William Iredell Turner (June 7, 1812 – October 28, 1881), also occasionally and erroneously referred to as William J. Turner, was a Florida pioneer and a soldier who helped establish

Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698. History Late 18th and early 19th centuries ...

and

Parrish, Florida Parrish is an unincorporated community in northwestern Manatee County, Florida, United States. The community is located near the intersection of U.S. 301 and State Road 62 and is part of the North Port–Sarasota–Bradenton Metropol ...

. Turner was born in Virginia on June 7, 1812. When he was about sixteen years old, he enlisted in the military. He fought during the

Second Seminole War The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between the United States and groups collectively known as Seminoles, consisting of Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans and ...

, during which time he was injured in the neck. He was discharged from the military in August 1837 but returned to the military to fight during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, where he served as a Colonel for the Florida State Militia and commanded

Fort Brooke Fort Brooke was a historical military post established at the mouth of the Hillsborough River in present-day Tampa, Florida in 1824. Its original purpose was to serve as a check on and trading post for the native Seminoles who had been confined ...

in 1861. Prior to the Civil War Turner owned and ran Oak Hill, the largest plantation in

Alachua County, Florida Alachua County ( ) is a county in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 278,468. The county seat is Gainesville, the home of the University of Florida since 1906, when the campus ope ...

. Turner was a proponent of secession and had unsuccessfully run for a seat in the

Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopted ...

. However, he is known to have been elected to the

Florida Senate The Florida Senate is the upper house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida House of Representatives being the lower house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopted ...

in 1865. Turner died on October 28, 1881, and is buried alongside his wife Isabella at the Parrish Cemetery.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, William Iredell 1812 births 1881 deaths American planters