Mary Kaye Stevens is an incredible storyteller.

Her time spent on the road and on boat rides, visiting places and talking to people is helping shape the future of our area and that’s because Stevens words and images live through the memories of the Lee County Islands.

As a part of the Images of America series published by Arcadia Publishing, Stevens Lee County Islands explores the rich history of the barrier islands skirting Pine Island Sound.

For this author, it is the second book of this kind and it just keeps getting more and more interesting, she says.

“My curiosity and interest in local history brought me to the point of writing about it,” Stevens says. “I believe words can cross time and distance, connecting people of different generations, ages and experiences. But the vintage images tell a story that I hope will inspire readers to preserve their own histories, as well as those of their community’s.”

A native of South Dakota, Stevens’ interest in our area developed while walking down an airport concourse. On her way to visit family in the Midwest, the author spotted the Images of America series on a display and couldn’t put the book down.

“On the flight home, I told my husband, ‘Pine Island needs one of these books. I think I could write it!’,” she recounts. “When we arrived home, I went online to learn about Arcadia Publishing’s book proposal process. And before I even unpacked our suitcases, I had sent off a proposal for my first book, Pine Island.”

Much like in her first book, the Lee County Islands paperback captures the colorful history of this area with more than 200-vintage photographs and information collected from multigenerational island families and local museums.

Covering the history of Pine Island, Estero, Useppa, Gasparilla, Captiva and Upper Captiva and much more, this book was a full time job. Stevens spent long hours exploring the archives of our libraries, museums, historical societies and family collections. She met “real characters” that developed the visual stories she saw in gathered photographs and answered many questions about the identity of our area.

Information in the book goes as far back as the 1800s. Tales of Ponce de Leon, the Calusa Indians, hardscrabble pioneers, famous anglers like Thomas Edison and Teddy Roosevelt, writers such as Richard Powell and Mary Roberts Rinehart, and our beautiful beaches abound the pages of Lee County Islands.

“Vintage images fill each and every page with intrigue,” says Stevens. “The biggest challenge for me was to deliver historical information to the reader in a succinct and entertaining format. But although brief, the accompanying captions are packed with little known trivia and facts pertaining to the area.”

Currently, Stevens is enjoying her days sharing accounts and time with her fans at book signings around town. She is also thrilled to already be hard at work on another book, which she says will include more current photos and a new twist.

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