Editing Stuart, Florida (section)

==History==
In the 18th century, several Spanish galleons were shipwrecked in the [[Martin County, Florida|Martin County]] area of Florida's [[Treasure Coast]]. The multiple wrecks were reportedly the result of a hurricane, and the ships were carrying unknown quantities of gold and silver. Some of this treasure has since been recovered, and its presence resulted in the region's name. [[File:Dudley - Bessey House, Stuart, Florida 002.JPG|thumb|left|The historic [[Dudley-Bessey House]] on SW Atlanta Avenue is now a yacht brokerage office|216x216px]]In 1832, pirate [[Pedro Gilbert]], who often used a sandbar off the coast as a lure to unsuspecting prey, chased and caught the ''Mexican'', a U.S. merchant ship. Although he attempted to burn the ship and kill the crew, they survived to report the incident, ultimately resulting in the capture and execution of Gilbert and his crew. The bar from which he lured his intended booty is named "Gilbert's Bar" on nautical charts.<ref name="Flto20090513">{{cite news | first=Larry | last=Johnson | title=column:Always Learning| publisher=Florida Today | location=Melbourne, Florida | pages= 1D | date=May 13, 2009 }}</ref><ref name="1991 Survey"/>{{rp|1}}

[[File:OldMartinCountyFlaCourthouse 012.JPG|thumb|left|The [[Old Martin County Courthouse]], built in 1937, now the Courthouse Cultural Center|214x214px]]

The Treasure Coast area that became Stuart was first settled by non-Native Americans in 1870. In 1875, a [[United States Life-Saving Service|United States Lifesaving Station]] was established on [[Hutchinson Island, Florida|Hutchinson Island]], near Stuart. Today, the station is known as [[House of Refuge at Gilbert's Bar|Gilbert's Bar House of Refuge]] and is on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].

From 1893 to 1895, the area was called Potsdam. This name was chosen by Otto Stypmann, a local landowner originally 
from [[Potsdam]], Germany. Stypmann, with his brother Ernest, owned the land that would become downtown Stuart. [[Henry Flagler]]'s [[Florida East Coast Railway]] connected the area to [[Daytona Beach]] in 1892 and Miami in 1896.

Potsdam was renamed Stuart in 1895, in honor of Homer Hine (Jack) Stuart Jr., a local landowner who owned 160 acres around the railway station.<ref name="1991 Survey">{{cite report |title=Historic Properties Survey of the City of Stuart Florida |url=https://cityofstuart.us/DocumentCenter/View/1330/1991-Survey-of-Historic-Properties-PDF |access-date=January 15, 2021 |publisher=Historic Property Associates Inc. |date=April 1991 |page= |format=PDF |location=Stuart, Florida}}</ref>{{rp|7}} Rue, Luckhardt, Krueger, Crary, and Armellinis were some of the prominent settler families.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Early Pioneers |magazine=Historical Society of Martin County |url=https://hsmc-fl.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Early-Pioneers.pdf |page= |date=March 2020 |access-date=January 13, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Fontenay |first1=Blake |title=Stuart's Christian Science church has survived hardships in its first 100 years {{!}} Opinion |url=https://www.tcpalm.com/story/opinion/2022/11/07/christian-scientists-plan-celebrate-100-years-stuart-opinion/8265924001/ |access-date=November 7, 2022 |work=[[TC Palm]] |date=November 7, 2022}}</ref>

When Stuart was incorporated as a town in 1914, it was located in [[Palm Beach County, Florida|Palm Beach County]]. In 1925, Stuart was chartered as a city and named the county seat of the newly created Martin County.<ref name='smchistory'>{{cite web |url=http://www.stuartmartinchamber.org/our_areas_history.asp |title=Our Area's History |access-date=2009-11-11 |publisher=Stuary/Martin County Chamber of Commerce |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091209040823/http://www.stuartmartinchamber.org/our_areas_history.asp |archive-date=2009-12-09 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The City of Stuart formally adopted the slogan ''Sailfish Capital of the World'' in 1957, following pressure from the Stuart Chamber of Commerce,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Historical Vignettes tells the story of how Stuart became 'The Sailfish Capital of the World' |url=http://www.tcpalm.com/yournews/martin-county/historical-vignettes-tells-the-story-of-how-stuart-became-the-sailfish-capital-of-the-world-ep-38305-343445792.html |access-date=2022-08-26 |website=www.tcpalm.com |language=en}}</ref> owing to the many [[sailfish]] found in the ocean off Martin County. The slogan is still used by the city.

From 1871 to 2005, 19 hurricanes passed through Stuart, including [[Hurricane Isbell (1964)|Isbell]] (1964), [[Hurricane Frances|Frances]] (2004), [[Hurricane Jeanne|Jeanne]] (2004), and [[Hurricane Wilma|Wilma]] (2005).<ref name='hurricanecity'>{{cite web|url=http://www.hurricanecity.com/city/stuart.htm |title=Stuart,Florida's history with tropical systems |access-date=2009-11-11 |publisher=Hurricane City }}</ref>