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Fort Myers,through time.

7 eras · 1850–2026 · every fact sourced · compiled from the sources shown, not yet reviewed by a historian

Start in 1850
Populationfrom 1890

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Frontier Fort

1850–1865: Frontier Fort

Era 1 · 1850–1865

Frontier Fort

Troops set up camp on February 20, 1850, at the site that became the Army post of Fort Myers. The fort was used during the Third Seminole War, and in 1865 it was garrisoned by Union soldiers, who fought the Battle of Fort Myers on February 20, 1865.

Image shown for this era: Drawing of a blockhouse at the U.S. Army post of Fort Myers, Florida, used during the Third Seminole War.. 1858 · Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, 1858. Via State Archives of Florida / Florida Memory and Wikimedia Commons. · Public domain · Source

Key moments

  1. Troops establish Fort Myers

    Troops set up camp and raised an American flag at the site on February 20, 1850; General Twiggs named it Fort Myers.

    Source

    1. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

  2. Battle of Fort Myers

    Union soldiers garrisoned at the fort repelled a Confederate Cow Cavalry attack on February 20, 1865.

    Source

    1. February 20 is the most significant day in Fort Myers' history, WGCU (PBS & NPR for Southwest Florida) (accessed 2026-09-29)

Sources

  1. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
  2. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford (Fort Myers Timeline), Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
  3. February 20 is the most significant day in Fort Myers' history, WGCU (PBS & NPR for Southwest Florida) (accessed 2026-09-29)
Correct this era: Frontier Fort

Era 2 · 1866–1885

Settlers and Cattle Town

In February 1866 Manuel A. Gonzalez and his party sailed up the river to make their home in the remnants of the old fort. In the mid-1860s the first permanent settlers began homesteading, and the cattle industry dominated the local economy.

Key moments

  1. Manuel Gonzalez party settles the old fort

    Manuel A. Gonzalez, his young son, John Weatherford and Joseph Vivas sailed up the river in February 1866 to make their home in the remnants of the old fort.

    Source

    1. February 20 is the most significant day in Fort Myers' history, WGCU (PBS & NPR for Southwest Florida) (accessed 2026-09-29)

  2. Thomas Edison buys land in Fort Myers

    Thomas Edison bought property from Samuel Summerlin for $2,750 when he arrived in Fort Myers in 1885.

    Source

    1. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

  3. Fort Myers incorporated

    The City of Fort Myers was officially incorporated on August 12, 1885. (Note: some sources, including the ACHP and a Lee County timeline, give 1886; the Edison and Ford Winter Estates and UF Libraries give 1885.)

    Source

    1. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

Sources

  1. February 20 is the most significant day in Fort Myers' history, WGCU (PBS & NPR for Southwest Florida) (accessed 2026-09-29)
  2. Ingraham Expedition: Fort Myers, Florida, University of Florida George A. Smathers Libraries (accessed 2026-09-29)
  3. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
Correct this era: Settlers and Cattle Town

Era 3 · 1885–1904

Edison's Winter Town

Fort Myers was incorporated in 1885, the year Thomas Edison arrived and bought property. In 1887 Fort Myers seceded from Monroe County and named the new county Lee, and in 1898 the Royal Palm Hotel helped transform the town from frontier cattle town to tarpon fishing destination.

Key moments

  1. Lee County created

    With the county seat far away in Key West, Fort Myers seceded from Monroe County on May 13, 1887 and named the new county Lee.

    Source

    1. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

  2. Royal Palm Hotel built

    The Royal Palm Hotel was constructed, helping transform Fort Myers from a frontier cattle town into a tarpon fishing destination.

    Source

    1. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford (Fort Myers Timeline), Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

  3. Railroad arrives

    Townspeople gathered on February 20, 1904 to witness the arrival of the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, connecting Fort Myers to the rest of the country by rail.

    Source

    1. February 20 is the most significant day in Fort Myers' history, WGCU (PBS & NPR for Southwest Florida) (accessed 2026-09-29)

Sources

  1. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
  2. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford (Fort Myers Timeline), Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
  3. Ingraham Expedition: Fort Myers, Florida, University of Florida George A. Smathers Libraries (accessed 2026-09-29)
Correct this era: Edison's Winter Town

Era 4 · 1904–1931

Rails, Roads and Boom

The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad became the first rail into Fort Myers in 1904, and the completion of the Tamiami Trail in 1928 linked Tampa to Miami via Fort Myers. Real estate and construction booms ran through the early 20th century until the Great Depression hit in 1929.

Image shown for this era: Thomas Edison, John Burroughs and Henry Ford standing side by side, full-length, facing the camera at Edison's home in Fort Myers.. 1914 · Fred W. Hunt, Ft. Myers, Fla., 1914. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, LC-USZ62-131044. · Public domain · Source

Key moments

  1. McGregor Boulevard named

    Tootie McGregor paid to pave Riverside Drive, the old cattle trail to Punta Rassa, which was renamed McGregor Boulevard on July 15, 1914.

    Source

    1. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

  2. Henry Ford buys The Mangoes

    After first visiting the Edisons in 1914, Henry Ford purchased the property next door to Seminole Lodge in 1916.

    Source

    1. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

  3. Edison Bridge dedicated

    Thomas Edison cut the ribbon dedicating the new Edison Bridge, carrying the Tamiami Trail across the Caloosahatchee River; Edison died later that year.

    Source

    1. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford (Fort Myers Timeline), Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

Sources

  1. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford (Fort Myers Timeline), Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
  2. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford (Fort Myers Timeline), Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
  3. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
Correct this era: Rails, Roads and Boom

Era 5 · 1931–1960

Depression, War and the Estates Go Public

During the Depression a neoclassical post office was built with WPA funds and dedicated on December 9, 1933, and Page Field opened in 1940. In 1947 Mina Edison deeded Seminole Lodge to the City of Fort Myers, and the Edison Estate opened to the public in November 1947.

Image shown for this era: Black-and-white 1935 photograph of Billy's Creek in Fort Myers during Federal Emergency Relief Administration drainage work: a cleared channel with felled logs and stumps between stands of palms and hardwood trees. 1935 · U.S. Federal Emergency Relief Administration, 1935; State Archives of Florida (via Wikimedia Commons) · Public domain · Source

Key moments

  1. WPA-funded post office dedicated

    The neoclassical post office designed by Nat Gaillard Walker and built with WPA funds was dedicated on December 9, 1933; it is now the Sidney and Berne Davis Art Center.

    Source

    1. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

  2. Mina Edison deeds the Edison estate to the city

    Mina Edison deeded the Edison estate to the City of Fort Myers on February 18, 1947.

    Source

    1. The Edisons: A Fort Myers Connection, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

  3. Hurricane Donna

    After striking the Florida Keys on the morning of September 10, 1960, Hurricane Donna's eye ran along Florida's west coast and crossed inland north of Fort Myers.

    Source

    1. 55th Anniversary of Hurricane Donna, NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (accessed 2026-09-29)

Sources

  1. The Making of Fort Myers, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
  2. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford (Fort Myers Timeline), Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
  3. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
Correct this era: Depression, War and the Estates Go Public

Era 6 · 1960–2022

Postwar Growth

Hurricane Donna's eye crossed inland north of Fort Myers in 1960, and Edison Junior College opened in 1962. The city bought Henry Ford's former estate, The Mangoes, in 1988 and opened it to the public in 1990, while the census count rose from 22,523 in 1960 to 86,395 in 2020.

Image shown for this era: Astronaut photograph from orbit of Cape Coral and Fort Myers, with the Caloosahatchee River, the barrier islands and the Gulf of Mexico.. 1997 · NASA Johnson Space Center, Space Shuttle mission STS-94 photo STS094-720-80, July 1997. Via Wikimedia Commons. · Public domain · Source

Key moments

  1. Edison Junior College opens

    Edison Junior College, today Florida SouthWestern State College, opened in temporary quarters at the Andrew Gwynne Institute with a second center at Dunbar High School.

    Source

    1. College History, Florida SouthWestern State College (accessed 2026-09-29)

  2. Ford's Mangoes opens to the public

    The City of Fort Myers bought The Mangoes in 1988 and, after two years of restoration, opened it to the public in 1990.

    Source

    1. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)

  3. Hurricane Ian

    Hurricane Ian made landfall near Cayo Costa as a high-end Category 4 storm, and the city of Fort Myers was hit with a record 7.26-foot surge.

    Source

    1. Hurricane Ian's Path of Destruction, NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (accessed 2026-09-29)

Sources

  1. 55th Anniversary of Hurricane Donna, NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (accessed 2026-09-29)
  2. College History, Florida SouthWestern State College (accessed 2026-09-29)
  3. Thomas & Mina Edison, Henry & Clara Ford, Edison and Ford Winter Estates (accessed 2026-09-29)
  4. Fort Myers, Florida, Wikipedia (accessed 2026-09-29)
Correct this era: Postwar Growth

Era 7 · 2022–2026

Hurricane Ian and Today

Fort Myers suffered catastrophic damage from Hurricane Ian on September 28, 2022; the city was hit with a record 7.26-foot surge. The city's population was estimated to have grown to 101,581 in 2025.

Image shown for this era: View along the Edison Bridge toward Fort Myers on a clear day in May 2023, with downtown's high-rise towers rising beyond the Caloosahatchee River under a deep blue sky. 2023 · Mx. Granger, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC0 · Source

Sources

  1. Fort Myers, Florida, Wikipedia (accessed 2026-09-29)
  2. Hurricane Ian's Path of Destruction, NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (accessed 2026-09-29)
  3. Fort Myers, Florida, Wikipedia (accessed 2026-09-29)
Correct this era: Hurricane Ian and Today

Then & Now

Fort Myers, 1885 to 2026

Fort Myers incorporated · drag to compare

Stereograph card showing two near-identical views of a downtown Fort Myers main street with a bus, parked cars, pedestrians and storefront buildings with awnings.
The Arcade Theater on a brick-paved street in downtown Fort Myers's historic commercial district on a sunny morning: a green three-storey building with yellow awnings, a neon 'Arcade' marquee, palm trees and white lamp posts along the sidewalk
18852026

Then image1926 · Keystone View Company, publisher, 1926. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, LC-DIG-stereo-1s11548. · Public domain · Source

Now image2020 · Dockside living, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA · Source

Help us get it right

History is never finished.

This timeline is compiled from the public records cited on each era and event. Every quote is checked against its source automatically, and items marked Reviewed have also been checked by a person. Images are public domain or openly licensed, each with its credit. If you know something we’ve missed or got wrong, or you hold records of your own, we’d like to hear from you.

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