From the city site.
Located on the south bank of one of the longest river names around, the Caloosahatchie and named after Col. Abraham Myers. A fort by that name was started for use during the Seminole Wars in 1850 and abandoned afterwards.
It was reoccupied by Union forces during the Civil War and abandoned at the conclusion in 1865. Settlers and their families, land speculators and Florida Crackers (name given to cowboys) moved in.
In 1885, the Town of Ft. Myers was established. It became a destination for winter folk back in the late 1800s and especially when the Royal palms Hotel was built. Henry Ford and Thomas Edison built their winter homes here.
The Tamiami Trail also caused further growth.
In the 1950s to recently, there was a huge land boom with lots of new residents and growth. Lee County (in which the town is located) and all of Southwest Florida also were affected. Of course, the recession has put a sudden halt to this growth with lots of places for sale.
In 2004, Hurricane Charley hit the area hard (folks still talk about Charley. The following year, Hurricane Wilma also struck the area.
At Least It's Warm. --DaCoot
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