James Emilius Broome (December 15, 1808 – November 23, 1883) was an American politician who served as the third

governor of Florida The governor of Florida is the head of government of the U.S. state of Florida. The Governor (United States), governor is the head of the Government of Florida#Executive branch, executive branch of the government of Florida and is the comman ...

from 1853 to 1857.

Early life and career

Broome was born in

Hamburg, South Carolina Hamburg is a ghost town in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. It was once a thriving upriver market located across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia in the Edgefield District. It was founded by Henry Shultz in 1821 who named ...

and moved to Florida in 1837. He engaged in the mercantile business until he retired in 1841. In that same year, Governor

Richard Keith Call Richard Keith Call (October 24, 1792 – September 14, 1862) was an American attorney, politician, and enslaver who served as the 3rd and 5th territorial governor of Florida. Before that, he was elected to the Florida Territorial Council and as a ...

appointed him to the position of

Probate Judge A probate court (sometimes called a surrogate court) is a court that has competence in a jurisdiction to deal with matters of probate and the administration of estates. In some jurisdictions, such courts may be referred to as orphans' courts o ...

of Leon County. He served in that position until 1848.

Political life

He was elected governor in 1852. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, he took office on October 3, 1853. He was an early States'-Righter. During his term, the Whig Party, the opposition to the Democrats at the time, controlled the Florida State Legislature. He vetoed so many of the bills that were passed by the legislature that he became known as the "Veto Governor". His gubernatorial stint ended on October 5, 1857. Broome served as a member of the

Florida Senate The Florida Senate is the upper house of the Florida Legislature, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida House of Representatives being the lower house. Article III, Section 1 of the C ...

in 1861. A large

planter Planter or Planters may refer to: Common meanings * A flowerpot or box for plants ** ''Jardiniere'', one such type of pot, mostly indoor types ** Cachepot, another term for the same ** Flower box, another type of planter, mostly for outdoors ** ...

, he was very sympathetic to the

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

cause.

Marriages

James E. Broome was married five times. In 1865, he moved to New York City. On a visit with his son in

DeLand, Florida DeLand is a city in and the county seat of Volusia County, Florida, United States. The city sits approximately north of the central business district of Orlando, and approximately west of the central business district of Daytona Beach. It is ...

, Broome died in 1883.

References

External links

Official Governor's portrait and biography from the State of Florida
Governors of Florida 1808 births 1883 deaths Democratic Party governors of Florida People from Hamburg, South Carolina People from Leon County, Florida 19th-century members of the Florida Legislature 19th-century American planters American slave owners 19th-century American merchants 19th-century American judges Whig Party (United States) politicians Politicians from New York City States' rights {{Florida-politician-stub