Military Wiki
J. B. C. Drew
United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida

In office
1874 – Unknown
Appointed by Ulysses S. Grant
Preceded by A. A. Knight
10th Florida Attorney General

In office
1871–1872
Governor Harrison Reed
Preceded by Sherman Conant
Succeeded by Horatio Bisbee Jr.
Personal details
Born 1843
New Hampshire
Died November 4, 1924(1924-11-04) (aged Error: Need valid year, month, day)
Jacksonville, Florida
Political party Republican (until 1872; after 1873)
Liberal Republican (1872)
Spouse(s) Ella A.
Military service
Allegiance  United States of America
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service 1864–1865
Rank First lieutenant
Unit 35th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars American Civil War

James B. C. Drew (1843 – November 4, 1924), also referred to as J. B. C. Drew, was an American soldier and politician who served as the 10th Florida Attorney General.[1]

Early life and military service[]

Drew was born in New Hampshire in 1843.[2] At some point before the American Civil War, Drew moved to Madison, Wisconsin.[3]

On January 24, 1864, Drew was commissioned as a second lieutenant for Company F of the newly created 35th Wisconsin, fighting with them at the Battle of Spanish Fort and the Battle of Fort Blakeley during the Mobile Campaign.[4] On January 14, 1865, Drew was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant. He was mustered out of service on May 17, 1865.[3]

After the war, Drew moved to Jacksonville, Florida.[2]

Political career[]

In 1871, Drew, a Republican, was appointed by Florida Governor Harrison Reed as the 10th Florida Attorney General, succeeding Sherman Conant, who had been appointed a United States Marshal. Drew would only serve as the state's attorney general until 1872.[1][5]

In 1872, Drew switched to the Liberal Republican Party and was one of Florida's delegates to the 1872 Liberal Republican convention, serving on the Committee on Credentials and the Committee on Platform. After the 1872 election and the collapse of the Liberal Republican Party, he rejoined the Republican Party.[6]

Despite his opposition to President Ulysses S. Grant during the 1872 election, Grant nominated Drew as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.[7] Though voting on his appointment was delayed in Congress by the Radical Republicans due to his former membership of the more conservative Liberal Republican Party, Drew was eventually confirmed by the United States Senate.[8]

Later life and death[]

At some point after his tenure as U.S. Attorney, Drew worked as a broker for several railroads in West Virginia. He was essential in the purchase of 54,000 acres (84.375 square miles) of land near Horse Creek, West Virginia, which allowed for the connection of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad to the Kanawha River.[9] Drew also owned a home in Ravenswood, West Virginia.[10]

At some point, Drew married a woman named Ella A.

Drew died in Jacksonville on November 4, 1924. He is buried in Jacksonville's Evergreen Cemetery and is interred with his wife.[2]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Florida Attorney General - Florida Attorneys General (1845 - )". http://myfloridalegal.com/pages.nsf/4492d797dc0bd92f85256cb80055fb97/21d3e99c36cfb89385256cc60071795b!OpenDocument. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Judge James B. C. Drew". https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/79461207/james-b_c_-drew. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 Wisconsin. Adjutant General's Office (1886). Roster of Wisconsin volunteers, war of the rebellion, 1861-1865. The Library of Congress. Madison, Democrat printing co., state printers. http://archive.org/details/rosterofwisconsi02wisco. 
  4. "35th Wisconsin Infantry History". 2012-08-28. https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS2281. 
  5. (in en) Acts and Resolutions of the General Assembly of the State of Florida. W. & C. Julian Bartlett. 1871. https://books.google.com/books?id=TQM4AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA1&lpg=PA1&dq=%22james+b+c+drew%22+florida+attorney+general&source=bl&ots=FWfrIZw4TH&sig=ACfU3U3VOQdCPyfFfpFaFNka9zNMB04cPg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiiwcvd-OHhAhWOiOAKHa6dCtcQ6AEwAXoECAYQAQ#v=onepage&q=%22james%20b%20c%20drew%22%20florida%20attorney%20general&f=false. 
  6. Convention, Liberal Republican Party National (1872) (in en). Proceedings of the Liberal Republican Convention, in Cincinnati, May Lst, 2d and 3d, 1872: Horace Greeley's Letter of Acceptance. Address of the New York State Committee to Their Fellow-citizens. Baker & Godwin, printers. https://books.google.com/books?id=j3k0AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA7&lpg=PA7&dq=j+b+c+drew+%22liberal+republican%22+party&source=bl&ots=8DqF_WPtXl&sig=ACfU3U0N6dHuInCzLKUS3HvaNKdaOqJTHg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj0gLWd_uHhAhWpm-AKHYNgAs4Q6AEwAHoECAgQAQ#v=onepage&q=drew&f=false. 
  7. "WASHINGTON. The Railroad and the Mails". The New York Times. September 16, 1873. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1873/09/16/79047177.pdf. 
  8. Senate, United States Congress (1901) (in en). Journal of the Executive Proceedings of the Senate of the United States. https://books.google.com/books?id=DJ-iAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA248&lpg=PA248&dq=%22james+b+c+drew%22&source=bl&ots=uHQr21ihgv&sig=ACfU3U2VGzxX-NOHnHa4uH-lJDLA6qcmmg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi-z4L9--HhAhXOqFkKHTvrDg0Q6AEwDXoECAYQAQ#v=onepage&q=%22james%20b%20c%20drew%22&f=false. 
  9. (in en) The Coal Trade Journal. 1894. https://books.google.com/books?id=029JAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA2-PT24&lpg=RA2-PT24&dq=%22judge+james+b+c+drew%22&source=bl&ots=4h-Ke_lIaJ&sig=ACfU3U0eosAmVQKYCxroqzCJuY1Z4ubltA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi7mpf0--HhAhWitlkKHY-CDwUQ6AEwBnoECAUQAQ#v=onepage&q=%22judge%20james%20b%20c%20drew%22&f=false. 
  10. "PROGRAM-ST. ALBANS-NITRO BRIDGE OPENING". November 12, 1934. http://historyofnitro.com/History/bridges/StAlbans-NitroBridge/1934-11-12Program-SA-N_bridge.pdf. 
All or a portion of this article consists of text from Wikipedia, and is therefore Creative Commons Licensed under GFDL.
The original article can be found at J. B. C. Drew and the edit history here.