List of colonial governors of Florida facts for kids
The colonial governors of Florida were the leaders who managed Florida when it was a colony, before it became a U.S. state in 1845. The first European to arrive in Florida was Juan Ponce de León in 1513. However, the first official governor wasn't appointed until 1565. That's when Pedro Menéndez de Avilés founded St. Augustine, the oldest continuously inhabited European-established settlement in the United States. He was named Governor and Adelantado (a special military and administrative title) of Florida. This area was part of the larger New Spain territory.
In 1763, Florida was given to Britain. The British divided the land into two parts: West Florida and East Florida, each with its own governor. This division continued when Spain took control of Florida again in 1783. Finally, Spain handed Florida over to the United States in 1821. The Florida Territory was officially created in 1822, and it became the modern State of Florida in 1845.
Contents
Florida's First Spanish Rule (1565–1763)
This was the first long period when Spain controlled Florida. Governors were appointed to manage the colony from St. Augustine.
| Name | Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pedro Menéndez de Avilés | Sep 1565 – Sep 1574 | Founded St. Augustine; died in office. |
| Diego de Velasco | 1574 – 1576 | Acting governor. |
| Hernando de Miranda and Alonso de Solís | 1576 | |
| Gutierre de Miranda | 1576 – 1577 | Acting governor. |
| Pedro Menéndez Márquez | 1577 – 1594 | Spanish missions to the Timucua people began. |
| Domingo Martínez de Avendaño | 1594 – 1595 | |
| Alonso de las Alas, Bartolomé de Argüelles, and Juan Menéndez Márquez | 1595 – 1597 | Acting governors. |
| Gonzalo Méndez de Canço | 1597 – 1603 | |
| Pedro de Ibarra | 1603 – 1610 | |
| Juan Fernández de Olivera | 1610 – 1612 | |
| Juan de Arrazola and Joseph de Olivera | 1612 – 1613 | Acting governors. |
| Juan Treviño de Guillamas | 1613 – 1618 | |
| Juan de Salinas | 1618 – 1624 | |
| Luis de Rojas y Borja | 1624 – 1630 | |
| Andrés Rodríguez de Villegas | 1630 – 1631 | |
| Nicolás Ponce de León and Eugenio de Espinosa | 1631 – 1633 | Acting governors. |
| Luis de Horruytiner | 1633 – 1638 | Apalachee missions were started. |
| Damián de Vega Castro y Pardo | 1638 – 1645 | |
| Benito Ruíz de Salazar Vallecilla | 1645 – 1646 | |
| Francisco Menéndez Márquez and Pedro Benedit Horruytiner | 1646 – 1648 | Acting governors. |
| Benito Ruíz de Salazar Vallecilla | 1648 – 1651 | |
| Nicolás Ponce de León | 1651 | Acting governor. |
| Pedro Horruytiner Benedit | 1651 – 1654 | Acting governor. |
| Diego de Rebolledo y Suárez de Aponte | 1654 – 1659 | |
| Alonso de Aránguiz y Cortés | 1659 – 1663 | |
| Nicolás Ponce de León II | 1663 – 1664 | Acting governor. |
| Francisco de la Guerra y de la Vega | 1664 – 1671 | |
| Manuel de Çendoya | 1671 – 1673 | Started building the Castillo de San Marcos. |
| Nicolás Ponce de León II | 1673 – 1675 | Acting governor. |
| Pablo de Hita y Salazar | 1675 – 1680 | |
| Juan Márquez Cabrera | 1680 – 1687 | |
| Pedro de Aranda y Avellaneda | 1687 | Acting governor. |
| Diego de Quiroga y Losada | 1687 – 1693 | |
| Laureano de Torres y Ayala, Marquis of Casa Torres | 1693 – 1699 | Finished building the Castillo de San Marcos. |
| José de Zúñiga y la Cerda | 1699 – 1706 | |
| Francisco de Córcoles y Martínez | 1706 – 1716 | |
| Pedro de Olivera y Fullana | 1716 | |
| Juan de Ayala y Escobar | 1716 – 1718 | Acting governor. |
| Antonio de Benavides | 1718 – 1734 | |
| Francisco del Moral y Sánchez | 1734 – 1737 | |
| Manuel Joseph de Justís | 1737 | Acting governor. |
| Manuel de Montiano | 1737 – 1749 | |
| Melchor de Navarrete | 1749 – 1752 | |
| Fulgencio García de Solís | 1752 – 1755 | Acting governor. |
| Alonso Fernández de Heredia | 1755 – 1758 | |
| Lucas Fernando de Palacio y Valenzuela | 1758 – 1761 | |
| Alonso de Cárdenas | 1761 – 1762 | Acting governor. |
| Melchor Feliú | 1762 – 1763 | Oversaw many Floridians moving to Cuba. |
Florida Under British Rule (1763–1784)
After the Seven Years' War, Spain gave Florida to Great Britain. The British split Florida into two separate colonies: East Florida and West Florida.
Governors of East Florida
East Florida's capital was St. Augustine.
| Name | Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| John Hedges | 20 Jul 1763 – 30 Jul 1763 | Acting governor. |
| Francis Ogilvie | 30 Jul 1763 – 29 Aug 1764 | Acting governor. |
| James Grant | 29 Aug 1764 – 9 May 1771 | |
| John Moultrie | 9 May 1771 – 1 Mar 1774 | |
| Patrick Tonyn | 1 Mar 1774 – 12 Jul 1784 |
Governors of West Florida
West Florida's capital was Pensacola.
| Name | Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Major General Augustine Prévost | 6 Aug 1763 – 20 Oct 1763 | Interim military leader. |
| Major Robert Farmar | 20 Oct 1763 – Oct 1764 | Acting governor. |
| Commodore George Johnstone | Oct 1764 – Jan 1767 | |
| Montfort Browne | Jan 1767 – 2 April 1769
2 May 1769 - c.Nov 1769 |
Acting governor. |
| Captain John Eliot | 2 Apr 1769 – 2 May 1769 | |
| Captain-Lieutenant Elias Durnford | c. Nov 1769 – 10 Aug 1770 | |
| Peter Chester | 10 Aug 1770 – 9 May 1781 |
Florida's Second Spanish Rule (1784–1821)
After the American Revolutionary War, Great Britain gave Florida back to Spain. Florida was still divided into East and West Florida.
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Governors of East Florida
The capital of East Florida remained St. Augustine.
| Name | Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Vicente Manuel de Céspedes y Velasco | 12 July 1784 – July 1790 | |
| Juan Nepomuceno de Quesada y Barnuevo | July 1790 – March 1796 | |
| Bartolomé Morales | March 1796 – June 1796 | Acting governor. |
| Enrique White | June 1796 – March 1811 | |
| Juan José de Estrada | March 1811 – June 1812 | During the Patriot War with the U.S. |
| Sebastián Kindelán y Oregón | June 1812 – June 1815 | During the Patriot War with the U.S. |
| Juan José de Estrada | June 1815 – January 1816 | |
| José María Coppinger | January 1816 – 10 July 1821 |
Governors of West Florida
The capital of West Florida remained Pensacola.
| Name | Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Colonel Arturo O'Neill de Tyrone | 9 May 1781 – Nov 1792, or in 1794 | |
| Carlos Howard | Nov 1792 – Aug 1793 | |
| Enrique White | Aug 1793, or Aug 1794 – Nov 1795 | |
| Francisco de Paula Gelabert | May 1796 – Sep 1796 | |
| Colonel Vicente Folch y Juan | Nov 1796 – Mar 1809 | |
| Francisco San Maxent | Mar 1809 – May 1809 | Interim governor. |
| Colonel Vicente Folch y Juan | May 1809 - Oct 1809 | |
| Francisco San Maxent | Dec 1809 - Oct 1810 | Interim governor. |
| Francisco Collell | Oct 1810 – Feb 1811 | Interim governor. |
| Francisco San Maxent | Apr 1811 – Jun 1812 | |
| Mauricio de Zúñiga | Jul 1812 – Apr 1813 | |
| Mateo González Manrique | May 1813 – Feb 1815 | |
| José de Soto | Feb 1815 – Mar 1816 | |
| Mauricio de Zúñiga | Mar 1816 – 15 Sep 1816 | |
| Francisco San Maxent | Sep 1816 – Nov 1816 | |
| José Fascot | 27 Nov 1816 – 26 May 1818 | |
| Colonel William King | 26 May 1818 – 4 February 1819 | U.S. military governor during the First Seminole War. |
| Colonel José María Callava | Feb 1819 – 17 July 1821 |
See also
- List of governors of Florida, for a list of United States territorial and state governors of Florida since 1821.
