Florida Governors in the Civil War

Related Cities & Topics:

View Full Size

Governor Madison Starke Perry

Photo Credit: Museum of Florida History

View Full Size

Florida Governor Jon Milton

Photo Credit: Museum of Florida History

Madison Starke Perry, John Milton and Abraham K. Allison all served as Florida governors at different points throughout the Civil War and faced different challenges.

As the Civil War began, the governor of Florida was Madison Starke Perry of the Democratic Party. A South Carolina native, Perry settled in Alachua County in the 1840s, where he operated a plantation and became active in politics. In 1857, he ran against the American Party candidate for governor and won. Following President Lincoln’s election, Perry asked the legislature to convene a secession convention, which in early January 1861 voted overwhelmingly for disunion. Perry guided the state during the critical period in which it left the Union and joined the new Confederate States of America.

His primary goals were the occupation of U.S. government facilities in the state, the establishment of relations with the central government and organization of the state’s defenses.

When finally assuming the duties of governor in October 1861, Milton faced a variety of problems arising from the war.

After leaving the governorship, Perry helped organize the 7th Florida Infantry Regiment and, despite the fact that he had no prior military training or experience, was elected its colonel. The unit served in East Tennessee throughout Perry’s tenure in command, though it experienced little combat until later in the war. The former governor resigned in June 1863 and returned home to Alachua County. He took no further active role in the war and died at his plantation in March 1865.

For most of the Civil War, the governor of Florida was John Milton of the Democratic Party. Milton was born in Georgia in 1807 and moved to Florida in the 1840s, where he operated a plantation in Jackson County. He also became active in politics, serving in the state legislature and leading the Florida delegation at the 1860 Democratic convention. Later that year, Milton defeated his Constitutional Unionist opponent in the gubernatorial election, and remained governor-elect for a full year. When finally assuming the duties of governor in October 1861, Milton faced a variety of problems arising from the war.

Early in his term, Milton's political opponents moved to limit the governor's authority, establishing an executive council to share power with the governor. He also faced a crisis when Confederate authorities withdrew most of the troops defending Florida, leading to the abandonment of parts of the state. Other issues facing Milton included the depletion of the state's finances, conscription, a growing Unionist sentiment in some areas and the impressment of supplies by Confederate authorities.

Though an ardent Southern nationalist, Milton criticized this seizure of property. Worn down by his duties and despondent over the imminent collapse of the Confederacy, Milton committed suicide on April 1, 1865.

With Milton’s death, Senate President Abraham K. Allison of Quincy assumed the office of governor and presided over the state during the Confederacy’s collapse. He resigned the office on May 19, 1865, was arrested by Federal authorities shortly afterward, and in June 1865 was imprisoned at Fort Pulaski, Georgia for several months along with other Confederate officials. Upon his release, he returned to Quincy, where he died in 1893.

To learn more, see: The Florida Handbook, 2009-2010 by Allen Morris, Peninsular Publishing Company, 2009.