John Alexander Henderson (December 21, 1841 – August 10, 1904) was a corporate lawyer and politician in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. He was an early resident of

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough County ...

, the brother of William Benton Henderson. He studied law under

James Gettis James Gettis (May 4, 1816 – December 14, 1867) was a lawyer and judge in Tampa, Florida. He was the second lawyer in Tampa. Gettis was also a city councilman, and state representative, and the first town clerk. Originally from Pennsylva ...

, who raised him after the death of his father. During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, Henderson was in Gettis's company. He was elected

mayor of Tampa The Mayor is the highest elected official in Tampa, Florida. Since its incorporation in 1856, the town has had 59 mayors. Tampa had no mayor from 1862 until 1866, during which time the city government was temporarily suspended during and immediate ...

in 1870. In 1876, he moved to

Tallahassee Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the population ...

. His second wife was the daughter of G. T. Ward. He served as general consul for the Florida Central & Peninsular Railroad Company. He was a trustee of the

West Florida Seminary The history of Florida State University dates to the 19th century and is deeply intertwined with the history of education in Florida, education in the state of Florida and in the city of Tallahassee, Florida, Tallahassee. Florida State University, ...

, and his daughter Jennie married

Albert A. Murphree Albert Alexander Murphree (April 29, 1870 – December 20, 1927) was an American college professor and university president. Murphree was a native of Alabama, and became a mathematics instructor after earning his bachelor's degree. He late ...

. He taught law to William Himes. He was a state senator.

William D. Bloxham William Dunnington Bloxham (July 9, 1835 – March 15, 1911) was the 13th and 17th Governor of Florida in two non-consecutive terms. Prior to his first term as governor, he served in the Florida House of Representatives. In between his terms as ...

appointed him a US

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

when

Wilkinson Call Wilkinson Call (January 9, 1834August 24, 1910) was an American lawyer and politician who represented Florida in the United States Senate from 1879 to 1897. Biography Wilkinson Call, nephew of Territorial Governor of Florida Richard K. Call a ...

's term expired.http://archive.flsenate.gov/data/Historical/Senate%20Journals/1930s/1935/8C/5_31_bloxham_memorial_1935.pdf

References

1841 births 1904 deaths People from Tallahassee, Florida Confederate States Army personnel 19th-century American lawyers Mayors of Tampa, Florida People of Florida in the American Civil War Florida State University people {{Florida-politician-stub