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Marco Island, Florida is an island four miles wide and six miles long located in Collier County, FL on the Gulf of Mexico in Southwest Florida. Marco Island is the largest barrier island within Southwest Florida's Ten Thousand Islands area. Established in 1996, the Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge is a 35,000-acre maze of mangrove islands and waterways best accessed by boat. 

The fierce Calusa Indians were the first inhabitants of Marco Island. European diseases brought to the island by Spanish explorers wiped out the Calusa tribe by the mid 1700s. The Calusa were followed by the Seminole, but the region was rugged, and not particularly accessible for European settlers. Until after the Civil War, there was little population occupying southwest Florida. When “Captain Bill” Collier opened a 20-room hotel in 1896, the only way to reach Marco Island was by crossing a narrow, wooden, hand-operated swinging bridge. Today the island can be easily reached via I-75 and U.S. Highway 41, also known as the Tamiami Trail.

Today Marco Island is a popular tourist destination. Marco Island includes four miles of sugar-sand beach, with island resorts located directly on the beach. The city is surrounded by miles of pristine, uninhabited islands, bays, creeks, and the Gulf of Mexico, with dependable sunshine, famous gulf sunsets and world-class tropical fly fishing. Non-anglers can enjoy endless boutique shopping, the subtropical climate, and gourmet restaurants. Marco Island’s surrounding mainland is home to a number of great golf courses as well. Tourists can easily visit the region via the nearby Southwest Florida International Airport, located about one hour north of Marco Island.
Marco Island is also surrounded by some of Southwest Florida’s finest natural resources. The Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve is north of Marco Island. To the south is the Collier-Seminole State Park, the Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge, Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve, Big Cypress National Preserve and the Everglades National Park. 

A dozen historic markers dot Marco Island, including the Cushing Archaeological Site, which is considered one of the most historically significant excavations in North America. Archaeologists have unearthed Native American artifacts more than 3,000 years old. 

In 2000, the U.S. Census Bureau listed the Marcos Island population at 14,879 permanent residents. During the months of January to March, the population grows to over 30,000 as vacationers and winter residents arrive. The median household income was $60,357, significantly above the US average of $41,994. There were 3,629 Single-family owner-occupied homes with a median value of $291,100, also significantly above the US average of $119,600.

The District School Board of Collier County is responsible for public school education in Marco Island, Florida. Nearly 93% of the residents of Marco Island have graduated high school. Institutions of higher learning nearby to Marco Island, Florida, include; Ave Maria University, Edison State College, and Hodges University. 

There are three hospitals convenient to residents of Marco Island; Marco Healthcare Center, North Collier Hospital in Naples, and Naples Community Hospital, also in nearby Naples.

The Florida State Courts System is divided into 20 judicial circuits or areas of jurisdiction. Florida has two appellate courts.  Florida's Supreme Court, the state's highest court, hears civil and criminal appeals from the lower courts. The court also answers constitutional questions and rules on the validity of statutes and on the construction of the state or U.S. constitutions. The state's five District Courts of Appeal, headquartered in Tallahassee, Lakeland, Miami, West Palm Beach, and Daytona Beach, hear all matters not directly appealable to the Supreme Court, as well as final actions of state agencies.

Florida has a two-tier trial court system of Circuit and County courts. The state's Circuit Courts hear felonies, family law matters civil cases involving amounts over $15,000, probate, guardianship and mental health issues, juvenile dependency and delinquency issues and appeals from County Court. The state's County Courts hear misdemeanors, small claims of up to $5,000 and civil cases of up to and including $15,000 in controversy, as well as traffic cases. Examples of civil matters include hospital negligence, surgical malpractice, automobile accidents, truck accidents, work injury, dog bites, and professional liability lawsuits.

Marco Island, located in Collier County is part of the 20th Judicial Circuit of Florida. The Collier County Courthouse is located at Building L, 6th Floor, 3301 Tamiami Trail East, Naples, FL 34112.