01/10/1861 AD seceded from

Florida becomes the third state to secede, following South Carolina and Mississippi. By the following month, six states had seceded;

Following the election of Lincoln, a special secession convention formally known as the "Convention of the People of Florida" was called by Governor Madison S. Perry to discuss secession from the Union.

Delegates were selected in a statewide election, and met in Tallahassee on January 3, 1861. Virginia planter and firebrand Edmund Ruffin came to the convention to advocate for secession. Fifty-one of the 69 convention members held slaves in 1860. Just seven of the delegates were born in Florida.

On January 5, McQueen McIntosh introduced a series of resolutions defining the purpose of the convention and the constitutionality of secession. John C. McGehee, who was involved in drafting Florida's original constitution and became a judge, was elected the convention president.

Leonidas W. Spratt of South Carolina gave an impassioned speech[ for secession. Edward Bullock of Alabama also spoke to conventioneers. William S. Harris was the convention's secretary.

On January 7, the vote was overwhelmingly in favor of immediate secession, delegates voting sixty-two to seven to withdraw Florida from the Union.

A formal Ordinance of Secession was introduced for debate on January 8. The primary topic of debate was whether Florida should immediately secede or wait until other southern states such as Alabama officially chose to secede

Outspoken supporters of secession at the conference included Governor Perry and Governor-elect John Milton. Jackson Morton and George Taliaferro Ward attempted to have the ordinance amended so that Florida would not secede before Georgia and Alabama, but their proposal was voted down. When Ward signed the Ordinance he stated "When I die, I want it inscribed upon my tombstone that I was the last man to give up the ship."

On January 10, 1861, the delegates formally adopted the Ordinance of Secession, which declared that the "nation of Florida" had withdrawn from the "American union."

Tallahassee, FL

Lattitude: 30.455° N
Longitude: 84.2533° W
Region: North America

Modern Day United States

Events in 1861 MORE