Editing Lee County, Florida (section)

==History==
===Protohistory and European contact (500–1799)===
The area that is now Lee County has several archaeological sites that show evidence of habitation by peoples belonging to the [[Caloosahatchee culture]] (500 to 1750 AD). By the time of European contact, the area was more specifically occupied by the [[Calusa]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Marquardt |first=William |title=Shell Mounds in the Southeast: Middens, Monuments, Temple Mounds, Rings, or Works? |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/25766215 |journal=American Antiquity |access-date=April 21, 2022 |volume=75 |issue=3 |page=559 |date=July 2010 |jstor=25766215 |s2cid=162295725 |doi=10.7183/0002-7316.75.3.551}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Brown |first=Robin |title=Florida's First People |publisher=Pineapple Press, Inc. |location=Sarasota, FL |date=1994 |page=159 |isbn=9781561640324}}</ref> After European contact, fishermen from Cuba and other Spanish colonies set up fishing camps, known as ''ranchos'' in Spanish, on the southern portion of the Gulf Coast of Florida. These ''ranchos'' extended from [[Charlotte Harbor (estuary)|Charlotte Harbor]] south to [[San Carlos Bay]] and the mouth of the Caloosahatchee. Likely established in the latter part of the 1600s, they were precursors to the larger European settlements that would be established in the following centuries.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Hammond |first=E.A. |title=The Spanish Fisheries of Charlotte Harbor |url=http://palmm.digital.flvc.org/islandora/object/ucf%3A25419 |journal=The Florida Historical Quarterly  |volume=51 |issue=4 |date=April 1973 |access-date=August 30, 2022}}</ref> As the 18th century came to an end, the Calusa who had once inhabited the area were replaced with the [[Seminole]]. In particular, in 1799, an Indian agent noted the existence of a Seminole town on the "Cull-oo-saw-hat-che" or Caloosahatchee River.<ref>{{cite book |last=Brown | first=Canter Jr. |title=Florida's Peace River frontier |publisher=University of Central Florida Press |location=Orlando, FL |date=1991 |page=6 |isbn=0813010373}}</ref>

===Fort established (1850s–1860s)===
After Florida became a U.S. territory in 1821, a number of settlers moved into Florida, causing conflict with the local Seminole Indians. Fort Myers was built in 1850 as a military fort to fend off Seminole Indians during the [[Seminole Wars]]. The fort was named after Col. [[Abraham C. Myers]], who was stationed in Florida for seven years and was the son-in-law of the fort's establisher and commander. In 1858, after years of elusive battle, Chief [[Billy Bowlegs]] and his warriors were persuaded to surrender and move west,<ref>Covington, James W. 1993. ''The Seminoles of Florida''. Gainesville, FL: [[University Press of Florida]]. {{ISBN|0-8130-1196-5}}.</ref> and the fort was abandoned. Billy's Creek, which flows into the Caloosahatchee River, was named after a temporary camp where Billy Bowlegs and his men awaited ships to take them west. In 1863, the fort was reoccupied by federal troops during [[Florida in the American Civil War|the Civil War]]. In 1865, in the [[Battle of Fort Myers]], the fort was attacked by a small group of Confederates. The Union's garrison, led by Captain James Doyle, successfully held the fort and the Confederate forces retreated. After the war, the fort was again deserted.<ref>{{cite web |title=02, February in Florida History |url=http://www.myfloridahistory.org/library/flahistory/february |url-status=dead |publisher=[[Florida Historical Society]] |access-date=June 18, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111014010803/http://myfloridahistory.org/library/flahistory/february |archive-date=October 14, 2011}}</ref> The fort was later disassembled and some of its wood was used to build parts of downtown Fort Myers.

===Settlement and early growth (1860s–1920s)===
During the Civil War, Fort Myers was occupied by federal troops with the intention of disrupting the Confederate cattle supply from Florida. In February 1865, it was the site of the [[Battle of Fort Myers]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Taylor |first=Paul |title=Discovering the Civil War in Florida : a reader and guide |date=2001 |publisher=Pineapple Press |location=Sarasota, FL |isbn=9781561642342 |edition=1st}}</ref> The first settlers in Fort Myers arrived in 1866. In the 1870s, Tervio Padilla, a wealthy merchant from the Canary Islands, came by way of Key West to Cayo Costa and established trade with natives and "ranchos" that extended northward to Charlotte Harbor. His ships often made port at Cayo Costa at the entrance to the harbor. Enchanted by the tropical island, he eventually decided to settle there. Padilla prospered until the outbreak of the [[Spanish–American War]], when his fleet was burned and scuttled. He then turned to another means of livelihood – fishing. When the government claimed his land, he was disinclined to set up another ranch, so moved with his wife further down the island and as before, simply homesteaded. The Padilla family is one of the first pioneer families of Lee County and many still reside within the county, mainly around the Pine Island area.

In 1882, the city experienced a significant influx of settlers. In 1885, when Fort Myers was incorporated,<ref>Grismer, K.H. (1984). ''Story of Fort Myers: The History of the Land of the Caloosahatchee and Southwest Florida'' (reprint ed.). Island Pr. p. 132</ref> its population of 349 residents made it the second-largest city only to Tampa on Florida's west coast south of Cedar Key, even larger than Clearwater and Sarasota, also growing cities at the time.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070107044709/http://www.fortmyers.org/fort-myers-history.htm The History of Fort Myers], www.fortmyers.org.</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Downtown &#124; Fort Myers, FL - Official Website |url=https://cityftmyers.com/1741/Downtown}}</ref> Lee County was formed in 1887 from [[Monroe County, Florida|Monroe County]], with Fort Myers serving as the county seat.<ref name="Florida Historical Society"/> It was named for [[Robert E. Lee]], Confederate general in the American Civil War.<ref>{{cite book |last=Gannett |first=Henry |title=The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |year=1905 |page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ/page/n183 184]}}</ref> Fort Myers first became a nationally known winter resort with the opening of the Royal Palm Hotel in 1898, built by [[New York City]] department store magnate Hugh O'Neill.<ref name="news-press.com">[http://www.news-press.com/story/life/outdoors/2016/02/13/tourist-attraction-fort-myers-hugh-oneill-royal-palm-hotel-history-williams/79871878/ "Remembering the first tourist attraction in Fort Myers"], News-Press, February 13, 2016.</ref> Fort Myers was the frequent winter home of [[Thomas Edison]], as well as [[Henry Ford]].<ref name="Colihan"/> In 1911, Fort Myers was incorporated as a city.<ref>Grismer, p. 205</ref> In 1923, [[Collier County, Florida|Collier]] and [[Hendry County, Florida|Hendry]] Counties were created by splitting these areas from Lee County. Construction of the Tamiami Trail Bridge, built across the Caloosahatchee River in 1924, sparked the city's growth. After the bridge's construction, the city experienced its first real estate boom and many subdivisions sprouted around the city.<ref name="news-press.com"/> In 1927, a property purchased by the City of Fort Myers was turned into an airport, eventually called [[Page Field]].

===Modern growth (1940s–present)===
{{expand section|date=December 2017}}
During [[World War II]], Page Field served as an advanced fighter training base and home to the several bomber groups. Following the war, a small terminal was built in the mid-1950s as the airport transitioned to commercial use.<ref>{{cite web |author=Southwest Florida Historical Society |title=The Page Story |url=https://flylcpa.com/fmystory/ |publisher=Lee County Port Authority |access-date=April 20, 2022}}</ref> Another airfield was constructed in 1942 called [[Buckingham Army Airfield]]. The base was closed down in 1945, after which the barracks served as classrooms for Edison College until 1948.<ref>{{cite web |title=History of the Buckingham Airfield |url=https://lcmcd.com/fl59-airport-area-info/history-of-the-buckingham-airfield/ |publisher=Lee County Mosquito Control District |access-date=April 20, 2022}}</ref> Following the end of World War II, the Royal Palm Hotel was closed permanently, and in 1947, the hotel on the corner of First and Fowler was torn down.<ref name="news-press.com"/>

Lee County has been the host to several [[Major League Baseball]] teams for [[spring training]] over the past several decades.

The county received a boost in 1983 when Southwest Florida Regional Airport (now known as [[Southwest Florida International Airport]]) opened.<ref name=lylcpa>{{cite web|url=http://www.flylcpa.com/uploads/pagesfiles/2001.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160615095500/http://flylcpa.com/uploads/pagesfiles/2001.pdf |title=SOUTHWEST FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (RSW) TOTAL PASSENGERS |archive-date=June 15, 2016}}</ref>

====Hurricanes====
On August 13, 2004, the county was struck by [[Hurricane Charley]], a [[Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale#Category 4|category 4]] storm, particularly on the northwestern islands of [[Captiva Island|Captiva]], [[Boca Grande, FL|Gasparilla]], and [[North Captiva]]. On September 10, 2017, Lee County was struck by [[Hurricane Irma]] as a [[Saffir–Simpson scale|category 2]] storm. On September 28, 2022, [[Hurricane Ian]] made landfall on Lee County as a [[Category 4 hurricane|category 4]] storm, causing major damage to [[Sanibel, Florida|Sanibel]], [[Pine Island (Lee County, Florida)|Pine Island]], and surrounding areas. [[Sanibel Causeway]] partially collapsed in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Andone |first=Paul P. Murphy,Rebekah Riess,Dakin |date=September 29, 2022 |title=Sanibel and Captiva islands cut off from Florida mainland after Ian's 'biblical' storm surge washes away three parts of Sanibel Causeway |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/29/us/sanibel-causeway-bridge-florida-hurricane-ian/index.html |access-date=September 29, 2022 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref> 71 deaths occurred in Lee County as of October 4.<ref name="FL 105 deaths">{{cite news |last=Seaver |first=Matthew |date=March 23, 2023 |title=Remembering the people taken by Hurricane Ian. |url=https://winknews.com/2023/03/28/remembering-the-people-taken-by-hurricane-ian/ |accessdate=March 23, 2023 |work=Wink News |publisher=McBride Family |language=English}}</ref>