America 250 marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, commemorating the United States and the enduring ideals of liberty, democracy and civic responsibility. This once-in-a-generation milestone offers an opportunity to reflect on the people, events and principles that have shaped the nation over two and a half centuries, while recognizing the ongoing work of building a more perfect union.
As the nation approaches this historic anniversary, America 250 invites communities to explore the past, celebrate progress and engage in meaningful conversations about the future. Through education, reflection and civic participation, the commemoration seeks to inspire a deeper understanding of America’s history and a renewed commitment to the values that continue to define it.
A quick-scroll timeline of 25 hand-picked events connecting America’s 250th to Florida and FSW milestones.
The American Revolution begins. Florida did not join its fellow thirteen English colonies in the revolution and remained loyal to England. Its previously sparse population swelled overnight as Tories escaped into loyalist Florida, mostly settling in St. Augustine.
The Louisiana Purchase encompassed 530,000,000 acres of territory in North America that the United States purchased from France in 1803 for $15 million.
The colonies of East Florida and West Florida remained loyal to the British during the war for American independence, but by the Treaty of Paris in 1783 they returned to Spanish control. After 1783, Americans immigrants moved into West Florida.
Andrew Jackson returned to Florida in 1821 to establish a new territorial government on behalf of the United States.
Florida becomes the 27th state on March 3, 1845.
Fort Myers, Florida, was a U.S. Army post established on February 20, 1850, by Major Samuel C. Ridgely. It was named for Captain Abraham C. Myers, the son-in-law of Major General David E. Twiggs, who ordered the fort built. It was built on the site of earlier Fort Harvie.
In San Francisco and New York, wires had been connected to cannons facing outward across the ocean. When the signal from the spike came through, the cannons fired. The world was put on notice: the transcontinental railroad was completed and America was moving to the forefront of the world's stage.
World-renowned inventor, Thomas Edison, and his friend and business partner, Ezra Gilliland, traveled to Florida in the winter of 1885 looking for a place to relax and warm weather. They found both in abundance in the frontier town (population 349) of Fort Myers. Edison purchased a 13-acre piece of land on the Caloosahatchee River for $2,750. Soon after, Edison sketched a plan for his winter retreat, including houses, a laboratory, and extensive gardens.
Walter N. Haldeman founded Naples.
“Belle”, “Belle City”, and “LaBelle” began to be used as names for the tiny new settlement populated by cattle drovers and trappers straddling the banks of the Caloosahatchee River in both Lee and DeSoto Counties as early as 1889.
Punta Gorda was officially incorporated as a city in 1888, marking its transition from a small coastal settlement into an organized municipality and reinforcing its role in regional trade, fishing, and transportation along Florida’s Gulf Coast.
Edward Vose Babcock purchased the 91,000-acre tract of land known as Crescent B Ranch in 1914. At the time, the Babcock Ranch property stretched across a significant portion of Southwest Florida and was used for logging and agriculture.
Charlotte County was created from DeSoto County in 1921, recognizing the region’s population growth and economic development along Southwest Florida’s Gulf Coast. The county’s establishment formalized local governance for communities including Punta Gorda.
The Tamiami Trail (U.S. 41), linking Miami and Naples through the Everglades, officially opened to travelers on this date. Construction on the east-west section of the road lasted for 12 years. Once completed, cars could travel east from Naples to Miami for the first time. Before the completion of the Tamiami Trail, wetlands, alligators, mosquitoes and cypress swamps made traveling across southern Florida extremely difficult, and few travelers were able to complete the 108 mile journey. Collier County was created as result of Baron Collier's financial involvement in the road construction. Although considered a feat of engineering at the time, the road has had major impacts on the environmentally fragile Everglades ecosystem, disrupting the natural flow of water south.
Named for Capt. Richard Channing Moore Page, the former Lee County Airport was leased to the Army Air Force in February 1942. Page, a WWI hero, became the first Floridian to join the Army Aviation Corps during that war. Operated by the 3rd Air Force, the B-24 equipped 98th Bombardment Group arrived for training in March 1942. In May the 93rd Bomber Group arrived to replace the 98th. B-24s from Page operated submarine patrols over the Gulf of Mexico.
Historically, the Everglades spanned from the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes, down to Lake Okeechobee, through the River of Grass, down to Florida Bay and the iconic Florida Keys. In the early 1900s, development in Florida began to boom, and in an effort to support the growing population and spur the growth of the agricultural community, the original flow was cut off, and the water originally flowing south from Lake Okeechobee was redirected East and West into the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries.
Edison Junior College opens in Fort Myers.
The Charlotte County Development Authority was created as a public agency by the State of Florida in 1965 to operate and manage the Charlotte County Airport and surrounding commerce park. At that time it was an independent special district with taxing authority.
I-75 construction begins in Florida.
New campus of Edison Junior College opened off Cypress Lake Drive.
Cape Coral is incorporated as a city.
Charlotte Campus opens in Punta Gorda.
FSW Collier Campus opens in Naples (then Edison Community College).
College becomes Edison State College and begins offering bachelor’s degrees.
Edison State College becomes Florida SouthWestern State College.