For at least 5,000 years, people have been drawn to Fort Lauderdale. The prehistoric peoples of South Florida, known as the "Glades Culture," and the early historic period peoples of the area, the Tequesta, enjoyed the abundance of natural resources available along Fort Lauderdale’s new River. By 1763, the last of these aboriginal peoples had left the area, and except for a few white settlers, Fort Lauderdale was devoid of population. The Seminole Indians first appeared in what is Broward County in the 1820s and were joined by a handful of white planters along the river.

The city of Fort Lauderdale is named for a Second Seminole War fortification built on the banks of New River in 1838. In that year, Major William Lauderdale led a detachment of Tennessee Volunteers south along the east coast of Florida to capture Seminole agricultural lands and battle the elusive Indian warriors. Altogether, three Fort Lauderdales would be constructed: the first at the fork of New River; the second at Tarpon Bend; and the largest on the beach at the site of today’s Bahia Mar.

After the war, southeastern Florida remained a virtual wilderness due to the lack of transportation into the region. In 1892, however, the Dade County government authorized a rock road to be built between Lantana and Lemon City (North Miami). An overnight camp and ferry crossing was established on New River, and a young Ohioan, Frank Stranahan, arrived to take charge of the facilities. He soon established a flourishing trading post with the local Seminoles and by 1895, Stranahan’s Trading Post was a South Florida landmark.

In 1896,the Florida East Coast Railway was extended south through Fort Lauderdale, providing rapid transportation from all parts of the nation to south Florida. The little village increased in size and was incorporated in 1911. In 1915, Broward County was created out of parts of Dade and Palm Beach counties.