A historic Captiva Island estate with a Theodore Roosevelt connection sold in Florida for millions. The sale of “Dolphins Crossing,” a historic Captiva Island estate at 15735-15737 Captiva Drive, closed at $10 million. Represented by Valerie Tutor, Realtor with Kingfisher Real Estate, the Lee County transaction ranks among the most significant luxury sales recorded on Captiva Island and reflects continuing demand for rare, historically significant waterfront properties in Southwest Florida.
In the spring of 1917, former President Theodore Roosevelt arrived on Captiva Island to hunt the giant manta ray. Working alongside naturalist Russell J. Coles, Roosevelt anchored a houseboat off the dock and boathouse at Dr. John Dickey’s estate on the island’s bay side, using it as the staging ground for one of his last great wildlife adventures.
That boathouse still stands on the property and is listed on the Lee County Historic Register. It has been restored and converted into a guest cottage overlooking the same bay waters the 26th president once navigated…