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Cape Coral History
Until the birth of Cape Coral, the area was
simply known as “the other side of the river” by homesteaders,
loggers, cattlemen, professional fishermen, and sportsmen.
However, in 1957 Leonard and Jack Rosen changed that by
purchasing a 103 square mile tract, known as Redfish Point, for
$678,000. The Gulf American Corporation (GAC) was formed to
develop this “Waterfront Wonderland” and on November 4th of that
year, ground was officially broken as Cape Coral.
Early in 1958, a stretch of “Miracle Mile”,
later named Cape Coral Parkway, extended east from Coronado for
one mile, and a main intersection was soon formed where it met
Harney Point Road, now Del Prado Blvd. There was only one
building located in Cape Coral, which was a fourplex at the
corner of Cape Coral Parkway and Coronado Parkway, housing land
sales offices.
Through GAC, the development grew at a
remarkable pace, and on June 10, 1958, the first residents moved
in. These pioneers had to drive forever to get anywhere – 20
miles for a loaf of bread! Cape Coral was promoted like no other
Florida development, through a mail order program with ads on
radio, television and print media. In 1959, water view homesites
were sold for $990, waterfront was sold for $1,900, and
riverfront cost $3,390. Property sales reached over $9 million
after the first year and planeloads of curious northerners were
soon flown down for a quick look and a heavy sales pitch,
landing an out-of-the-way strip, now called 47th Terrace..
On March 14, 1964, the two-lane Cape Coral
Bridge was opened to traffic, making the area even more
accessible to potential buyers. Interestingly, as far back as
1959 when the best location for a bridge was being considered,
engineers picked a location connecting Everest Parkway with
Colonial Blvd., now the location of the Midpoint Memorial
Bridge. However, due to construction costs and proximity to the
area of initial development, the Cape Coral Parkway to Braden-Sutphin
Rd. (now College Parkway) route was chosen.
The city was incorporated in 1970 with a
population of 11,470, making it the 3rd largest city in a land
mass in Florida. The 2000 U.S. Census reported Cape Coral’s
population as 109,635. This year, Cape Coral will exceed
145,000, while remaining approximately 40% developed. |
