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Organized into three series: (1) George Franklin Drew Papers; (2) Drew Family Papers; and (3) Frances K. Drew Papers.
Restrictions:
Terms Governing Use:
Biographical/Historical:
George Franklin Drew was born in New Hampshire in 1827. He moved to Georgia in 1847 and started a lumber business prior to the Civil War. During the war, he moved to Madison County, Florida. In 1861, he established Ellaville in Madison County and built one of the largest sawmills in the state at the time. In 1876, he won election as Florida's twelfth governor and the state's first post-reconstruction Democratic governor. Drew served until 1881 when William D. Bloxham defeated his attempt at re-election.
Drew's sons, Frank and George L., continued the family's lumber business and political activities and operated the Florida Railway from the turn of the century until the beginning of World War I. Two of Drew's grandsons, Herbert J. Drew and George F. Drew, served overseas during World War I as officers in the American Expeditionary Force: Herbert in the Fifth Field Artillery, First Division; and George in the 327th Infantry, 82nd Division.
In 1929, Frank Drew was appointed Florida State Equalizer of Taxes, a position he held until 1931. Herbert Drew was active in various surveying and business activities. Herbert married Isabella Williams and they had three children: George, Isabella, and Frances.
Frances Drew was a schoolteacher for a very short time before returning to school and earning a library degree from Emory University. She spent most of her library career in Georgia, working at the Georgia Institute of Technology for over 30 years before retiring in 1995.
Summary:
The collection contains the Drew family papers trace the activities of a prominent Florida family through more than a century of its history. The collection details the lives of five generations of the Drew family, centering upon Florida Governor George F. Drew.
SERIES 1: GEORGE F. DREW PAPERS, 1856-1900. This series contains the personal, political, and business correspondence of Drew and his wife, Amelia. His incoming correspondence includes letters from such prominent figures as Montgomery Blair, Alfred H. Colquitt, John B. Gordon, Jesse Johnson Finley, Samuel Pasco, and John Jackson Dickison. Drew's later correspondence deals primarily with his lumber business.
SERIES 2: DREW FAMILY PAPERS, 1881-1975. This series contains correspondence, business records, State Equalizer of Taxes records, World War I records, and other family papers. The family correspondence dates mainly from 1900 to 1930. The business records contain papers relating to livestock, lumbering, agriculture, meat packing, surveying, and the Florida Railway. The family papers also include photographs of family members and various business interests.
SERIES 3: FRANCES K. DREW PAPERS, 1952-1999. This series contains correspondence, legal documents, photographs, and other materials documenting Frances Drew's career as a librarian, especially at the Georgia Institute of Technology; her involvement in settling the estate of her father, Herbert J. Drew; and her genealogical research and membership in numerous lineage societies, including historical information about the Williams, Milling, Starke, and other branches of the family.
Finding Aids:
Folder listing available. 0
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Language Notes:
Multiple languages.
Ownership/Custodial History:
George Franklin Drew Papers and Drew Family Papers: Family memorabilia was donated to the Museum by the Herbert J. Drew Estate; archival materials were then transferred to the State Archives.
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Electronic Records Access:
Subject Access Fields:
Blair, Montgomery, 1813-1883 Dickison, John Jackson, 1816-1902 Drew, Amelia Dickens, d. 1900 Drew, Frances K., 1928- Drew, Frank, 1867-1932 Drew, George Franklin, 1827-1900 Drew, Herbert J. Gordon, John Brown, 1832-1904 Pasco, Samuel, 1834-1917
Branford Lumber Company (Branford, Fla.) Columbia Land and Lumber Company (Columbia City, Fla.) Court System, Study Commission on the Florida Trial. Florida. Governor (1877-1881 : Drew) Florida Railway Company. Utoca Packing Plant (Luraville, Fla.)
Lumber trade Florida Meat industry and trade Florida Railroads Florida Surveyors Florida Taxation Florida World War, 1914-1918.
Business records. aat Diaries. aat Photographs. aat
Branford (Fla.) Columbia County (Fla.) Luraville (Fla.) Suwannee County (Fla.)
Added Entries
Drew, Frank, 1867-1932
Drew, George Franklin, 1827-1900
Drew, Herbert J.
Drew, Frances K., 1928-
for detailed listing.