David Levy Yulee
David Levy Yulee | |
---|---|
Edward Cabell (Representative) | |
Personal details | |
Born | David Levy June 12, 1810 Charlotte Amalie, Danish West Indies (now U.S. Virgin Islands) |
Died | October 10, 1886 New York City, New York, U.S. | (aged 76)
Resting place | Oak Hill Cemetery Washington, D.C., U.S. |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse | Nancy Wickliffe |
Relatives | Charles A. Wickliffe (father-in-law) |
David Levy Yulee (born David Levy; June 12, 1810 – October 10, 1886) was an American politician and attorney who served as the senator from Florida immediately before the American Civil War. A secessionist and slaveowner, he also founded the Florida Railroad Company and served as president of several other rail companies, earning him the nickname of "Father of Florida Railroads."[1]
Yulee was born on the island of
Yulee was the first person of
Yulee was in favor of slavery and the secession of Florida. His fortune came from a
Early life and education
He was born David Levy in
After the family immigrated to the United States in the early 1820s, Moses Levy bought 50,000 acres (200 km2) of land near present-day Jacksonville, Florida Territory. Despite his wealth as a trader, his father feared it would lead to sin.[citation needed] He wanted to establish a "New Jerusalem" for Jewish settlers. The parents sent their son to a boy's academy and college in Norfolk, Virginia. Levy studied law with Robert R. Reid in St. Augustine, was admitted to the bar in 1832, and started a practice in St. Augustine.[1][13][14]
Early political career
During his twenties, Levy served in the territorial militia, including during the Second Seminole War. In 1834, he was present at a conference with Seminole chiefs, including Osceola.
In 1836, Levy was elected to the Florida Territory's Legislative Council, serving from 1837 to 1839. He was a delegate to the territory's constitutional convention in 1838 and served as the legislature's clerk in 1841.
Florida businessman
In 1851 Yulee founded a 5,000-acre (20 km2)
While living in
Issuing public stock, Yulee chartered the Florida Railroad in 1853. He planned its eastern and western terminals at deep-water ports,
Political career
Levy (still going by that surname) was elected in 1841 as the
In 1845, after Florida was admitted as a state, the legislature elected Levy as a
In 1855 Yulee was again elected by the Florida legislature to the Senate. He served until resigning in 1861 in order to support the Confederacy at the start of the American Civil War.
Yulee's inflammatory pro-slavery rhetoric in the Senate earned him the nickname "Florida Fire-Eater".[23] Although he frequently denied that he favored secession, Yulee and his colleague, Senator Stephen Mallory, jointly requested from the War Department a statement of munitions and equipment in Florida forts on January 2, 1860. He wrote to a friend in the state, "the immediately important thing to be done is the occupation of the forts and arsenals in Florida."[7]
Civil War
There is some dispute as to Yulee's wartime legislative service as some sources state that he served in the Confederate Congress and others do not.[13][24] According to the records of the United States Senate, Yulee did serve in the Confederate Congress, and he also served as the Secretary of the Navy in President Jefferson Davis's cabinet.[25] After the war, Yulee was imprisoned in Fort Pulaski for nine months for treason,[4]: 188 specifically for aiding in the 1865 escape of Jefferson Davis.[7]
Reconstruction
After receiving a pardon and being released from confinement, Yulee returned to Florida and rebuilt the Yulee Railroad, which had been destroyed by warfare. He served as president of the Florida Railroad Company from 1853 to 1866, as well as president of the Peninsular Railroad, Tropical Florida Railway, and Fernandina and Jacksonville Railroad companies. His development of the railroads in Florida was his most important achievement and contribution to the state.[14] He was called the "Father of Florida Railroads".[1] His leadership helped bring increased economic development to the state, including the late nineteenth-century tourist trade.[1] In 1870 Yulee hosted President Ulysses S. Grant in Fernandina.
Marriage and family
In 1846, Levy officially changed his name to David Levy Yulee by an act of the Florida Legislature,
Death and legacy
Selling the Florida Railroad, he retired with his wife to Washington, D.C., in 1880, where she had a family.[14] Yulee died on October 10, 1886, at the Clarendon Hotel in New York City.[27][28][29] Yulee was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in Washington, D.C.[1][30]
- Both the town of Yulee, Florida[31] and Levy County, Florida[32] are named for him.
- The town of Fernandina Beach, Florida has a statue of Yulee.[33]
- In 2000, the Florida Department of State designated Levy Yulee as a Great Floridian in the Great Floridians 2000 Program. Award plaques in his honor were installed at both the Fernandina Chamber of Commerce and the Yulee Sugar Mill Ruins State Historic Site.[22]
- The Liberty Ship SS David L. Yuleewas named in his honor.
See also
- List of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States Congress
- List of Jewish members of the United States Congress
- List of United States senators born outside the United States
Archival material
The George A. Smathers Libraries at the University of Florida have a collection of David Levy Yulee Papers (1842–1886). Some of the material has been digitized.
References
- ^ a b c d e f "Jewish Virtual Library: David Levy Yulee". Retrieved 2009-05-15.
- ^ Kurt F. Stone, The Jews of Capitol Hill: A Compendium of Jewish Congressional Members, 2010, page 4
- ISBN 9780195206357.
- ^ ISBN 9780802120762.
- ^ Edenfield, Gray (June 17, 2014). "David Yulee's History". From the Jailhouse. Fernandina Beach, FL: Amelia Island Museum of History.
- ISBN 978-1-56164-206-9.
- ^ a b c d Federal Writers' Project (1939), Florida. A Guide to the Southernmost State, New York: Oxford University Press, p. 348, retrieved October 29, 2017
- ^ David Levy Yulee Jewish Virtual Library
- ^ ISBN 9-780-8108-7738-2.
- ^ Roger Moore, Ron Kurtz, Amelia Island and Fernandina Beach, 2001, page 1873
- ^ "1886: Controversy-beset first Jewish U.S. Senator dies". Haaretz.
- ^ Mosaic: Jewish Life in Florida (Coral Gables, FL: MOSAIC, Inc., 1991): 9
- ^ a b Retrieved from the permanent collection of the Jewish Museum of Florida
- ^ a b c d e John R. Nemmers, "A Guide to the David Levy Yulee Papers", University of Florida Smathers Libraries, Special and Area Studies Collections, March 2005, accessed 24 July 2011
- ^ a b Wiseman, Maury. "David Levy Yulee: Conflict and Continuity in Social Memory". Jacksonville University. Retrieved 2013-06-27.
- ^ Cook, David (December 6, 1987). "Orange Springs Once Thriving Resort". Ocala Star-Banner. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
- ^ "House of Representatives: Mr. Levy introduced a bill making further provision for the suppression of hostilities in Florida...". Hillsborough Recorder. Hillsborough, NC. August 5, 1841. p. 3.
- ^ "Twenty-Seventh Congress: The resolution of the Committee on Elections in reference to Mr. Levy was taken up as follows: Resolved, that David Levy, Esq., is not a citizen of the United States...". Public Ledger. Philadelphia, PA. September 8, 1841. p. 1.
- ^ "The resolution postponing the case of David Levy sitting delegate from Florida till the next session was adopted: Yeas 123, Nays 44". Commercial Advertiser and Journal. Buffalo, NY. September 13, 1841. p. 2.
- ^ Bartlett, D. W. (1865). Cases of Contested Elections in Congress from 1834 to 1865, Inclusive. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office. p. 47.
- ^ Cases of Contested Elections in Congress from 1834 to 1865, Inclusive, p. 47.
- ^ a b "Great Floridians 2000 Program: Judah Philip Benjamin". Florida Department of State, Florida Heritage. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30.
- ^ Horowitz, Jason (12 July 2014). "Republican Jews Alarmed at the Prospect of a Void in the House and Senate". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 July 2014.
- ^ Davis, Robt. W. (June 1, 1902). "Florida in Congress". Florida Magazine. Jacksonville, FL: G. D. Ackerly: 362. Note: All of Florida's Confederate senators and representatives are listed here, and Yulee's name is not among them.
- ^ "U.S. Senate: The Election Case of David L. Yulee of Florida v. Stephen R. Mallory of Florida (1852)".
- ISBN 978-0-8071-6428-0.
- ^ Thomas William Herringshaw, Herringshaw's National Library of American Biography, 1914, p. 524
- ^ John R. Nemmers, George A. Smathers Library, University of Florida, A Guide to the David Levy Yulee Papers: Biographical Note, March 2005
- ^ "Oak Hill Cemetery, Georgetown, D.C. (Henry Crescent) - Lots 366 and 367 East" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-10-23. Retrieved 2022-10-22.
- ^ Hunn, Max (Aug 19, 1956). "Driving through Florida history". Ocala Star-Banner. p. 29. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
- ^ Publications of the Florida Historical Society. Florida Historical Society. 1908. p. 32.
- ^ Feldman, Ari (August 20, 2017). "Why Are There No Statues Of Jewish Confederate Judah Benjamin To Tear Down?". Forward. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
There is only one known statue of a Jewish Confederate leader. It depicts David Levy Yulee, an industrialist, plantation owner, and Confederate senator from Florida, and it shows him sitting on a bench.
External links
- Media related to David Levy Yulee at Wikimedia Commons
- Works by or about David Levy Yulee at Internet Archive
- Detailed biography, Yulee Railroad Days website
- Guide to the David L. Yulee Papers, University of Florida]
- United States Congress. "David Levy Yulee (id: Y000061)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Biography, Jewish Virtual Library