Fort Pierce, FL

Fort Pierce is a city located in St. Lucie County, Florida, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 72,948. Fort Pierce is part of the Port St. Lucie– Fort Pierce Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city is home to the Fort Pierce Inlet and is adjacent to Sebastian Inlet and Indian River Lagoon.

The area that now comprises Fort Pierce was first settled by the Calusa Indians in the early 17th century. The Spanish established a small settlement here in 1687 and called it San Pedro de Mocamaque (Saint Peter of Mocamaque). The English took control of this area in 1763 during their struggle for control of Florida against Spain and renamed it Saint Petersburg after their British capital. The French established a small settlement near present-day Fort Pierce in 1821 but abandoned it within a year due to hostilities with Spain.

In 1824, General Andrew Jackson led an expedition against the Seminoles at what is now known as Battle of Okeechobee and camped near what would become Fort Pierce for several days while awaiting reinforcements from Miami Territory. After defeating the Seminoles, Jackson returned to Fort Saint Petersburg and continued his march northward along what is now U.S Highway 1 until he reached present-day Vero Beach on March 10, 1825. He named this newly acquired territory West Florida because it lay west of East Florida which had been ceded to Great Britain as part of the Treaty of Paris following America's victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War (1775-83).

In 1840, West Florida was divided into East Florida (which included present-day Tampa Bay) and West Florida (which included present-day St. Lucie County). In 1861, when Confederate forces attacked Union troops stationed at Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island (present-day Jacksonville), Union forces under General Benjamin Butler retreated northward up U S Highway 1 through what is now Ft .Pierce into East Florida where they joined forces with local militia units from Key West led by Colonel William Dobein McClintock who then marched southward up US Highway 1 through present day Ft .Lauderdale into West Palm Beach where they met Confederate troops under General John Buford at The Battle of Boykin's Creek on January 6th 1862 resulting in a Confederate victory which effectively ended Union efforts to retake control of East Florida..

The City Of Ft .Pierce Was Established On November 11th 1912 And Named For General Edmund Kirby Smith Who Led A Military Expedition Against The Seminole Indians In 1835 And Died Near This Location While On Campaign Near Ocala