Lee County is located in Southwest Florida on the Gulf Coast. As of the 2020 census, the population was 760,822. The county seat is Fort Myers (with a population of 86,395 as of the 2020 census), and the largest city is Cape Coral with an estimated 2020 population of 194,016. The county comprises the Cape Coral–Fort Myers, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area. Lee County was created in 1887 from

Monroe County Monroe County may refer to seventeen counties in the United States, all named for James Monroe: * Monroe County, Alabama *Monroe County, Arkansas * Monroe County, Florida * Monroe County, Georgia *Monroe County, Illinois *Monroe County, Indian ...

. Fort Myers is the county seat and a center of tourism in Southwest Florida. It is about south of

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough County ...

at the meeting point of the Gulf of Mexico and the Caloosahatchee River.Jane Colihan
"Spring Break", ''American Heritage'', February/March 2006 Lee County is the home for spring training of the Boston Red Sox and

Minnesota Twins The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities area w ...

MLB teams.

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 AD to 1750 AD). By the time of European contact, the area was more specifically occupied by the

Calusa The Calusa ( ) were a Native American people of Florida's southwest coast. Calusa society developed from that of archaic peoples of the Everglades region. Previous indigenous cultures had lived in the area for thousands of years. At the time of ...

. After European contact, fishermen from Cuba and other Spanish colonies set up fishing camps, known as "ranchos", on the southern portion of the Gulf Coast of Florida. These ranchos extended from

Charlotte Harbor (estuary) Charlotte Harbor Estuary, the second largest bay in Florida, is located on the Gulf of Mexico coast of west Florida with two thirds lying in Charlotte County, Florida and one in Lee County. The harbor's mouth is located behind Gasparilla Island ...

down to

San Carlos Bay San Carlos Bay is a bay located southwest of Fort Myers, Florida, Fort Myers, Florida, at the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River. It connects to Pine Island Sound to the west and to Matlacha Pass National Wildlife Refuge, Matlacha Pass to the north. ...

and the mouth of the Caloosahatchee. These ranchos, likely established in the latter parts of the 1600's, were precursors to the larger European settlements that would be established in the following centuries. 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.

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 Abraham Myers (also Abram Myers; 14 May 181120 June 1889) was a military officer in the United States and Confederate States Armies. Personal life Abraham Charles Myers (also Abram) was born in Georgetown, South Carolina, on 14 May 1811. My ...

, 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, 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. 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.

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. 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, 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. Lee County was created in 1887 from

, with Fort Myers serving as the county seat. It was named for

Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, towards the end of which he was appointed the overall commander of the Confederate States Army. He led the Army of Nort ...

, Confederate general in the American Civil War. 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."Remembering the first tourist attraction in Fort Myers"
News-Press, February 13, 2016. Fort Myers was the frequent winter home of Thomas Edison, as well as Henry Ford. In 1911, Fort Myers was incorporated as a city. In 1923, Collier and 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. In 1927, a property purchased by the City of Fort Myers was turned into an airport eventually called Page Field.

Modern growth (1940s–present)

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. Another airfield was constructed in 1942 called

Buckingham Army Airfield Buckingham Army Airfield is an inactive United States Army Air Forces base, approximately 10 miles east of Fort Myers, Florida. It was active during World War II as an Army Air Forces Training Command airfield. It was closed on 30 Septemb ...

. The base was closed down in 1945, after which the barracks served as classrooms for Edison College until 1948. 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. Lee County has been the host to several Major League Baseball teams for

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for Schedule (workplace), roster and position spo ...

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.

Hurricanes

On August 13, 2004, the county was struck by

Hurricane Charley Hurricane Charley was the first of four separate hurricanes to impact or strike Florida during 2004, along with Hurricane Frances, Frances, Hurricane Ivan, Ivan and Hurricane Jeanne, Jeanne, as well as one of the strongest hurricanes ever to ...

, a category 4 storm, particularly on the northwestern islands of Captiva, Gasparilla, and North Captiva. On September 10, 2017, Lee County was struck by Hurricane Irma as a Category 2 storm. On September 28, 2022,

Hurricane Ian Hurricane Ian was a large and destructive Category 4 Atlantic hurricane that was the deadliest hurricane to strike the state of Florida since the 1935 Labor Day hurricane. Ian caused widespread damage across western Cuba and the southeast Unit ...

made landfall on Lee County as a Category 4 storm, causing major damage to

Sanibel Sanibel is an island and city in Lee County, Florida, United States. The population was 6,382 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The island, also known as ...

, Pine Island, and surrounding areas.

Sanibel Causeway The Sanibel Causeway is a causeway in Southwest Florida that spans San Carlos Bay, connecting Sanibel Island with the Florida mainland in Punta Rassa, Florida, Punta Rassa. The causeway consists of three separate two-lane bridge spans, and two- ...

partially collapsed in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian. 55 deaths occurred in Lee County as of October 4.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (35.3%) is water. Rivers and streams include the Caloosahatchee River, the Imperial River, the Estero River, Hendry Creek, and Orange River. Lee County is on the southwest coast of Florida. It is about south of

, west of Fort Lauderdale via Interstate 75, and roughly west-northwest of Miami via

U.S. Highway 41 U.S. Route 41, also U.S. Highway 41 (US 41), is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs from Miami, Florida, to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Until 1949, the part in southern Florida, from Naples to Mi ...

Adjacent counties

* Charlotte County (north) * Glades County (northeast) * Collier County (southeast) *

Hendry County Hendry County is a county in the Florida Heartland region of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,619, down from 42,022 at the 2010 census. Its county seat is LaBelle. Hendry County comprises the Clewiston, ...

(east)

National protected areas

* Caloosahatchee National Wildlife Refuge * J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge * Matlacha Pass National Wildlife Refuge *

Pine Island National Wildlife Refuge The Pine Island National Wildlife Refuge is part of the United States National Wildlife Refuge System, located on the southwest coast of Florida south of Charlotte Harbor, north of Sanibel Island in Pine Island Sound Pine Island Sound is lo ...

Islands

* Big Hickory Island * Captiva Island * Cayo Costa ( Cayo Costa State Park) * Cabbage Key *

Estero Island Estero Island is an island located in Lee County, Florida, on the Gulf coast of Southwest Florida. It is bordered by San Carlos Island to the north and Big Carlos Pass to the south. The Matanzas Pass Bridge is on the northern end of the island ...

(Town of Fort Myers Beach) * Gasparilla Island (community of Boca Grande) * Little Hickory Island (Beaches of

Bonita Springs (beautiful), eng, beautiful springs , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Bonita_Beach.JPG , imagesize = 250x200px , image_caption = Bonita Beach , image_flag ...

) * Lovers Key / Carl E. Johnson State Park * Matlacha Island Matlacha, Florida *

Mound Key Archaeological State Park Mound Key Archaeological State Park is a Florida State Park, located in Estero Bay, near the mouth of the Estero River. One hundred and thirteen of the island's one hundred and twenty-five acres are managed by the park system. It is a complex of ...

* North Captiva Island * Pine Island * San Carlos Island (Town of Fort Myers Beach) * Sanibel Island (Town of

) * Useppa Island

Climate

Lee County has a year-round warm, monsoon-influenced climate that is close to the boundary between tropical and subtropical climates ( in the coldest month), thus is either classified as a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

( Köppen ''Cfa''), which is the classification used by

NOAA The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditio ...

, or a tropical savanna climate (Köppen ''Aw''). Lee County has short, warm winters, and long, hot, humid summers, with most of the year's rainfall occurring from June to September. The temperature rarely rises to or lowers to the freezing mark. At 89, Lee County leads the nation in the number of days annually in which a thunderstorm is close enough for thunder to be heard. The monthly daily average temperature ranges from in January to in August, with the annual mean being . Records range from on December 29, 1894 up to on June 16–17, 1981.

Demographics

2020 Census

As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, there were 760,822 people, 288,916 households, and 187,877 families residing in the county. 4.6% of that population was under the age of 5 years old, 17.3% was under 18 years old, and 29.2% was 65 years or older. 51.0% was female. The median household income was $59,608 with a per capita income of $34,818. 10.5% of population below the poverty threshold. The median value of owner-occupied housing-units between 2016-2020 was $235,300 and the median gross rent was $1,225. 94.2% of the households had a computer and 87.2% of households had a broadband internet subscription. 89.3% of the population that was 25 years or older were High school graduates and 28.5% of those 25 years or older had a Bachelor's degree or higher.

Languages

As of 2010, 78.99% of residents spoke English as their first language, and 15.19% spoke Spanish, 1.28% French Creole (mostly Haitian Creole,) 0.88% German, 0.59% Portuguese, and 0.55% of the population spoke French as their main language. In total, 21.01% of the population spoke languages other than English as their primary language.

Economy

Lee County's stronger economic sectors include construction, retail, leisure, and hospitality. Hertz moved its headquarters from New Jersey to Estero in 2016, the first major corporation to relocate to Lee County. The largest employers in Lee County as of 2019 are:

Law enforcement and crime

The Lee County Sheriff's Office is the primary law enforcement agency for Lee County. Lcso police car

The Lee County Sheriff’s Office employs civilian dispatchers who provide dispatch for LCSO Deputies, and Florida Southwestern State College Police. The Cape Coral Police Department, Fort Myers Police Department, the Sanibel Police Department, and the Lee County Port Authority Police maintain their own police dispatch centers. LCSOHelos

Education

The several colleges in Lee County include: Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU), Barry University, Nova Southeastern University, Florida SouthWestern State College, Cape Coral Technical College, Fort Myers Technical College,

Hodges University Hodges University is a private university in Fort Myers, Florida. Founded in 1990 as International College, it was renamed Hodges University in 2007 in recognition of a $12 million donation from local residents Earl and Thelma Hodges. The Hodge ...

Keiser University Keiser University is a private university with its main campus in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and flagship residential campus in West Palm Beach, Florida. Additional branches are located in other parts of Florida and internationally. Keiser provides ...

Southern Technical College Southern Technical College is a private for-profit technical college with multiple locations in Florida. It was founded in 2001 and provides diploma and associate degree programs. Locations Southern Technical College has campuses in the foll ...

, and

Rasmussen College Rasmussen University is a private for-profit university with multiple locations throughout the United States. It offers associate's, bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees at 23 campuses in Minnesota, Illinois, North Dakota, Florida, Wisconsin ...

. FGCU is a public university located just south of the Southwest Florida International Airport in South Fort Myers. The university belongs to the 12-campus

State University System of Florida The State University System of Florida (SUSF or SUS) is a system of twelve public universities in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2018, over 341,000 students were enrolled in Florida's state universities. Together with the Florida College Syst ...

. FGCU competes in the

ASUN Conference The ASUN Conference, formerly the Atlantic Sun Conference, is a collegiate athletic conference operating mostly in the Southeastern United States. The league participates at the NCAA Division I level, and began sponsoring football at the Divisio ...

in NCAA Division I sports. The school is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is an educational accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. This agency accredits over 13,000 public and priv ...

to award

associate's An associate degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of qualification above a high school diploma, GED, or matriculation, and below a bachelor's degree. The f ...

, 51 different types of

bachelor's A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ye ...

, 29 different master's, and six types of

doctoral A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...

degrees.

Parks and recreation

The parks are maintained by the county's Parks & Recreation department. The department also maintains

facilities for the Boston Red Sox and

Beaches

Some of the main tourist attractions in Southwest Florida are its beaches. Lee County is home to ten beach parks and an additional seven beach accesses, maintained by Lee County Parks & Recreation.

Libraries

The Lee County Library System has 13 branches. The towns of Fort Myers Beach and Sanibel Island, though located in Lee County, maintain their own independent public library entities. The Lee County Library System currently provides more than 294,000 Lee County residents with over 1.5 million items and materials available for use or patron circulation, as well as an online library materials catalog, free wi-fi, public computer access, scan and print capabilities, and many more patron amenities.

Politics

Lee County is represented in the United States House of Representatives by Byron Donalds of the 19th district and by

Greg Steube William Gregory Steube ( ; born May 19, 1978) is an American attorney and politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2019. His district is based in Sarasota. A member of the Republican Party, Steube served three terms in the Flori ...

of the 17th district. Unlike most urban counties, Lee County is a Republican stronghold in presidential elections. The last Democratic presidential candidate to win the county was Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1944.

Voter demographics

As of March 31, 2022.

Transportation

Airports

:* Southwest Florida International Airport (

IATA airport code An IATA airport code, also known as an IATA location identifier, IATA station code, or simply a location identifier, is a three-character alphanumeric geocode designating many airports and metropolitan areas around the world, defined by the ...

- RSW), in South Fort Myers, serves over 8.37 million passengers annually. Currently, the airport offers international non-stop flights to Cancun, Mexico; Düsseldorf, Germany; Nassau, Bahamas; and Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto in Canada. In addition, nine airlines operate flights to 29 domestic nonstop destinations. On September 9, 2005, the airport opened a new terminal. :* Page Field (IATA airport code - FMY), also in South Fort Myers, just south of the incorporated limits of the City of Fort Myers, is the county's general aviation airport. Prior to the opening of Southwest Florida Regional Airport in 1983 (now Southwest Florida International Airport), Page Field was the county's commercial airport.

Seaports and marine transport

A small port operation continues in Boca Grande, being used as a way-point for oil distribution. However, Port Boca Grande has been in decline for many years as the shipping industry has moved north, especially to the Port of Tampa. In addition, a private enterprise operates a high-speed, passenger-only

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

service between

Fort Myers Beach Fort Myers Beach is a town located on the North end of Estero Island in Lee County, Florida, United States. The town is on the Gulf of Mexico and is accessed from the mainland by a bridge over Estero Bay. The population was 5,582 at the 2020 c ...

from San Carlos Island and

Key West Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it cons ...

. Another ferry service is offered from Fort Myers to Key West

Major highways

Major road bridges

:* Caloosahatchee Bridge (U.S. Highway 41): 4-travel-lane single-span bridge connects North Fort Myers with Fort Myers, over the Caloosahatchee River. :* Cape Coral Bridge (College Parkway/Cape Coral Parkway): 4-travel-lane single-span bridge (two eastbound, two westbound) connect Cape Coral with Cypress Lake, over the Caloosahatchee River. :* Edison Bridge ( State Road 739): Two 3-travel-lane spans (one northbound, one southbound) connect North Fort Myers with Fort Myers, over the Caloosahatchee River. :*Interstate 75: Two 4-travel-lane spans (one northbound, one southbound) between the State Road 78 ("Bayshore Road") and State Road 80 ("Palm Beach Boulevard") interchanges, over the Caloosahatchee River. :*

Matanzas Pass Bridge The Matanzas Pass Bridge (also locally known as the Sky Bridge, or the Fort Myers Beach Bridge) is a bridge located in Fort Myers Beach, Florida. It carries State Road 865 (San Carlos Boulevard) between the Florida mainland (via San Carlos Isla ...

( State Road 865): 3-travel-lane single-span bridge crosses Hurricane Bay and Matanzas Pass within the incorporated limits of the Town of Fort Myers Beach, connecting the mainland to the barrier islands. :* Matlacha Bridge (State Road 78): a small single-leaf

drawbridge A drawbridge or draw-bridge is a type of moveable bridge typically at the entrance to a castle or tower surrounded by a moat. In some forms of English, including American English, the word ''drawbridge'' commonly refers to all types of moveable ...

connecting Cape Coral to Matlacha and Pine Island :* Midpoint Memorial Bridge (State Road 884): 4-lane single-span bridge that connects Cape Coral with Fort Myers, over the Caloosahatchee River. :*

( State Road 867): series of three 2-travel-lane single-span bridges and two 3-travel-lane island

causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet Tra ...

s crossing the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River at the Gulf of Mexico. The causeway connects Punta Rassa with Sanibel. :* Wilson Pigott Bridge ( State Road 31): 2-travel-lane single-span drawbridge between State Road 78 ("Bayshore Road") and State Road 80, over the Caloosahatchee River.

Mass transportation

Fixed-route

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

service is provided by the

Lee County Transit Department LeeTran is the transit bus service operated by the Lee County Transit Department, providing service to Bonita Springs, Cape Coral, Fort Myers Fort Myers (or Ft. Myers) is a city in southwestern Florida and the county seat and commercial cente ...

, operated as "

LeeTran LeeTran is the transit bus service operated by the Lee County Transit Department, providing service to Bonita Springs, Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Fort Myers Beach Fort Myers Beach is a town located on the North end of Estero Island in Lee County, ...

". Several routes extend outward from the Downtown Intermodal Transfer Center; in addition, suburb-to-suburb routes are operated, as well as park-and-ride service to and from both Fort Myers Beach and Southwest Florida International Airport. The Downtown Intermodal Transfer Center in Fort Myers also serves as an intermediate stop on

Greyhound Lines Greyhound Lines, Inc. (commonly known as simply Greyhound) operates the largest intercity bus service in North America, including Greyhound Mexico. It also operates charter bus services, Amtrak Thruway services, commuter bus services, and pac ...

bus service.

Media

Newspapers

Newspapers include '' The News-Press and Florida Weekly''.

Radio

Arbitron Nielsen Audio (formerly Arbitron) is a consumer research company in the United States that collects listener data on radio broadcasting audiences. It was founded as the American Research Bureau by Jim Seiler in 1949 and became national by mergin ...

standard radio market: Ft Myers-Naples- Marco Island With an Arbitron-assigned 783,100 listening area population, the metropolitan area ranks 62/299 for the fall of 2006. The metropolitan area is home to 32 radio stations.

Television

Nielsen Media Research designated market area: Ft. Myers-Naples Number of TV homes: 479,130 2006–2007 U.S. rank: 64/210 * WBBH – NBC affiliate *

WFTX WFTX-TV (channel 36) is a television station licensed to Cape Coral, Florida, United States, serving as the Fox affiliate for Southwest Florida. Owned by the E.W. Scripps Company, the station has studios on Southwest Pine Island Road ( SR 78) i ...

–

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

affiliate * WGCU – PBS member station * WINK – CBS affiliate * WINK-DT2 – MyNetworkTV/ Antenna TV affiliate * WRXY - Christian Television Network affiliate * WTPH – Azteca America affiliate * WUVF - Univision affiliate * WWDT - Telemundo affiliate * WXCW –

CW television network CW may stand for: Science and technology * centiwatt (cW), one hundredth of a watt * Cω, a programming language * CW complex, a type of topological space * Carrier wave, in radio communications * CodeWarrior, an integrated development environme ...

affiliate * WZVN –

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

affiliate

Sports

Fort Myers is home to Florida Gulf Coast University. Its teams, the

Florida Gulf Coast Eagles The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles (also FGCU) refer to the fifteen intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Florida Gulf Coast University, located in Fort Myers, Florida in intercollegiate athletics, including men and women's basketball, cross ...

, play in NCAA Division I in the

. The Eagles' men's basketball team had an average attendance of 2,291 in 2013.

MLB spring training

The Boston Red Sox hold their annual spring training at JetBlue Park at

Fenway South Fenway South is the spring training base of the Boston Red Sox in Fort Myers, Florida. The purpose-built training and player development complex is used year-round by the Red Sox and its minor league farm teams—Worcester Red Sox, Portland Sea ...

in the Fort Myers area. A cross-town rivalry has developed with the

, which conduct their spring training at

Hammond Stadium Hammond Stadium is a baseball field located in the CenturyLink Sports Complex in South Fort Myers, Florida, United States. The stadium was built in 1991, and underwent major renovations in 2014 and 2015. The spring training home of the Minnesota ...

in south Lee County, which has a capacity of 7,500 and opened in 1991. The Red Sox' lease with Fort Myers runs through 2019, but the Red Sox were considering exercising the early out in their contract that would have allowed them to leave following the 2009 spring season. On October 28, 2008, the Lee County commission voted 3–1 to approve an agreement with the Boston Red Sox to build a new spring-training facility for the team in south Lee County. That stadium, named JetBlue Park at Fenway South, is located off Daniels Parkway near Southwest Florida International Airport. The stadium opened in time for the 2012 season. City of Palms Park had been built in 1992 for the Red Sox' spring training. Former Red Sox left fielder Mike Greenwell is from Fort Myers, and was instrumental in bringing his team to the city for spring training. The deal for JetBlue Park left City of Palms Park without a tenant. County officials have discussed the possibility of securing another team for City of Palms. Terry Park Ballfield (also known as the Park T. Pigott Memorial Stadium) in East Fort Myers is also not currently in use by a Major League Baseball team, though it is the former home of the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, the team became the Oaklan ...

, Cleveland Indians,

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

, and

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

Communities

Cities

Bonita Springs (beautiful), eng, beautiful springs , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Bonita_Beach.JPG , imagesize = 250x200px , image_caption = Bonita Beach , image_flag ...

* Cape Coral * Fort Myers *

Town

Village

Estero Estero is a village in Lee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 36,939. During the 2010 census, Estero was an unincorporated community, or census-designated place, the population at that time was 22,612. Est ...

Municipality

Lehigh Acres Lehigh Acres is an unincorporated area and Municipal District in Lee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 Census the population was 135,272. Lehigh Acres is part of the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Lehi ...

Census-designated places

* Alva *

Bokeelia Bokeelia is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located on Pine Island in Lee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the CDP had a population of 1,855, up from 1,780 at the 2010 census. It is part of the ...

Buckingham Buckingham ( ) is a market town in north Buckinghamshire, England, close to the borders of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, which had a population of 12,890 at the 2011 Census. The town lies approximately west of Central Milton Keynes, sou ...

* Burnt Store Marina * Captiva * Charleston Park * Cypress Lake * East Dunbar (former CDP; since annexed by city of Fort Myers) * Florida Gulf Coast University * Fort Myers Shores * Gateway * Harlem Heights *

Iona Iona (; gd, Ì Chaluim Chille (IPA: �iːˈxaɫ̪ɯimˈçiʎə, sometimes simply ''Ì''; sco, Iona) is a small island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though there ...

* Lochmoor Waterway Estates *

Matlacha Matlacha ( "MAT-la-shay") is a census-designated place (CDP) in Lee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the CDP had a population of 598. It is part of the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Matlacha ...

(on Matlacha Island) *

Matlacha Isles-Matlacha Shores Matlacha Isles-Matlacha Shores is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Lee County, Florida, United States. The population was 227 at the 2020 census, down from 229 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Cape Coral-Fort ...

* McGregor *

North Fort Myers North Fort Myers is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Lee County, Florida, United States. The population was 42,719 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Geo ...

Olga Olga may refer to: People and fictional characters * Olga (name), a given name, including a list of people and fictional characters named Olga or Olha * Michael Algar (born 1962), English singer also known as "Olga" Places Russia * Olga, Russia, ...

* Page Park * Palmona Park *

Pine Island Center Pine Island Center is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located on Pine Island in Lee County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,942 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida Metro ...

* Pine Manor * Pineland (on Pine Island) *

Punta Rassa Punta Rassa is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Lee County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,620 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Geog ...

* San Carlos Park * St. James City * Suncoast Estates * Tanglewood (former CDP) * Three Oaks * Tice * Verandah *

Villas Villas may refer to: Places * Villas, Florida, United States * Villas, Illinois, United States * Villas, New Jersey, United States * Las Villas, a region of Spain * Las Villas (Cuba), a former Cuban Province * The Villas, a housing estate in Stok ...

* Whiskey Creek

Other unincorporated communities

Babcock Ranch Babcock Ranch is a planned community located in southeastern Charlotte County and northeastern Lee County, Florida consisting of approximately . The planned community was approved as part of a public-private partnership with the State of Flor ...

* Boca Grande

Notes

References

External links

*
Lee County government website
{{Authority control 1887 establishments in Florida Charter counties in Florida Populated places established in 1887