Fort Pierce, FL

Fort Pierce's downtown fronts the Indian River Lagoon, while the Lincoln Park neighborhood just north of Moore's Creek is closely tied to the history of the Florida Highwaymen. Twenty-six African American landscape painters associated with Fort Pierce, most of them from Lincoln Park, became known as the Florida Highwaymen after working outside a segregated gallery system and selling paintings along Florida roads. The city itself took its name from an Army post built nearby in 1838 during the Second Seminole War. Permanent settlement followed in the 1860s, and Fort Pierce incorporated in 1901; it is now the seat of St. Lucie County. The 2020 census recorded 47,297 residents. At the eastern edge of the city, Fort Pierce Inlet connects the Atlantic Ocean with the lagoon, and the city marina occupies the downtown waterfront. Marina Square concentrates several recurring parts of local life at the water's edge.

ATTRDon Ramey Logan / CC BY-SA 4.0

The Downtown Fort Pierce Farmers' Market operates there every Saturday throughout the year, alongside a weekly Jazz and Craft Market. A few blocks inland, the city-owned Sunrise Theatre has a 1,200-seat main stage and a 210-seat black-box theater for touring performances and community programming. The Manatee Observation and Education Center at Moore's Creek is open year-round with exhibits and environmental education focused on the Indian River Lagoon; manatees can be seen in the creek in every season, though winter brings more of them. Lincoln Park's history is accessible through the self-guided Highwaymen Heritage Trail, an annual art festival at Moore's Creek Linear Park, and the Florida Highwaymen Museum, which opened in May 2026 with a painting by each of the original artists. Across Fort Pierce, the municipal park system also maintains beach access, boat ramps, fishing piers, playgrounds, and more than 140 acres of parkland.