Lee County, Florida
Lee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. The county makes up the entirety of the Cape Coral-Fort Myers MSA, and is the most populous county in Southwest Florida.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2000, the population of Lee County was 440,888. The population estimate for July 1, 2006 was 571,344, reflecting a 29.5 percent growth over 6 years.
Between 2000 and 2004, Lee County had the fastest growth rate in Hispanic population in the country. Its county seat is Fort Myers, and its largest city is Cape Coral.

History
Lee County was created in 1887 from Monroe County. It was named for Robert E. Lee, general in the American Civil War.
In 1923, Collier and Hendry Counties were created by splitting these areas from Lee County. As recently as 2004, discussion had taken place surrounding the possibility of the city of Cape Coral becoming its own county, citing in particular a perceived lack of infrastructure support from the Lee County government. However a new county has not as of yet been created.
In August 2004, the county was hit hard by Hurricane Charley, particularly on the northwestern islands of Captiva, Gasparilla and North Captiva.