I invite my readers to attend a presentation entitled “The History of the St. Luice Canal.” Todd Thurlow and I will be using historic maps, newspapers, and photographs together with modern technology to give insight into a canal that has been “on the minds of men” since the mid 1800s and even earlier.

If you want to attend in person, please join us at the Rivers Coalition meeting, Thursday, February 23, at 11:00am, Stuart City Hall Chambers, 121 S.W. Flagler Avenue, Stuart , FL 34994. If you’d like to join via Zoom, please reach out to the the meeting administrator at miki@riverscoalition.org and request a Zoom link.

I hope you’ll join us!

The St. Lucie Canal was built by the Everglades Drainage District from 1915-1924 (some records state 1925 or 1926). Its unnatural connection drains surrounding lands and allows “overflow” water from Lake Okeechobee to be directed to the St. Lucie River wrecking the estuary’s delicate wildlife ecology and spurring massive toxic blooms in 2013, 2016, and 2018. Of course, the canal has been a boon for agriculture and development of all South and Central Florida as it was built as the “primary drainage canal” of the Everglades.

As the official completion date of the St Lucie Canal by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection is 1924, next year will be the 100 Year Anniversary of the St. Lucie Canal. Thus this year, in 2023, I am writing and presenting extensively on the history of this beloved and hated canal as we work to weave it into a better water future.

Lock No. 2, original structure at today’s St Lucie Lock and Dam.

What wilderness it was!

See this link for more of Todd’s collection of photos from Florida Memory & the Library of Congress !