere destinations for sun-seekers, investors and retirees.  As we move forward to the future, Fort Myers will continue to hold “post” as the center of commerce, government and entertainment for the ever-growing Southwest Florida community. For more history on the city of Fort Myers and the surrounding Southwest Florida area you can visit the Southwest Florida Museum of History.