Henry L. Mitchell

Henry Laurens Mitchell (September 3, 1831–October 14, 1903) was an American lawyer, judge, and politician. He served as the 16th Governor of Florida (1893–1897). Mitchell was born near Birmingham in Jefferson County, Alabama. His family moved to Tampa when he was 15 years old. Mitchell studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1849 at the age of 18. When the American Civil War began, Mitchell resigned from his post as Florida Attorney General and enlisted in the Confederate States Army. Mitchell was such a strong supporter of Southern nationalism that in he had two members of his Masonic lodge expelled for fighting in the Union Army. In July 1863, Mitchell left the Confederate Army to take a seat in the Florida House of...