The first non-native settlement in the area was by a family of freed slaves following the Civil War. In 1888, a group of men from Cocoa bought the entire tract of land, which went undeveloped until it was bought out in 1923 by a member of the group—Gus Edwards, Cocoa's city attorney. At that time, Edwards' total holdings included approximately 600 acres (2.4 km), and he had stopped practicing law to devote all his efforts to developing the area.
The Town of Cocoa Beach was established on June 5, 1925. Gus C. Edwards was elected as mayor and served as a commissioner along with J.A. Haisten, and R.Z. Grabel. On July 27, 1925, Cocoa Beach held its first official meeting at the Cocoa Beach Casino, and adopted the City Seal. A little less than a month later, plans for a pier became official.
In 1935, the FDOT opened up what is now State Road A1A as a one-lane dirt road to Eau Gallie. In 1938, a Deputy Marshal was appointed to "to act in emergencies at night or at other times" for $.25/hour ($4.13 in 2011 dollars). By 1939, the town had 49 residents. In 1940, the town requested that State Road 140 (now A1A) be routed on Orlando Avenue instead of Atlantic Avenue. In 1942, the town prepared to receive men assigned to the newly opened Naval Air Station Banana River. Establishing regular garbage collection was discussed when the town discovered that the Air Station was having theirs collected.
On May 1, 1942, the German submarine U-109 torpedoed the La Paz off the shore of Cocoa Beach. The crew was able to beach it with the help of tugs. Eventually it was returned to shipping. On May 3, the same U-boat sunk the SS Laertes close to the same place. Local boys were recruited for salvaging efforts and to rid the beach of the subsequent debris. Shortly after, the federal government realized the danger from backlighting from the coast, making easy targets of passing shipping, and ordered a blackout for the remainder of the war.
During World War II,
