Lee County, Florida: History
=== Protohistory and European contact (500–1799) ===
The area that is now Lee County has several archaeological sites that provide evidence of habitation by peoples of the Caloosahatchee culture (500 to 1750 AD). By the time of European contact, the area was more specifically occupied by the Calusa. 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 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 follow in the centuries that followed. As the 18th century came to an end, the Calusa who had once inhabited the area were replaced with the Seminole (see also the Spanish Indians). In particular, in 1799, an Indian agent noted the existence of a Seminole town on the "Cull-oo-saw-hat-che" or Caloosahatchee River.
After Florida became a U.S. territory in 1821, a number of American settlers moved into the Florida Territory, leading to conflict with local Native tribes. Several military and trading posts were established near the Caloosahatchee River during the Second Seminole War. Fort Myers was built in 1850 as a military fort to fend off Seminole Indians just prior to the Third Seminole War (Billy Bowleg's War). 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, Holata Micco (Chief Billy Bowlegs) and his warriors were persuaded to surrender and move west, 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 the Civil War. In 1865, in the Battle of Fort Myers, the fort was attacked by a small group of Confederates from the Cow Cavalry. 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. The fort was later disassembled and some of its wood was used to build parts of downtown Fort Myers. …