Downtown Commercial District

In November 1841, Captain H. McKavit established a new post on the Caloosahatchee named Fort Harvie, which became the base of all Seminole War operations south of the Caloosahatchee. By March, 1842, although the war drew to a close and Fort Harvie was abandoned, tensions remained between white settlers and Seminole Indians.  In 1850 troops began reconstructing barracks, officers’ quarters, warehouses and stables, renaming it Fort Myers.  By 1856, the post consisted of some fifty-seven buildings.  Yet in 1857, President James Buchanan ordered a peaceful settlement of the conflict and subsequently, the post was again abandoned until 1863, during the Civil War.

Following the Civil War, the fort was dismantled and settlers began to filter in to the Caloosahatchee region.  The opening of the Florida Railroad from Jacksonville to Cedar Key, and steamer connections to the area helped make settlement easier, and in 1886, although arriving by boat Captain Manual A. Gonzalez arrived in Fort Myers from Key West and established a homestead.  Like Gonzalez, most settlers arrived with the intention of undertaking farming and shipping their products north or to markets such as Key West and Cuba.  The homesteaders raised truck crops at first, including cabbage, eggplant, and squash.  Others experimented with coconuts, pineapples, sugar cane, and of course, cattle and Fort Myers served as the central place for the shipment of locally raised produce, with its wharves and commercial establishments.

By the 1880’s and 1890’s, sportfishermen discovered Lee County’s plentiful supply of kingfish, bass, trout, mackerel, and tarpon.  Gradually, an industry grew around these recreational anglers, and in 1894, Harvie Heitman, later one of the most energetic developers of Fort Myers, opened a small general store which carried, among other items, a large stock of marine supplies that were sought by the sportsmen.  Fort Myers also saw the construction of hotels and guest accommodations for visitors to the town. Two years later, Heitman ran a hack line to Naples allowing tourists staying at the Naples Hotel to visit Fort Myers, and by 1900 wealthy visitors to the town began buying property and constructing elaborate estates.

In 1904, the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad extended service south from Punta Gorda to Fort Myers, which for the first time created relatively easy to travel the town.  By 1910 Fort Myers experienced another building boom, as did other parts of South Florida.  A decade earlier, Napoleon B. Broward became governor of Florida with a goal of draining the Everglades.  A comprehensive drainage law was passed which created a Board of Drainage Commissioners empowered to construct a system of canals to drain and reclaim swamp and overflowed lands, the prospect of which spurred a boom in land sales and Fort Myers became the gateway city to the everglades.  Hopeful purchasers streamed into Fort Myers, and wood buildings in downtown disappeared, giving way to new masonry brick buildings of elaborate designs and details, including the Bradford Hotel, Patio de Leon, the First National Bank building, and the Bank of Fort Myers building.  The small town had developed a reputation as the growing hub of Southwest Florida, and a resort destination for those travelling from the north.  However, by 1914 the burst ended as people who bought land in the Everglades became disenchanted by the mosquitoes and realities of draining submerged lands.

Following World War I, the 1920’s brought the “boom” back to Fort Myers.  Optimism was high and in 1925, voters approved bond issues totaling $3,500,000 breaking the previous record of $445,000 approved in 1923.  Fort Myers’ first skyscraper was a seven-story addition to the Franklin Arms Hotel (an outgrowth of the old Hill House) in February 1924.  The 1920’s also saw the construction of such buildings as the Kress building, the Dean Hotel, the Post Office Arcade, and the Iberia Bank building.

However, by mid – 1925, there were indications of the end of the boom era and the Florida East Coast Railroad announced an embargo on shipments except for fuel, petroleum, livestock, and perishable materials.  A massive hurricane struck the east coast of Florida in 1926, and on September 16, 1928, a second hurricane struck Palm Beach and moved inland.  As a result of economic problems further exacerbated by these storms, Florida’s economy sagged, and by the time the stock market crashed in 1929, Florida was already deep in the throes of its own recession.

In response to the steadily worsening economy, the new Roosevelt Administration implemented numerous new programs known as the New Deal.  Several important projects were completed in Fort Myers during the New Deal Era including; a new concrete bridge named the Edison Bridge which replaced the wooden bridge constructed in 1924, a new post office on First Street which was completed on October 30, 1933 (Whitehurst Federal Building), and the Fort Myers Waterfront Park and Yacht Basin was completed in 1939.  Other projects that were aided by the WPA included a new water plant, the Lee County airport (Page Field), for which three concrete runways were completed in 1940, and Lee Memorial Hospital, which was completed as a WPA project in 1943.

Downtown remained the central hub of government, commerce, and social activities within Southwest Florida until the suburbanization movement of the 1960’s and 1970’s took place.  Like many historic downtowns, Fort Myers was drastically impacted by the construction of the shopping malls, beginning in the 1960’s, which provided an opportunity for people to shop and dine within air conditioning and away from the natural elements.  Yet, not unlike many downtowns, the commitment to bring the historic area back to the center of local life, a movement began in the late 1980’s to begin revitalization and redevelopment efforts.  Since then downtown has experienced a true renaissance of urban life.  The Historic Preservation Program, the Fort Myers Redevelopment Agency, the achievement of many recognized designations, and the true commitment, support, and dedication of property and business owners, and residents of Fort Myers has proven successful, and downtown is once again showing its’ success as a destination place!