Florence Gibbs (née Reville; April 4, 1890 – August 19, 1964) was a
Democratic
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
congresswoman. Elected in special election to replace her deceased husband, she became the first woman to represent
Georgia in the
United States House of Representatives, serving for three months from October 3, 1940, to January 3, 1941.
Early life
Florence Reville was born April 4, 1890, in
Thomson,
McDuffie County, Georgia.
She was the oldest child of Sallie Printup Reville and Thomas Porter Reville.
She grew up there, attending public schools, and then graduated from
Brenau College
Brenau University is a private university with its historic campus in Gainesville, Georgia. Founded in 1878, the university enrolls more than 2,800 students from approximately 48 states and 17 foreign countries who seek degrees ranging from assoc ...
in
Gainesville, Georgia
The city of Gainesville is the county seat of Hall County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 42,296. Because of its large number of poultry processing plants, it is often called the "Poultry Capital of t ...
. She married
Willis Benjamin Gibbs, a Georgia attorney and politician, and together they had two children.
Congress
In 1938, W. Benjamin Gibbs was elected as a Democrat to represent Georgia's Eighth congressional district in the
76th United States Congress
The 76th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1939, ...
. He took his seat on January 3, 1939, and served until his death in 1940. Florence Gibbs was elected on October 3, 1940, as a Democrat in the
special election to fill the vacant seat left by her husband's death; she was sworn into office on October 3, 1940.
She did not run in the
general election
A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
to represent the district in the
77th United States Congress, and she left office January 3, 1941.
Later life
After leaving Congress, Florence Gibbs retired from public life and resided in
Jesup, Georgia, until her death there on August 19, 1964.
See also
*
Women in the United States House of Representatives
References
* Source: ''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress''
1890 births
1964 deaths
People from Thomson, Georgia
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state)
Female members of the United States House of Representatives
Women in Georgia (U.S. state) politics
20th-century American politicians
20th-century American women politicians
Brenau University alumni
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