Martin, John Wellborn, 1884-1958

Born in 1884 at Plainfield (Marion County, Florida), John Wellborn Martin became Florida's 24th governor in 1925. Largely self-educated, he was admitted to the bar in 1914 and began practicing law in Jacksonville. From 1917 to 1924, he served as mayor of that city. While governor, Martin presided over a land boom that attracted national attention. During this period, he built highways on a statewide basis, financed public schools by direct state appropriations, and furnished free textbooks to students in the first six grades. Martin was defeated in 1928 for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate and in 1932 for nomination for Governor. Beginning in the 1940s he was co-receiver and subsequently trustee of the Florida East Coast Railroad. He died in Jacksonville in 1958.

From the description of Correspondence, 1935-1937. (Florida State Archive). WorldCat record id: 32413150