More About Naples Florida History

By Jony Mozen


Naples history started in the late 1880s, when this beautiful city was first created in heads of John S. Williams and Walter N. Haldeman. You will find several interesting historic facts Naples Florida museums offer to their visitors. Naples Florida history might surprise you.

long before this, the Caloosa Indians lived here. In 1860s, Joe Wiggins and Roger Gordon were the first white settlers. Very interesting story is the one about this town's name. Someone compared the bay with the one in Naples, in Italy, and concluded that this bay is more beautiful. Well, this was the reason the town was named Naples.

One of the city founders, Kentucky U. S. Senator John S. Williams, was former Confederate general. His partner Walter N. Haldeman was businessman and the owner of Louisville Courier Journal. They formed the Naples Company and designed and launched their town building program. Their idea was to build the town that will become a tourist destination on the coast.

Their first project was to build large T-shaped pier. Although this area became really popular tourist resort for several rich families, the problem was that there was no trains or good quality roads to get there. That's why this small town was really isolated in next few decades, with only eighty residents. Well, the idea was not enough.

In 1911, Barron Collier bought over one million acres of swampland in the area, and this includes most of today's town. Collier has invested his money to build Tamiami Trail, the paved highway between Tampa and Miami. He believed that this area could experience a real boom in development. His dream really became true.

The first train brought its passengers in January 7, 1927. Today, there are no railways here any more. The last train was gone back in 1971. The old Depot now serves as home for community organizations, entirely restored. Even so, one thing is still the same. Every day at noon, you can hear the train whistle blown, just as it was blown for years.

The town got its first bank back in 1949. It was placed on 5th Ave. They got their library in 1932, and phone company in 1929. It is known that there were seventeen phones there in 1945. Numerous celebrities of that time visited this place, including Gary Cooper and Thomas Edison, as well as Greta Garbo.

In 1932, famous Charles Lindbergh landed his plane here, accompanied by his wife, Ann, to get some supplies for their holidays. They were spending some time in this area. During the Second World War, hundreds of pilots were trained here for combat flying. After the war, the civil airport was established in 1953.

This rich, beautifully designed and pleasant town is one of the wealthiest towns in the entire state today. Fast growth and development, great climate, beautiful and interesting touristic destinations and overall prosperity make this town really appealing place to visit. This is a great place to live in, too.




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