William D. Bloxham
Encyclopedia
William Dunnington Bloxham (July 9, 1835 – March 15, 1911) was an American
politician. He served as the 13th and 17th Governor of Florida in two non-consecutive terms. Prior to his first term as governor, he served in the Florida House of Representatives.
In between his terms as governor, he served as state Comptroller
under Governor Francis P. Fleming
. Bloxham was only the second governor of Florida
to be born in the state.
in Leon County, Florida
, the son of William and Martha (Williams) Bloxham. His great-grandfather had migrated from England
to manage George Washington
's plantation and his grandfather endured adversity due to the War of 1812
. His father was from Alexandria, Virginia
and moved to Leon County to run a plantation in 1825, becoming one of few white settlers in a Native American
-dominated area. The elder William served in the Seminole Wars
. Martha Bloxham was born in Twiggs County, Georgia
and moved to Florida as a child.
The younger Bloxham went to county school in Florida before being sent to preparatory school in Virginia at age 13. For the next seven years, he attended Virginia schools including Rappahannock Academy where his teachers included eventual U.S. Senator
William Mahone
. Bloxham graduated from The College of William & Mary in 1855 and acquired a law degree from the college. He was admitted to the Florida Bar but, when his health declined, he travelled to Europe
and chose the more active life of a planter when he returned. In November 1856, he and Mary C. Davis travelled to her home city of Lynchburg, Virginia
to be married.
Bloxham became interested in politics and actively campaigned for James Buchanan
in the 1856 presidential election
. In 1861, he was elected to the Florida House of Representatives
without opposition. With the Civil War raging in 1862, Bloxham organized a company
of infantry
from Leon County which he commanded for the duration of the war. After the war, he staunchly opposed Reconstruction and, using his popularity as a speaker, was a leading voice among Florida Democrats. He served as a Presidential Elector for the Horatio Seymour
/Francis Preston Blair, Jr.
Democratic ticket in the 1868 election
.
s were being resisted in Florida, often violently, by groups like the Ku Klux Klan
. On Election Day
of 1870, the most violent counties were inundated with federal troops at the request of Governor Harrison Reed. The chaos of that day included constitutional convention member, William Capers Bird, pointing a handgun
at African American
state senator
Robert Meacham
on the courthouse steps in Monticello
, reportedly warning, "no damned nigger
shall vote here."
When the voting finally ended, it appeared that Bloxham had won the Lieutenant Governor
race. Republicans used the chaos of the day as an excuse for rejecting the votes of nine largely Democratic counties, but Bloxham sought an injunction
from the Florida Circuit Courts
to prevent tainted results from being announced. A circuit judge granted the injunction but a federal grand jury
indicted
the judge. With the circuit judge in jail, the Republican-led board of canvassers rejected enough ballots to overturn Bloxham's victory in favor of Republican Samuel T. Day
.
Bloxham pushed the election dispute to the Florida Supreme Court
, filing for a writ of mandamus
on January 10, 1871 to force a recount. While the Florida Attorney General
disagreed that a recount could be ordered, the Supreme Court Chief Justice sided with Bloxham. Republican legislators countered by repealing the law which created the board of canvassers in the first place and the Supreme Court was unable to compel the board to recount when the board effectively ceased to exist. Bloxham applied to the supreme court for a writ of quo warranto
on February 20, 1871 to challenge Day's victory, but the case did not begin until November 15. On June 1, 1872, the court finally ruled that Bloxham had won the 1870 election, by which time he had missed every state senate session in the term, meaning the term was effectively concluded. Although he took the oath of office on June 3, he couldn't perform the lieutenant governor's only duty, which was to preside over the Senate. Thus, he is not named in lists of Florida's lieutenant governors. Regardless, the ruling marked the first win for the Florida Democratic Party
since the war.
Democratic Convention to run for Governor with Confederate General Robert Bullock
as his running mate. In November, a severe Election Day storm reduced the vote count and Bloxham was defeated by Republican Ossian B. Hart
by 1,200 votes. Hart, who had tried to claim Abijah Gilbert
's U.S. Senate
seat two years earlier, died barely a year into his term. Bloxham served on the State Democratic Executive Committee and actively participated in the successful gubernatorial campaign of George Franklin Drew
, promising protection to African Americans who voted for him. Bloxham was named Secretary of State
.
In June 1880, Bloxham was nominated again to run for Governor and so resigned as Secretary of State. In his second attempt, he won the election by over 5,000 and was inaugurated on January 4, 1881. Bloxham inherited a state debt of $1 million and a lawsuit that placed a lien
on millions of acres of Florida land. Before his first month as governor was complete, Bloxham and Florida signed an agreement with Philadelphia saw manufacturing heir, Hamilton Disston
, whereby Disston would attempt to drain the Everglades
and would receive half of the land he reclaimed
. With Disston actively planning his drainage efforts, Bloxham personally travelled to Philadelphia to make an even larger deal with him. On June 14, 1881, Disston signed a contract to purchase four million acres (16,000 km²) of Florida land, larger than the state of Connecticut
, for $1 million, a purchase which made international news. When Disston and a second buyer, Sir Edward James Reed
, paid in full, the state was out of debt and the first land boom soon followed.
Towards the end of Bloxham's first stint as Governor, in 1884, call for revision to the Florida Constitution
increased, fueled by division among the state's democrats. Supporters of Bloxham's predecessor, George Franklin Drew
, criticized Bloxham for the Disston Land Purchase as well as his apparent commitment to Florida Panhandle
development at the expense of the rest of the state. They rallied around Confederate
General
Edward A. Perry
and a call for a Constitutional Convention
. In 1884, Bloxham lost the Democratic nomination to Perry and voters approved the convention which led to the 1885 Florida Constitution.
by President
Grover Cleveland
. Bloxham took the oath of office but declined to report for the post. Instead, he accepted a November 1885 appointment to become the U.S. Surveyor General
for Florida which he held until December 1889. When the state comptroller
position became vacant on May 1, 1890, Governor Francis P. Fleming
appointed Bloxham to fill it. Bloxham was unanimously nominated for the position in August 1890 and easily won the election, and was easily re-elected in 1892.
Comptroller Bloxham ran for governor and was victorious in 1896, 12 years after leaving the office. Despite his conservative reputation, Bloxham left his mark in his second term by reinstating and expanding the powers of a railroad commission, restricting monopolies
and creating a state-wide audit
or to eliminate government fraud and waste. Fire insurance company regulation was initiated and women served as public notaries
for the first time during Bloxham's second stint as governor.
William Bloxham died on March 15, 1911 in Tallahassee, Florida
. A planned Bloxham County, Florida
centered around Williston, Florida
, was rejected by a referendum in 1915.
, Florida
from the late 1850s owner of the William D. Bloxham Plantation
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician. He served as the 13th and 17th Governor of Florida in two non-consecutive terms. Prior to his first term as governor, he served in the Florida House of Representatives.
In between his terms as governor, he served as state Comptroller
Florida Comptroller
The Florida Comptroller was the state comptroller of Florida from 1845 to 2003...
under Governor Francis P. Fleming
Francis P. Fleming
Francis Philip Fleming was an American politician and the 15th Governor of Florida from 1889 to 1893. Fleming was a Democrat, strong supporter of segregation and an opponent of civil rights for blacks...
. Bloxham was only the second governor of Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
to be born in the state.
Early life and career
Bloxham was born on a plantationPlantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
in Leon County, Florida
Leon County, Florida
Leon County is a county located in the state of Florida, named after the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León. At the 2010 Census, the population was 275,487. The county seat of Leon County is Tallahassee which also serves as the state capital. The county seat is home to two of Florida's major...
, the son of William and Martha (Williams) Bloxham. His great-grandfather had migrated from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to manage George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
's plantation and his grandfather endured adversity due to the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. His father was from Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
and moved to Leon County to run a plantation in 1825, becoming one of few white settlers in a Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
-dominated area. The elder William served in the Seminole Wars
Seminole Wars
The Seminole Wars, also known as the Florida Wars, were three conflicts in Florida between the Seminole — the collective name given to the amalgamation of various groups of native Americans and Black people who settled in Florida in the early 18th century — and the United States Army...
. Martha Bloxham was born in Twiggs County, Georgia
Twiggs County, Georgia
Twiggs County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. It was created on December 14, 1809. As of 2000, the population was 10,590. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 10,280...
and moved to Florida as a child.
The younger Bloxham went to county school in Florida before being sent to preparatory school in Virginia at age 13. For the next seven years, he attended Virginia schools including Rappahannock Academy where his teachers included eventual U.S. Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
William Mahone
William Mahone
William Mahone was a civil engineer, teacher, soldier, railroad executive, and a member of the Virginia General Assembly and U.S. Congress. Small of stature, he was nicknamed "Little Billy"....
. Bloxham graduated from The College of William & Mary in 1855 and acquired a law degree from the college. He was admitted to the Florida Bar but, when his health declined, he travelled to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and chose the more active life of a planter when he returned. In November 1856, he and Mary C. Davis travelled to her home city of Lynchburg, Virginia
Lynchburg, Virginia
Lynchburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 75,568 as of 2010. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains along the banks of the James River, Lynchburg is known as the "City of Seven Hills" or "The Hill City." Lynchburg was the only major city in...
to be married.
Bloxham became interested in politics and actively campaigned for James Buchanan
James Buchanan
James Buchanan, Jr. was the 15th President of the United States . He is the only president from Pennsylvania, the only president who remained a lifelong bachelor and the last to be born in the 18th century....
in the 1856 presidential election
United States presidential election, 1856
The United States presidential election of 1856 was an unusually heated contest that led to the election of James Buchanan, the ambassador to the United Kingdom. Republican candidate John C. Frémont condemned the Kansas–Nebraska Act and crusaded against the expansion of slavery, while Democrat...
. In 1861, he was elected to the Florida House of Representatives
Florida House of Representatives
The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida. The House is composed of 120 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 156,677.The House convenes at...
without opposition. With the Civil War raging in 1862, Bloxham organized a company
Company (military unit)
A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 80–225 soldiers and usually commanded by a Captain, Major or Commandant. Most companies are formed of three to five platoons although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure...
of infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
from Leon County which he commanded for the duration of the war. After the war, he staunchly opposed Reconstruction and, using his popularity as a speaker, was a leading voice among Florida Democrats. He served as a Presidential Elector for the Horatio Seymour
Horatio Seymour
Horatio Seymour was an American politician. He was the 18th Governor of New York from 1853 to 1854 and from 1863 to 1864. He was the Democratic Party nominee for president of the United States in the presidential election of 1868, but lost the election to Republican and former Union General of...
/Francis Preston Blair, Jr.
Francis Preston Blair, Jr.
Francis Preston Blair, Jr. was an American politician and Union Army general during the American Civil War. He represented Missouri in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, and he was the Democratic Party's nominee for Vice President in 1868.-Early life and career:Blair was born in...
Democratic ticket in the 1868 election
United States presidential election, 1868
The United States presidential election of 1868 was the first presidential election to take place after the American Civil War, during the period referred to as Reconstruction...
.
1870 election controversy
In 1870, Bloxham was at the center of a political firestorm during one of Florida's most violent periods. The Republican carpetbaggerCarpetbagger
Carpetbaggers was a pejorative term Southerners gave to Northerners who moved to the South during the Reconstruction era, between 1865 and 1877....
s were being resisted in Florida, often violently, by groups like the Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
. On Election Day
Election Day (United States)
Election Day in the United States is the day set by law for the general elections of public officials. It occurs on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November. The earliest possible date is November 2 and the latest possible date is November 8...
of 1870, the most violent counties were inundated with federal troops at the request of Governor Harrison Reed. The chaos of that day included constitutional convention member, William Capers Bird, pointing a handgun
Handgun
A handgun is a firearm designed to be held and operated by one hand. This characteristic differentiates handguns as a general class of firearms from long guns such as rifles and shotguns ....
at African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
state senator
Florida Senate
The Florida Senate is the upper house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida. The Senate is composed of 40 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 470,032....
Robert Meacham
Robert Meacham
Robert Meacham was an African-American leader in Florida during Reconstruction. He helped to establish the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Florida and acted as a minister. In 1868 he helped write Florida's Constitution. He went on to win a seat in the Florida state legislature as a state...
on the courthouse steps in Monticello
Monticello, Florida
Monticello is a city in Jefferson County, Florida, United States. The population was 2,533 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 2,572. It is the county seat of Jefferson County...
, reportedly warning, "no damned nigger
Nigger
Nigger is a noun in the English language, most notable for its usage in a pejorative context to refer to black people , and also as an informal slang term, among other contexts. It is a common ethnic slur...
shall vote here."
When the voting finally ended, it appeared that Bloxham had won the Lieutenant Governor
Lieutenant Governor of Florida
The Lieutenant Governor of Florida is a statewide elected office in the government of the U.S. state of Florida. According to the Florida Constitution, the lieutenant governor is elected to a four-year term congruent with that of the Governor of Florida, and succeeds to the office of Governor if it...
race. Republicans used the chaos of the day as an excuse for rejecting the votes of nine largely Democratic counties, but Bloxham sought an injunction
Injunction
An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a court order that requires a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. A party that fails to comply with an injunction faces criminal or civil penalties and may have to pay damages or accept sanctions...
from the Florida Circuit Courts
Florida Circuit Courts
The Florida Circuit Courts are state courts. They are trial courts of original jurisdiction for most controversies. In Florida, the circuit courts are one of four types of courts created by the Florida Constitution .The Circuit Courts primarily handle civil cases where...
to prevent tainted results from being announced. A circuit judge granted the injunction but a federal grand jury
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
indicted
Indictment
An indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
the judge. With the circuit judge in jail, the Republican-led board of canvassers rejected enough ballots to overturn Bloxham's victory in favor of Republican Samuel T. Day
Samuel T. Day
Samuel T. Day was an American physician, plantation owner, and politician who served as the fourth Lieutenant Governor of Florida, from January 3, 1871, to June 3, 1872....
.
Bloxham pushed the election dispute to the Florida Supreme Court
Florida Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the State of Florida is the highest court in the U.S. state of Florida. The Supreme Court consists of seven judges: the Chief Justice and six Justices who are appointed by the Governor to 6-year terms and remain in office if retained in a general election near the end of each...
, filing for a writ of mandamus
Mandamus
A writ of mandamus or mandamus , or sometimes mandate, is the name of one of the prerogative writs in the common law, and is "issued by a superior court to compel a lower court or a government officer to perform mandatory or purely ministerial duties correctly".Mandamus is a judicial remedy which...
on January 10, 1871 to force a recount. While the Florida Attorney General
Florida Attorney General
The Florida Attorney General is an elected cabinet official in the U.S. state of Florida. The attorney general serves as the chief legal officer of the state....
disagreed that a recount could be ordered, the Supreme Court Chief Justice sided with Bloxham. Republican legislators countered by repealing the law which created the board of canvassers in the first place and the Supreme Court was unable to compel the board to recount when the board effectively ceased to exist. Bloxham applied to the supreme court for a writ of quo warranto
Quo warranto
Quo warranto is a prerogative writ requiring the person to whom it is directed to show what authority they have for exercising some right or power they claim to hold.-History:...
on February 20, 1871 to challenge Day's victory, but the case did not begin until November 15. On June 1, 1872, the court finally ruled that Bloxham had won the 1870 election, by which time he had missed every state senate session in the term, meaning the term was effectively concluded. Although he took the oath of office on June 3, he couldn't perform the lieutenant governor's only duty, which was to preside over the Senate. Thus, he is not named in lists of Florida's lieutenant governors. Regardless, the ruling marked the first win for the Florida Democratic Party
Florida Democratic Party
The Florida Democratic Party is the official organization for Democrats in the state of Florida.-History:The Florida Democratic Party has historically dominated dodo Florida's state and local politics. Florida's Governor's Mansion was closed to Republicans from 1877 until 1967, when Claude R...
since the war.
Governorship and the Disston Land Purchase
In the summer of 1872, Bloxham was unanimously nominated at the JacksonvilleJacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
Democratic Convention to run for Governor with Confederate General Robert Bullock
Robert Bullock
Robert Bullock was a United States Representative from Florida and a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army. He was born in Greenville, North Carolina where he attended the common schools. He moved to Fort King, Florida in 1844 which was then a United States Government post, near the...
as his running mate. In November, a severe Election Day storm reduced the vote count and Bloxham was defeated by Republican Ossian B. Hart
Ossian B. Hart
Ossian Bingley Hart was the tenth Governor of the U.S. state of Florida, and the first governor of Florida who was born in the state. Born in Jacksonville to Isaiah Hart, one of the city's founders, he was raised on his father's plantation along the St. Johns River. He was lawyer in Jacksonville....
by 1,200 votes. Hart, who had tried to claim Abijah Gilbert
Abijah Gilbert
Abijah Gilbert was a United States Senator from Florida.Born in Gilbertsville, New York, Gilbert attended Gilbertsville Academy and graduated from Hamilton College in 1822. He spent 1822 to 1850 engaged in mercantile pursuits in New York City before moving to St...
's U.S. Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
seat two years earlier, died barely a year into his term. Bloxham served on the State Democratic Executive Committee and actively participated in the successful gubernatorial campaign of George Franklin Drew
George Franklin Drew
George Franklin Drew was the 12th Governor of the U.S. state of Florida.Born in Alton, New Hampshire, he moved to the south, opening a machine shop in Columbus, Georgia in 1847. In 1865, he opened the largest sawmill in Florida in Ellaville...
, promising protection to African Americans who voted for him. Bloxham was named Secretary of State
Secretary of State of Florida
The Secretary of State of Florida is a constitutional officer of the state government of the U.S. state of Florida, established by the original 1838 state constitution....
.
In June 1880, Bloxham was nominated again to run for Governor and so resigned as Secretary of State. In his second attempt, he won the election by over 5,000 and was inaugurated on January 4, 1881. Bloxham inherited a state debt of $1 million and a lawsuit that placed a lien
Lien
In law, a lien is a form of security interest granted over an item of property to secure the payment of a debt or performance of some other obligation...
on millions of acres of Florida land. Before his first month as governor was complete, Bloxham and Florida signed an agreement with Philadelphia saw manufacturing heir, Hamilton Disston
Hamilton Disston
Hamilton Disston , was an industrialist and real-estate developer who purchased four million acres of Florida land in 1881, an area larger than the state of Connecticut, and reportedly the most land ever purchased by a single person in world history...
, whereby Disston would attempt to drain the Everglades
Everglades
The Everglades are subtropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large watershed. The system begins near Orlando with the Kissimmee River, which discharges into the vast but shallow Lake Okeechobee...
and would receive half of the land he reclaimed
Land reclamation
Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, is the process to create new land from sea or riverbeds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamation ground or landfill.- Habitation :...
. With Disston actively planning his drainage efforts, Bloxham personally travelled to Philadelphia to make an even larger deal with him. On June 14, 1881, Disston signed a contract to purchase four million acres (16,000 km²) of Florida land, larger than the state of Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, for $1 million, a purchase which made international news. When Disston and a second buyer, Sir Edward James Reed
Edward James Reed
Sir Edward James Reed , KCB, FRS, was a British naval architect, author, politician, and railroad magnate. He was the Chief Constructor of the Royal Navy from 1863 until 1870...
, paid in full, the state was out of debt and the first land boom soon followed.
Towards the end of Bloxham's first stint as Governor, in 1884, call for revision to the Florida Constitution
Florida Constitution
The Constitution of the State of Florida is the document that establishes and describes the duties, powers, structure and function of the government of the U.S. state of Florida, and establishes the basic law of the state....
increased, fueled by division among the state's democrats. Supporters of Bloxham's predecessor, George Franklin Drew
George Franklin Drew
George Franklin Drew was the 12th Governor of the U.S. state of Florida.Born in Alton, New Hampshire, he moved to the south, opening a machine shop in Columbus, Georgia in 1847. In 1865, he opened the largest sawmill in Florida in Ellaville...
, criticized Bloxham for the Disston Land Purchase as well as his apparent commitment to Florida Panhandle
Florida Panhandle
The Florida Panhandle, an informal, unofficial term for the northwestern part of Florida, is a strip of land roughly 200 miles long and 50 to 100 miles wide , lying between Alabama on the north and the west, Georgia also on the north, and the Gulf of Mexico to the south. Its eastern boundary is...
development at the expense of the rest of the state. They rallied around Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Edward A. Perry
Edward A. Perry
Edward Aylesworth Perry was a general under Robert E. Lee during the American Civil War and the 14th Governor of Florida.-Early life:He was a descendant of Arthur Perry, one of the earliest settlers of New England...
and a call for a Constitutional Convention
Constitutional convention (political meeting)
A constitutional convention is now a gathering for the purpose of writing a new constitution or revising an existing constitution. A general constitutional convention is called to create the first constitution of a political unit or to entirely replace an existing constitution...
. In 1884, Bloxham lost the Democratic nomination to Perry and voters approved the convention which led to the 1885 Florida Constitution.
Second term
On April 18, 1885, Bloxham was appointed Minister Resident and Consul General to BoliviaUnited States Ambassador to Bolivia
The following is a list of United States Ambassadors, or other Chiefs of Mission, to Bolivia. The title given by the United States State Department to this position is currently Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.-See also:...
by President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Grover Cleveland
Grover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents...
. Bloxham took the oath of office but declined to report for the post. Instead, he accepted a November 1885 appointment to become the U.S. Surveyor General
Surveyor General
The Surveyor General is an official responsible for government surveying in a specific country or territory. Originally this would often have been a military appointment, but is now more likely to be a civilian post....
for Florida which he held until December 1889. When the state comptroller
Comptroller
A comptroller is a management level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization.In British government, the Comptroller General or Comptroller and Auditor General is in most countries the external auditor of the budget execution of the...
position became vacant on May 1, 1890, Governor Francis P. Fleming
Francis P. Fleming
Francis Philip Fleming was an American politician and the 15th Governor of Florida from 1889 to 1893. Fleming was a Democrat, strong supporter of segregation and an opponent of civil rights for blacks...
appointed Bloxham to fill it. Bloxham was unanimously nominated for the position in August 1890 and easily won the election, and was easily re-elected in 1892.
Comptroller Bloxham ran for governor and was victorious in 1896, 12 years after leaving the office. Despite his conservative reputation, Bloxham left his mark in his second term by reinstating and expanding the powers of a railroad commission, restricting monopolies
Monopoly
A monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
and creating a state-wide audit
Audit
The general definition of an audit is an evaluation of a person, organization, system, process, enterprise, project or product. The term most commonly refers to audits in accounting, but similar concepts also exist in project management, quality management, and energy conservation.- Accounting...
or to eliminate government fraud and waste. Fire insurance company regulation was initiated and women served as public notaries
Notary public
A notary public in the common law world is a public officer constituted by law to serve the public in non-contentious matters usually concerned with estates, deeds, powers-of-attorney, and foreign and international business...
for the first time during Bloxham's second stint as governor.
William Bloxham died on March 15, 1911 in Tallahassee, Florida
Tallahassee, Florida
Tallahassee is the capital of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County, and is the 128th largest city in the United States. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2010, the population recorded by...
. A planned Bloxham County, Florida
Bloxham County, Florida
Bloxham County was a proposed Florida, United States county which was never created. Bloxham existed as a county on paper only, the voters refusing to approve its establishment. There might have been a Call County but for a gubernatorial vote. Bloxham County was named for William D. Bloxham, who...
centered around Williston, Florida
Williston, Florida
Williston is a city in Levy County, Florida, United States. The population was 2,297 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2004 estimates, the city had a population of 2,467.-Geography:Williston is located at ....
, was rejected by a referendum in 1915.
Other
William Bloxham was a cotton plantation owner in Leon CountyLeon County, Florida
Leon County is a county located in the state of Florida, named after the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León. At the 2010 Census, the population was 275,487. The county seat of Leon County is Tallahassee which also serves as the state capital. The county seat is home to two of Florida's major...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
from the late 1850s owner of the William D. Bloxham Plantation
William D. Bloxham Plantation
The William D. Bloxham Plantation was a small cotton plantation of located southwest of Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida, USA established by William D. Bloxham.-Plantation specifics:The Leon County Florida 1860 Agricultural Census shows that the William D...
.