Before European settlement, the area where Fort Pierce is now located was inhabited by Indians of the Ais tribe. In the early 16th century. The eastern part of Florida was called Los Musquitos. In 1828 the county of Mosquito was formed. The Armed Occupation Act, which was intended to encourage people to settle in an area located south of Ocala and Ormond Beach, came into force soon. Among them were William F. Russell, Ossian B. Hart, John Barker, Mills O. Burnham and John Heermans, who established a town called Susanna. Later, Mosquito County was divided into Orange and St. Lucia, which existed between 1844 and 1855, was renamed Brevard.

Fort Pierce was named in honor of Lieutenant Colonel Benjamin K. Pierce, who founded a fort belonging to the United States Army after the end of the Second Seminar War in 1838. 60 years later, Fort Pierce was established in this area.

On February 2, 1901, the city was elected municipal authorities.

According to the 2010 census, the city was inhabited by 41892 people living in 9418 families. There were 15170 households and 17170 dwellings, with a density of 449.8/km². The population density was 9827 people/km². In 2010, the population's racial composition was as follows: 45.3% were white, 40.9% were African Americans, 0.6% were Indian, 0.9% were Asian, 0.1% were Pacific Island visitors, and 2.7% were of at least two breeds. Spanish and Latinos were 21.6% of the population.

In 2010 the city had 15170 households. 32.9% of households were inhabited by a child under the age of 18, 37.3% were inhabited by a marriage living together, 19.6% were inhabited by a woman without a husband and 37.9% of households were inhabited by one person. 11.7% were inhabited by persons aged 65 or over. One household was inhabited by 273 people. The average size of the family was 350 people.

By age, the Fort Pierce population in 2010 was 25.9% of people under 18, 7% of people between 18 and 24, 13.3% of people between 25 and 44, 13% of people between 45 and 54, 9.8% of people between 55 and 64 and 6.8% of persons over 65 years of age. The median age was 35.2 years. There were 97.4 men out of 100 women. There were 94.9 men out of 100 women under 18.

In 2000, the average income per farm was $30.869, while the average income per family was $36.337. The average income per man was $32.412, and per woman was $26.349. The income per capita in Key West was $16,782, and 30.2 percent of the population lived below the poverty line.

Near Fort Pierce, on the coral reef of Oculina Banks located in the Atlantic Ocean is the Experimental Oculina Research Reserve. It was created in 1984 and its initial size was 92 nautical miles (316 km²) - the area was called "Oculina Habitat Area of Particular Concern". In 1994, all catches were banned in the area of the reserve and the current name was given. In 2000, the area of the reserve was extended to 300 nautical miles (1030 km²) and the protection of the reserve was strengthened. The city is also known for the large population of manateaux nearby.

In Fort Pierce there is a humid subtropical climate (Cfa, Cwa) that closely resembles the savannah climate. In the summer, the temperature varies between 80 °F (26 °C) and 100 °F (37 °C). In winter, the temperature varies between 55 °F (12 °C) and 80 °F (26 °C), although sometimes the temperature drops to less than 40 °F (4 °C), it never falls below 0 °C.

After the damage caused by hurricanes Frances and Jeanne in 2004, FEMA set up a plan to secure buildings from hurricanes, which will reduce the costs of renovating these buildings. In 2012, construction of 12 artificial barrier islands was started, the "core" of which is made of geotextile pipes manufactured by Flint. The construction ended in 2013 with a cost of 18 million dollars.

Transport in Fort Pierce is managed by St. Lucie Transportation Planning Organization (TPO).

In the 1990s, a bus transport system operating in the county of St. Lucie. 3 June 2002 The Department of Transport of the State of Florida (FDOT) has approved a plan to extend the bus system so that it can also operate in the county of Martin.

The following routes run through the area of Fort Pierce:

• Route 1 / Florida State Road 5
• Florida State Road A1A
• Florida State Road 68
• Florida State Road 70
• Florida State Road 91
• Florida State Road 615
• Interstate 95

The Amtrak and Florida East Coast Railway are planning to build new railway stations along the eastern coast of Florida. The cities they discussed were Stuart, Fort Pierce, Vero Beach, Melbourne, Titusville, Cocoa, Daytona Beach and St. Augustine.

Fort Pierce is home to the public Fort Pierce Central High School, Fort Pierce Westwood High School and Lincoln Park Academy and private John Carroll Catholic High School schools, Faith Baptist School, Saint Andrew's Academy and Saint Anastasia Middle School.

Fort Pierce is also a state college of Indian River State College.

• A. E. Backus Museum and Gallery
• Arcade Building
• Art Mundo at the Art Bank
• Boston House
• Dust Tracks of Zora Neale Hurston
• Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute
• Heathcote Botanical Gardens
• Historic Lincoln Theater
• Historic Main Street
• Florida Power and Light Energy Encounter
• Lincoln Park Main Street
• Old Fort Pierce City Hall
• Old Fort Pierce Park
• Manatee Center
• National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum
• Marine Smithsonian Ecosystem Exhibit
• St. Lucie County Marine Center
• St. Lucie County Regional History Center
• Sunrise Theater

Zora Neale Hurston's House

• Rick Survey, former Major League Baseball player
• A.E. "Beanie" Backus, artist and painter
• Kimberly Bergalis, victim of the first known clinical case of HIV infection
• Edwin Binney, co-founder of Crayola
• Jeff Blackshear, American football player
• Roslyn M. Brock, President of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
• Jamar Chaney, an American football player, playing linebacker
• Yamon Figurs, wide receiver and return specialist in Canadian Football League
• Mark Foley, former Member of the House of Representatives
• John Houghtaling (1916-2009), entrepreneur
• Zora Neale Hurston, a writer known for her book titled Their eyes watched God
• Charles Johnson, Major League Baseball catcher
• Ladislav Karabin, an ice hockey player playing Pittsburgh Penguins
• Daniel T. McCarty, 31st Governor of Florida
• Terry McGriff, Major League Baseball catcher
• Ryan McNeil, defensive back in the National Football League
• Wonder Monds, defensive back in the National Football League
• Larry Sanders, basketball player on the Milwaukee Bucks team
• Jeff Schwarz, the broom in Major League Baseball
• Gary Stewart, country singer
• Matthew Underwood, an actor known for his series titled Zoey 101
• Herbert Strong, golfer

• Fort Pierce official site
• Sites to visit in Fort Pierce
• Virtual city tour
• National Navy SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce