Sanibel

History

Sanibel and Captiva formed as one island about 6,000 years ago. The first known humans in the area were the Calusa, who arrived about 2,500 years ago. The Calusa were a powerful Indian nation who came to dominate most of Southwest Florida through trade via their elaborate system of canals and waterways. Sanibel remained an important Calusa settlement until the collapse of their empire, soon after the arrival of the Europeans. During the 1700s, Cuban fishermen seasonally traveled from their homes and set up fishing camps along the Gulf Coast, called ranchos, including on Sanibel Island. In 1765, the first known appearance of a harbor on Sanibel is shown on a map as Puerto de S. Nibel (the "v" and "b" being interchangeable); thus, the name may have evolved from "San Nibel". Alternatively, the name may derive, as many believe, from "(Santa) Ybel", which survives in the old placename "Point Ybel", where the Sanibel Island Light is. How it would have gotten this name, however, is a matter of conjecture. One story says it was named by Juan Ponce de León for Queen Isabella I of Castile or the saint whose name she shares. Another attributes the name to Roderigo Lopez, the first mate of José Gaspar (Gasparilla), after his beautiful lover Sanibel whom he had left behind in Spain, but like most of the lore surrounding Gasparilla, this story is apocryphal, as the above references to recognizable variants of the name antedate the buccaneer's supposed reign. Sanibel is not the only island in the area to figure prominently in the legends of Gaspar; Captiva, Useppa, and Gasparilla are also connected. Sanibel also appears in another tale, involving Gaspar's ally-turned-rival Black Caesar, said to have been a former Haitian slave who escaped during the Haitian Revolution to become a…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of , of which are land and (48.13%) are covered by water. Sanibel Island, in southern Florida, has a tropical climate, with daily high temperatures ranging from in midwinter to around in the summer. The months of January through April (peak tourist season on the island) have the coolest temperatures, ranging from during the day to a cool at night, and very little rain falls on the island during those months. The island's summer heat and humidity, which have been recorded as high as and 100% RH, are cooled by the sea breezes from the Gulf, and by almost daily afternoon and evening rain showers, which are responsible for much of the island's rainfall. The island gets most of its rain in June. Southwest Florida rarely suffers direct strikes by hurricanes, but every 20 or so years, it takes a significant hit, and about every 40 years a major one. Most of these have affected Sanibel. On August 13, 2004, it was hit hard by Hurricane Charley, a category-four hurricane with winds. While much of the native vegetation survived, the nonindigenous Australian pines suffered serious damage, blocking nearly every road. Wildlife officials reported that the nests of birds and sea turtles were destroyed. The Sanibel Lighthouse suffered little damage, the Sanibel Causeway suffered relatively minor damage except for a tollbooth being tilted partly over, and a small seawall was eroded. Blind Pass was again cut through, but it refilled less than a month later. Residents who left before the August 13 storm were not allowed back by the city government until August 18, due to hundreds of downed trees and electric power lines, and the lack of potable water and sanitary sewerage. A temporary city hall for Sanibel was…

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• THE SANIBEL SCHOOL
  Elementary · SANIBEL · 289 students · 13.1:1 ratio