 Soon thereafter, there was a natural inlet called Gilbert's Bar in that general area, used by the pirate Don Pedro Gilbert as an escape route from deep-draft pursuit vessels.The "Santa Lucia" Inlet crossed by Jonathan Dickinson in 1696 was located at the Old Indian River Inlet just north of the modern, artificial Fort Pierce Inlet.As is true for most inlets between barrier islands, the inlet closed and opened repeatedly in the past through natural process.