Fort Myers
The City of Palms, Thomas Edison's winter home.
- Population
- 86,395 (2020 census)
- Incorporated
- August 12, 1885
- Nickname
- City of Palms
- Tides
- Two highs, two lows, uneven
Then
- 1850
The Seminole Wars fort is named for Colonel Abraham Myers.
- 1865
The Battle of Fort Myers, on February 20, is the southernmost land battle of the Civil War.
- 1885
Fort Myers incorporates. Thomas Edison buys 13 acres on the Caloosahatchee River, and his Seminole Lodge is finished the next year.
- 1916
Henry Ford buys the house next door.
- 1947
Mina Edison deeds Seminole Lodge to the city.
- 2022
Hurricane Ian causes catastrophic damage on September 28.
Now
The Edison and Ford Winter Estates are open to visitors. Edison's imported royal palms along McGregor Boulevard gave the city its nickname.
The Boston Red Sox train each spring at JetBlue Park. Captiva, Estero Bay and Cape Coral share this stretch of coast.
On the water
From NOAA's predictions for Fort Myers, FL over the next 364 days. Heights are in feet above mean lower low water (MLLW).
- Pattern
- Two highs and two lows a day, one noticeably bigger than the other
- Typical daily range
- 1.3 ft
- Biggest swing
- 2.0 ft on Nov 25
- Smallest swing
- 0.6 ft on Dec 4
- Highest high
- 1.9 ft, Oct 28 at 4:39 AM
- Lowest low
- −0.7 ft, Feb 2 at 8:57 AM
21 tide stations around Fort Myers
- Fort Myers0.5 mi
- Cape Coral Bridge6.5 mi
- Iona Shores10.0 mi
- Hendry Creek, Estero Bay11.8 mi
- Matlacha Pass (bascule bridge)12.1 mi
- Matanzas Pass (fixed bridge) Estero Island13.7 mi
- Punta Rassa, San Carlos Bay13.7 mi
- Estero Island, Estero Bay14.3 mi
- Tropical Homesites Landing, Pine Island14.3 mi
- Estero River14.6 mi
Show all 21 stations
- Point Ybel, San Carlos Bay entrance15.9 mi
- Carlos Point, Estero Bay16.3 mi
- St. James City, Pine Island16.5 mi
- Coconut Point16.7 mi
- Galt Island, Pine Island Sound16.9 mi
- Pineland, Pine Island17.5 mi
- Tarpon Bay, Sanibel Island18.8 mi
- Little Hickory Island19.9 mi
- Redfish Pass, Captiva Island (north end)21.0 mi
- Captiva Island, Pine Island Sound21.2 mi
- Captiva Island (outside)22.3 mi