Abraham Kurkindolle Allison (December 10, 1814 – July 8, 1893) was a Florida businessman and politician. He served in the Florida Territorial Legislature and the Florida State House of Representatives. He served as the sixth Governor of Florida, at the end of 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 ...

Early life

Allison was born in

Jones County, Georgia Jones County is a County (United States), county in the Central Georgia, central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 28,347. The county seat is Gray, Ge ...

, on December 10, 1814, to Captain James and Sarah Fannin Allison. After he graduated from school, he worked as a merchant in

Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it ...

, and in

Henry County, Alabama Henry County is a county in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, its population was 17,146. Its county seat is Abbeville. The county was named for Patrick Henry (1736–1799), famous orator and Governor of ...

.Morris pg. 299 He then moved to

Apalachicola, Florida Apalachicola ( ) is a city and the county seat of Franklin County, Florida, United States, on the shore of Apalachicola Bay, an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico. The population was 2,231 at the 2010 census. History The Apalachicola people, after ...

, where he served as the city's first mayor. He also served as the first county judge of Franklin County and as Clerk of the United States Court. He was a member of the Territorial Legislature. In the

Seminole War The Seminole Wars (also known as the Florida Wars) were three related military conflicts in Florida between the United States and the Seminole, citizens of a Native American nation which formed in the region during the early 1700s. Hostilities ...

, he was captain of the Franklin Rifles. He moved to Quincy, Gadsden County in 1839 and there commenced the practice of law. In 1843, he built a

Georgian colonial Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I, George II, Geo ...

home in Quincy. In 1989 it became the Allison House Inn, a

bed and breakfast Bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. Bed and breakfasts are often private family homes and typically have between four and eleven rooms, wit ...

Early political career

He was again elected to the Territorial Legislature, and represented Gadsden County in the State Legislature in 1845, 1847 and 1852. As Speaker of the House, he assumed the duties of acting Governor on September 16, 1853, because both Governor Thomas Brown and Senate President R. J. Floyd were out of the state. He gave up the office on the inauguration of

James E. Broome James Emilius Broome (December 15, 1808 – November 23, 1883) was an American politician who was the List of Governors of Florida, third Governor of Florida. Early life and career Broome was born in Hamburg, Aiken County, South Carolina, Ham ...

on October 3. Allison did not exercise executive powers and merely held himself in readiness should a need arise. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1861. He served during the Confederacy in the

Florida State 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 ...

from 1862 through 1864.

Governorship and later life

After Governor John Milton died on April 1, 1865 either from an accident or suicide, Allison, as the state senate president, assumed the office of

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

. He resigned his office on May 19, 1865, and went into hiding the day before Federal troops formally occupied Tallahassee. He was captured by Union forces on June 19, 1865, and held for several months at

Fort Pulaski A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

. After his release, he returned to Quincy to practice law. During the election of 1870, Allison led a band of armed men to block black voters from the polls until they closed. This nearly eliminated the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

majority in Gadsden County. In 1872, he was convicted of "intimidating Negroes" for this incident and jailed for six months and fined. He died in Quincy, Florida, on July 8, 1893.

Notes

References

Official Governor's portrait and biography from the State of Florida
* Morris, Allen and Joan Perry Morris, compilers. ''The Florida Handbook 2007-2008'' 31st Biennial Edition. Page 309
Peninsula Publishing
Tallahassee. 2007. Softcover Hardcover {{DEFAULTSORT:Allison, Abraham K. Confederate States Army officers Democratic Party governors of Florida People from Quincy, Florida People from Jones County, Georgia People of Florida in the American Civil War Members of the Florida Territorial Legislature 19th-century American politicians Democratic Party Florida state senators Presidents of the Florida Senate 1810 births 1893 deaths Mayors of places in Florida American people of the Seminole Wars Confederate States of America state governors Activists from Florida Speakers of the Florida House of Representatives Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives