John Milton (politician)

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John Milton

John Milton (born April 20, 1807 in Jefferson County , Georgia , † April 1, 1865 in Marianna , Florida ) was an American politician and from 1861 to 1865 the 5th governor of Florida.

Live and act

Early years and political advancement

John Milton attended school in Louisville , Georgia, studied law and practiced in Georgia, Alabama, and Louisiana in the years that followed . During the Seminole War he was a captain of a unit from Alabama. He served in this unit from 1835 to 1837. Milton had a reputation for being a bit hot-blooded. He is said to have shot at least one opponent in a duel. In 1846 he settled in Jackson County , Florida and immediately took part in the political life of his new home. In 1849 he was elected to the Florida House of Representatives. Even then he was a supporter of the secession movement and the rights of the individual states vis-à-vis the federal government. In 1860 he was elected governor of his state as a candidate for the Democratic Party .

Florida governor

By the time he took office on October 7, 1861, Florida was already on the Confederation side in the Civil War . The state had already left the Union in January 1861 and then joined the confederation. Since April 13, 1861, the day of the attack on Fort Sumter in Charleston , the entire American nation, including Florida, had been in a civil war. As a supporter of the Confederation , Milton supported it primarily with food and salt, but also with soldiers. His further term in office was overshadowed by the events of the civil war. When the defeat of the South loomed in early 1865, the governor withdrew to his estate near Marianna in March 1865 and shot himself. In a final appeal to his compatriots, he had previously announced to the Florida House of Representatives that the death would be a reunification would be preferable to the nation.

John Milton was married twice and had a total of twelve children: a son and two daughters with his first wife († 1842) and two sons and seven daughters with his second wife Caroline Howze (1826-1901), whom he married in 1844.

literature

  • Robert Sobel and John Raimo (Eds.): Biographical Directory of the Governors of the United States, 1789–1978. Volume 1, Meckler Books, Westport, 1978. (4 volumes.)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Gene M. Burnett: Florida's Past (Volume 1: People and Events That Shaped the State ), 1986, p. 197
personal data
SURNAME Milton, John
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American politician
DATE OF BIRTH April 20, 1807
PLACE OF BIRTH Jefferson County , Georgia
DATE OF DEATH April 1, 1865
Place of death Marianna , Florida