Fort Lauderdale City Guide

Fort Lauderdale, Florida, has over the years developed the reputation as a party town. With its beaches, bars, and nightclubs, the city has been a spring break destination for college students since the 1960s. Fort Lauderdale's expansive system of navigable canals and waterways has garnered the city its nickname "the Venice of America."

The city takes its name from the fort built by Major William Lauderdale in 1838, during the Second Seminole War. In 1893, after the Seminole Wars had ended, Frank Stranahan arrived and built a house that would serve as a hotel, bank, post office, and trading post in the area. The area was quickly settled, becoming an agricultural community of dairy and citrus farmers. Fort Lauderdale was incorporated in 1911 and remained a relatively quiet oceanfront strip until the 1960s, when its popularity amongst vacationing college students suddenly made it the "spring break capital of the world." In recent years, the tourist trade in Fort Lauderdale has shifted towards cruise ships and other nautical recreation, but the city is still a popular spring break destination.