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Alachua County Returns for Presidential Election of 1860(From: Office of Secretary of State, Election Returns by County, 1824-1926, Series S21)The long sectional crisis of the 1850s culminated in the presidential election of 1860, which precipitated the secession of eleven states from the Union. In this critical election, Floridians could choose between John C. Breckinridge, the Southern Democratic candidate; Stephen A. Douglas, who represented northern Democrats, and John C. Bell, candidate for the newly-organized Constitutional Union Party. Breckinridge supported the Dred Scott Decision and the expansion of slavery into the territories, while Douglas supported the concept of Popular Sovereignty, by which the citizens of a territory could decide for themselves as to the status of slavery within their borders. John Bell's strongest support came from moderates in the Border States. He hoped to keep any candidate from winning a majority of electoral votes, thereby throwing the election into the House of Representatives, where a Union-preserving compromise might yet be reached. Significantly, Floridians could not vote for Republican Abraham Lincoln, who was not on the ballot in any of the Deep South slave states. The hated "Black Republican" Party was believed by most southerners to advocate abolition and black equality, although Lincoln and his party were primarily interested in restricting the expansion of slavery in the territories. Reproduced here are the 1860 presidential
returns for Alachua County, which voted overwhelmingly for southern Democrat
John C. Breckinridge. He would also win the statewide totals, with Bell a respectable
second and Douglas a very distant third. Within days of the election of Lincoln,
South Carolina called for a Secession Convention, and by the end of the year
that state had left the Union. Florida was not far behind--in early January
1861 it became the third state to secede from the Union.
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| Conjunto Aventura Norteño, sometimes also called Norteña or Conjunto, literally translates to the word “northern,” referring to the region of northern Mexico and present day southern Texas where the musical style originated. |
Resources for the 2010 Florida History Fair This is a list of resources available online from the State Library and Archives of Florida relating to the suggested Florida History Fair topics. |
See the "Common Ground" slideshow! This presentation is part of “Common Ground,” a global event consisting of museums, galleries, and archives worldwide showing the same slideshow of photographs in public spaces on the same weekend (October 2-3, 2009). |
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Florida Memory is funded under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the Florida Department of State, State Library & Archives of Florida. Contact Us. Disclaimer. Florida’s history is your history. Help us preserve it by joining the Friends of the State Library & Archives of Florida. |
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