Miami

Miami is the youngest major city in the U.S. The first inhabitants of the region were the Calusa tribe, they settled mainly along the Miami River. The name Miami comes from the Calusa word Mayami, meaning Big Water.

The first Europeans in the area namely Ponce de Leon arrived in 1513. By the early 1700s, most of the native population of south Florida had disappeared due to diseases and tribal wars.

Spain supported France during the French and Indian War as a result lost Florida to the British in 1763. In 1783, after the American Revolution, Florida reverted to Spanish possession, but in 1821 Spain sold Florida to the United States for $5 million.

During the Civil War Florida joined the Confederacy, at that time half of the state’s population were slaves.

Julia Tuttle the wealthy widow of a Cleveland businessman arrived in Miami from Cleveland in 1891 and purchased over 640 acres in Miami.
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