John E. Mathews Explained

John E. Mathews
Office:Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court
Termstart:January 1955
Termend:April 29, 1955
Office2:Justice of the Florida Supreme Court
Termstart2:October 23, 1951
Termend2:April 29, 1955
Appointer2:Fuller Warren
Predecessor2:Alto L. Adams
Successor2:B. Campbell Thornal
Termstart4:April 6, 1943
Termend4:April 3, 1951
Predecessor4:J. Turner Butler
Successor4:Wayne E. Ripley
Birth Date:19 July 1892
Birth Place:Jacksonville, Florida.
Death Place:Tallahassee, Florida, U.S.
State Senate4:Florida
District4:18th

John Elie Mathews (July 19, 1892– April 29, 1955) was an American lawyer, legislator, and judge. He was a justice of the Florida Supreme Court from 1951 to 1955.

Mathews was born on July 19, 1892, in Tattnall County, Georgia.[1] Mathews began his legal career in Georgia in 1913 before moving to Jacksonville, Florida and opening a practice in 1916.[2] He married Alice Schumpert. His son, future Florida legislator John E. Mathews Jr., was born in 1920.[3]

He served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1928 to 1932. In 1942, Mathews was elected to the Florida Senate. In 1945, he was a part of the movement to re-apportion the legislature to reflect the growing population in the state's cities. Mathews led an unsuccessful campaign to exclude blacks from the Democratic primary election in 1947. He was also an opponent of desegregation of the University of Florida during his time in the Senate.[2] In 1950, Mathews was defeated in a re-election campaign, partially through the mobilization of black voters.[4]

In 1951, Justice Alto Adams resigned from the Florida Supreme Court to run for governor.[5] Mathews was chosen as his replacement by political ally Governor Fuller Warren, and he joined the Court on October 23, 1951. As a justice, Mathews spearheaded the creation of the District Courts of Appeal to reduce the workload of the Supreme Court. He spoke out against the Brown v. Board of Education ruling that integrated the nation's schools.[2] Mathews' health had already begun to fail when he became the Chief Justice in January 1955.[5] He died of a heart attack on April 29, 1955, in Tallahassee, Florida.[1] [5] The Mathews Bridge in Jacksonville is named in honor of him.[3]

Notes and References

  1. Erik Robinson, "Florida Supreme Court Justices: List of Life Dates", Florida Supreme Court Historical Society (June 2010).
  2. Web site: Justice John Elie Mathews . Florida Supreme Court . June 17, 2020.
  3. Web site: John E. Mathews, Jr. Collection: Biographical Highlights . . June 17, 2020.
  4. Book: Bartley . Abel . Keeping the Faith: Race, Politics, and Social Development in Jacksonville, Florida, 1940-1970 . 2000 . Greenwood Publishing Group . 0313310351 . 44.
  5. Joseph A. Boyd Jr., Randall Reder, "A History of the Florida Supreme Court", University of Miami Law Review (1981), p. 1059.