Early Settlers and Homesteaders on Estero Island
History of Fort Myers Beach, 1870–1920
For many years, Estero Island was home to Calusa Indians, Cuban Fishermen, Spanish Missionaries, and some say, pirates. It was not until the mid-1870s that the first family settled on Fort Myers Beach.
For the most part, in the late 1800s, Fort Myers Beach was uninhabited except for a few brave souls who decided to take advantage of the Homestead Act of 1862. This act allowed the head of a family (or any person over the age of 21), to claim as much as 160 acres of public land. In order get a title to the property, the homesteader had to live on the land (called “proving the claim”) and cultivate it for five years.
Sam Ellis
Sam Ellis, his wife, and his son, George Underhill, settled at the end of Connecticut Street where the Mound House now sits. Although Ellis and his family ended up moving to Sanibel where they homesteaded a track of land near Tarpon Bay, George’s son (also named George) returned to Fort Myers Beach where he raised his family.
Homesteaders
The Homestead At of 1862 brought new settlers to the island. Intrigued by the idea of getting free land, the settlers came from all over the United States and Europe hoping to prove their claim by living on the land for five years, clearing it, farming it, and improving it.
Robert Gilbert
Unfortunately, life on the island in those days was difficult, and many of these early settlers did not stay long enough to claim their land. In 1894, Robert Gilbert received a the first patent on 171 acres starting near Bay Street and going to Bayland Ave. This area was in the central part of the island and included the shell mound at the end of Connecticut where the Ellis Family had also settled a decade earlier.
James Bratt
The second patent on the island was granted to James Bratt in 1895. Prior to 1895, the area presently known as Bowditch Point was called the government lighthouse reservation. Bratt was a doctor from New York who was one of the few settlers who decided to set up his homestead at the south end of the island where he attempted to farm 150 acres at Bowditch Point.
Bratt wanted to grow tomatoes on his land, and he had a successful first harvest. However, in mid-February 1895, a cold wave blew into south Florida with temperatures of 38 degrees recorded, damaging much of Bratt’s tomato crop. Bratt did not give up and continued to farm until 1899 when another deep freeze hit the area, killing all Bratt’s crop of tomatoes. After this loss, Bratt gave up on farming and focused on placing a lighthouse at the tip of Bowditch Point. Unfortunately, Bratt died in 1899 before he could get permission from the government to construct the lighthouse. His 150 acres was then granted to Ambrose McGregor.
It took until 1875 for the island to be platted which enabled the deeding of properties. Therefore, those few people who lived on the island prior to 1875 were not legal homesteaders; rather they were referred to as “squatters.” However, if a person were to live on a property for six months, he or she could pay cash for the land and receive a title. The going price at in the 1870s was $1.25 per acre.
Most homesteaders who lived on the island built primitive palm-thatched log homes (cheekees). They were isolated from the mainland, since the first bridge to the beach was not completed until 1921. Because the island was made up of thick patches of saw palmettos and mangroves, there were no roads, and the only way to get around was by horse or boat.
Hugh McPhie
One of the earliest homesteaders on the island was a man named Hugh McPhie. He arrived in America from Scotland in the late 1880s and, in 1899, McPhie was granted the third patent on the island homesteading 112 acres running from Flamingo Street to Fairview Isles (the first patent went to Robert Gilbert, and the second to Albert Austin. In 1907, McPhie proved his second claim which ran from Aberdeen Street to Avenida Pescadora and to the end of Seminole Way.
According to Jean Matthew, in her book, We Never Wore Shoes, McPhie was considered the “island hermit” back in the 1920s and 1930s. McPhie’s story is a tragic one. He left Scotland after his wife died in an epidemic leaving his two young sons to live with his sister; His original plan was to come to America, find a new wife, and then send for his children.
Eventually, McPhie discovered Fort Myers Beach which was the perfect place to be alone in his grief. Matthew reports that, “Hugh lived alone in a fishing shack near the south end and managed to cultivate a garden and catch enough fish to make out a living.” The old McPhie homesite was situated in a beautiful coconut grove just south of what is now the Outrigger Hotel.
Since there were no stores on the island at that time, when he needed supplies, McPhie would row his boat over to Sanibel where there was a small store and a post office.
McPhie loved living on the island and resented the “development” that he thought would ruin the life he knew so well. For many years, he refused to give in to developers who were trying to purchase his land. However, in 1938 he finally surrendered and developed a tract of land known as McPhie Park (from Aberdeen Street to Avenida Pescadora and to the end of Seminole Way.
According to Rolfe Schell in his book, History of Fort Myers Beach, McPhie held on to his properties longer than any of the other early homesteaders. At one time, during the 1920s real estate boom, McPhie was offered half a million dollars for his land, but he turned it down. He cared more about the land than he did the money. Once he subdivided McPhie Park, he sold many lots in the park and most of his original homestead for forty thousand dollars (Schell).
Shortly after selling off some of his land, McPhie returned to his home country for the first time in 50 years to find his sons had grown up and were now old men like him. McPhie only stayed in Scotland a few weeks. His sister came to live with him once he made improvements to his shack. She stayed with him until 1942 when he was found dead on the beach after suffering a stroke. His homesite was destroyed in the 1944 hurricane.
Hugh McPhie homesteaded 112 acres running from Flamingo Street to Fairview Isles in 1899. McPhie’s old homestead was built in a coconut grove just south of what is now the Outrigger Hotel. The house was destroyed by a storm in 1947.
George McAuley
Six years went by before George McAuley received a patent on 72 acres which began near Tropical Shores and ran to Donora Street. The next year, 1907, McPhie created McPhie Park which ran from Aberdeen Street to Avenida Pescadora and to the end of Seminole Way.
Albert Austin
In 1914, Albert Austin homesteaded a triangular piece of land starting at Aberdeen Street and going north to Williams Drive. This was a little over 24 acres.
Leroy Lemoreaux
The last of the homesteaders was Leroy Lemoreaux who was a member of the Koreshan Unity. He came to Estero when he was fourteen years old in 1894. In 1918 Lemoreaux homesteaded 65 acres between the two tracks owned by McPhie. This is the property where the Church of the Ascension is now located. Lemoreaux sold the property to the church.
Koreshans
In researching this book, I was amazed at the influence the Koreshans had on the island. The Koreshan Unity was founded by Cyrus Teed who was a medical doctor during the Civil War. Many doctors who served during this war were scared for life from the horrors they encountered. They turned to philosophy to help them understand the meaning of life. Teed was one of these doctors.
Although before the war, he was not interested in organized religion, after the war, he began to study different religions. Teed called himself Koresh and claimed that he had a vision which revealed that the world we live in is like the inside of an egg. We live on the concave inside of a multi-layered hollow cell. Koresh came to Florida in 1880 looking for land where he could establish a utopia. He had hopes that his membership would exceed 10 million members.
Koresh found Fort Myers Beach, Mound Key, and the banks of the Estero River to be the perfect place for his future home. The settlement on the banks of the Estero River was a vibrant colony of believers. Koresh believed in the equality of mean and women and the first president of his utopia was a woman. The unity settlement was self contained. They has their own school, a band, published a weekly newspaper, grew their own fruits and vegetables, and trained their youth in carpentry skills.
Many of the idealistic young people who came south with Koresh discovered that the utopia they were promised was less than perfect. Two of the original homesteaders of Fort Myers Beach were originally members of the Koreshan Unity. Leroy Lemoreaux came to Estero when he was fourteen years old in 1894. The Koreshans wanted to purchase land on the south end of the island where they could build a saw mill.
Koresh died in 1908 after an altercation in Fort Myers. Koresh was buried in a copper tub at the south end of the island. His tomb was made of thick walls of cement and reinforced with iron bars. The tub with his body was placed on a wooden slab inside the tomb and sealed. The 1921 hurricane washed away the house and destroyed the tomb. Although the concrete pieces of the tomb could be found years after the storm, Koresh’s body was never recovered. After the 1926 hurricane, the entire point on the south end of the island was washed away. The unity did not survive without their leader; however, 300 acres of their original settlement in Estero is now a State Park and eleven of the original buildings are still there for visitors to enjoy.
Leroy Lemoreaux and Carl Briant
At this time, a squatter named Carl Briant was living there but he sold his claim to the point for $20. Carl lived in what was called a “cabbage house” which was one of the largest homes on the island. The house was made of cabbage palm leaves without any nails. The frame was made from poles that were set in the ground. Vines were used to attach the palms to the frame. When Lemoreaux was only 19, he moved in with Braint. When the Koreshans tried to homestead this land, they were told that it was already owned by a man from Polk County. The Koreshans managed to purchase the land where they built two large homes on the point known as “La Pirata Point.” These homes were not cabbage houses; rather they were built using available wood that they turned into lumber with the saw mill they had built on the point. The homes were quite large and elaborate housing several members of the Koreshan Unity. In 1936, the Unity also built a home next to Red Coconut which is still standing today. In 1918, Lemoreaux homesteaded 65 acres between the two tracks owned by McPhie. This is the property where the Church of the Ascension is now located. Eventually, Lemoreaux sold the property to the church.
George Sander
Another early settler on Estero Island was originally members of the Koreshan Unity. George Sanders was a Koreshan in the 1890s but he soon left the settlement and purchased land from a homesteader where Publix now stands. He opened a marina and repair shop on the land where Snook Byte Marina is now located. He also operated the first store on the island which sold everything from chickens to fishing equipment. George had enough land to raise cows, chickens, and turkeys. George was also a boat builder, and everyone needed a boat to get around the islands, so he was quite popular and always busy.