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Fort Lauderdale (/ˈlɔːdərdeɪl/) is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, 25 miles (40 km) north of Miami. It is the county seat and largest city of Broward County. As of 2019 census bureau estimates, the city has an estimated population of 182,437.^[11] Fort Lauderdale is a principal city of the Miami metropolitan area, which was home to an estimated 6,198,782 people in 2018.^[12]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 38.6 square miles (99.9 km²), 34.7 square miles (90.0 km²) of which is land and 3.8 square miles (9.9 km²) of which is water (9.87%).^[35] Fort Lauderdale is known for its extensive network of canals; there are 165 miles (266 km) of waterways within the city limits.^[36]

The city of Fort Lauderdale is adjacent to the Atlantic Ocean, includes 7 miles (11 km) of beaches,^[37] and borders the following municipalities:^{[citation needed]}

On its east:

• Lauderdale-by-the-Sea
• Sea Ranch Lakes
• Victoria Park

On its south:

• Hollywood
• Dania Beach

On its southwest:

• Davie

On its west:

• Plantation
• Lauderhill
• Lauderdale Lakes

On its northwest:

• North Lauderdale
• Oakland Park
• Tamarac

On its north:

• Wilton Manors
• Pompano Beach

The northwestern section of Fort Lauderdale is separate from the remainder of the city, connected only by the Cypress Creek Canal as it flows under I-95. This section of Fort Lauderdale borders the cities of Tamarac and Oakland Park on its south side. Oakland Park also borders Fort Lauderdale on the west side of its northeastern portion. The greater portion of Fort Lauderdale in the south is bordered, along its north side by Wilton Manors.^[38][39]

Off the coast of Fort Lauderdale is the Osborne Reef, an artificial reef made of discarded tires that has proven to be an ecological disaster.^[40] The dumping began in the 1960s, with the intent of providing habitat for fish, while disposing of trash from the land. However, in the rugged and corrosive environment of the ocean, nylon straps used to secure the tires wore out, cables rusted, and tires broke free. The tires posed a particular threat after breaking free from their restraints. The tires then migrated shoreward, and ran into a living reef tract, washed up on its slope, and killed many things in their path. In recent years, thousands of tires have also washed up on nearby beaches, especially during hurricanes. Local authorities are now working to remove the 700,000 tires, in cooperation with the U.S. Army, Navy, and Coast Guard.^[41]

Fort Lauderdale is served by Broward General Medical Center and Imperial Point Medical Center, which are operated by Broward Health, the third largest hospital consortium in the United States. Broward General is a 716-bed^[125] acute care facility that is designated as a Level I trauma center.^[126] It is also home to Chris Evert Children’s Hospital and a Heart Center of Excellence. The hospital serves as a major training site for medical students from Nova Southeastern University‘s College of Osteopathic Medicine, as well as nursing and paramedic programs from throughout the area. Imperial Point Medical Center is a 204-bed facility^[125] with a hyperbaric medicine program.^[127] Holy Cross Hospital, a 571-bed^[128] hospital operated by the Sisters of Mercy, was named by HealthGrades as one of the 50 best hospitals in the country for 2007.^[129]

The area in which the city of Fort Lauderdale would later be founded was inhabited for more than two thousand years by the Tequesta Indians.^[16] Contact with Spanish explorers in the 16th century proved disastrous for the Tequesta, as the Europeans unwittingly brought with them diseases, such as smallpox, to which the native populations possessed no resistance. For the Tequesta, disease, coupled with continuing conflict with their Calusa neighbors, contributed greatly to their decline over the next two centuries.^[17] By 1763, there were only a few Tequesta left in Florida, and most of them were evacuated to Cuba when the Spanish ceded Florida to the British in 1763, under the terms of the Treaty of Paris (1763), which ended the Seven Years’ War.^[16] Although control of the area changed between Spain, United Kingdom, the United States, and the Confederate States of America, it remained largely undeveloped until the 20th century.