Gulf Breeze: Aerial

Shell mounds in the area date back over one thousand years, evidence of the Native Americans habitation. The first European settlement was attempted in 1559 by Tristan de Luna, but was abandoned two years later. The British named the first settlement Town Point where the British performed routine maintenace at Navy Cove. The ships were careened, a process of hauling ships aground to allow the hulls to be scraped free of barnacles. Florida became American territory in 1821, and by 1824 a road ran through the peninsula all the way to St. Augustine. In 1931 the first bridge across Pensacola Bay was opened. Gulf Breeze traces its name to the Gulf Breeze Cottages and Store, which opened a post office branch in 1936 where Beach Road Plaza now stands. The community began to grow and prosper following the opening of the improved bay bridge in 1960.