Fort Myers is the county seat and commercial center of Lee County in Florida, with a population of 74,000. Fort Myers is a gateway to the Southwest Florida region and a major tourist destination within Florida. The city is located 125 miles (200 km) southwest of Tampa and 137 miles (220 km) northwest of Miami. The winter homes of Thomas Edison (“Seminole Lodge”) and Henry Ford (“The Mangoes”) are a primary tourist attraction in the region. The city is named after Colonel Abraham Myers. The geographic statistical area is serviced by Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW), located southeast of the city. Fort Myers was one of the first forts built along the Caloosahatchee River as a base of operations against the Seminole Indians during the American Indian Wars. During the Seminole Wars, Fort Myers was a strategic location for its visibility and access to Atlantic waterways. During the American Civil War, Confederate blockade runners and cattle ranchers called Fort Myers home. These settlers prospered through trading with Seminole Indians and Union Soldiers.
The Fort Myers community was founded by Captain Manuel A. Gonzalez on February 21, 1866. Captain Gonzalez was familiar with the area as a result of his years of service delivering mail and supplies to the Union Army at the Fort during the Seminole Indian Wars and Civil War. When the U.S. Government abandoned the Fort following the Civil War, Gonzalez traveled by sailing vessel from Key West to found the community. Three weeks later, Joseph Vivas and his wife, Christianna Stirrup Vivas, arrived with Gonzalez’s wife, Evalina Gonzalez, and daughter, Mary Gonzalez. Gonzales had shipped supplies and carried mail during the war and settled his family near the abandoned Fort Myers to begin the town’s first trading post. Gonzalez traded tobacco, beads, and gunpowder, and sold otter, bobcat, and gator hide, to the neighboring Seminole Indians.
In 1898, Fort Myers became a nationally known winter resort destination with the building of the Royal Palm Hotel. On May 10, 1904, access to the Fort Myers area was greatly improved with the opening of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, connecting Punta Gorda to Fort Myers. This route provided Lee County both passenger and freight railroad service. In 1908, the Arcade Theater was constructed in downtown Fort Myers. It served originally as a vaudeville house, and was an auditorium that Fort Myers resident Thomas Edison sat in to view his first films, with his friends Henry Ford and Harvey Firestone. The Arcade Theatre was eventually converted into a full movie house, with a wall dividing the stage to form two screening rooms. It is now host to the Florida Repertory Theatre, a performing arts hall. In 1924, with the construction of the Edison Bridge, which was named after the city’s most famous winter resident, the city’s population steadily grew. In the decade following the bridge’s construction, the city experienced its first real estate boom. Several new residential subdivisions were built beyond Downtown, including Dean Park, Edison Park, and Seminole Park Edison Park, located across McGregor Boulevard from the Edison and Ford properties, includes a number of Fort Myers’ most stately homes. The historic development showcases a variety of architectural styles, and is known for its community activities and strong neighborhood ties. On February 11, 1931, the 84th birthday of its namesake, the Edison Bridge was opened. Edison dedicated the bridge, and was also the first to drive across it. Following the rapid growth of Fort Myers, towns and villages in the surrounding, namely North Fort Myers, Fort Myers Beach, and Cape Coral could benefit as well. In 1947, Mina Edison deeded Seminole Lodge to the City of Fort Myers in memory of her late husband for the enjoyment of the public. By 1988, the adjacent Henry Ford winter estate was purchased and opened for public tours in 1990. The combined properties today are now known as the Edison and Ford Winter Estates. Further points of interest are:
The Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium is a private, not-for-profit, environmental education organization. Set on a 105-acre (0.42 km²) site, it has a museum, three nature trails, a planetarium, butterfly and bird aviaries, a gift shop and meeting and picnic areas.
