Justice Edward Harris Drew
Former Justice Edward Harris Drew was the 51st Justice on the Supreme Court. He served from 1952 to 1971.
Though Harris Drew was born in Georgia, the Drew family moved to Florida in 1838. Drew worked and studied hard as a youth, graduating from Stetson University College of Law in 1923. He was given a waiver to start his law practice at age 20.
He was appointed the town attorney of West Palm Beach that same year and held the position for 29 years. He also worked with and became friends with a number of prominent people in the Palm Beach area. His community service in the Masons, Kiwanis Club, and Rotary Club brought him to the attention of people statewide.
In 1943 - 1944 he served as president of the Florida State Bar Association, where he worked on the committee for judicial administration and wrote articles on various aspects of local-government law.
Governor Fuller Warren appointed Drew to the Florida Supreme Court in 1952, but the justices determined that a special election was warranted, and Drew had to campaign for the seat. He won by only a few votes.
In 1955, the court voted Drew to complete the term of the late Justice Mathews as chief justice.
In 1963, when serving a second time as chief justice, Drew presided over the impeachment trial of Circuit Judge Richard Kelly.
Shortly after the end of the trial, Drew had a heart attack. His health was a major concern for the next several years, and led to his retirement in 1971.
Quick facts about Justice Drew:
- Edward Harris Drew (Palm Beach) [served 18 years, 5 months]
- Served August 18, 1952 – January 5, 1971 as Justice
- Served May 6, 1955 – January 8, 1957 and July 1, 1963 – July 1, 1965 as Chief Justice [appointed at age 48]
- b. Fargo, Georgia, October 28, 1903 d. February 9, 1978, Tallahassee, Florida
- County Judge: No. Circuit Judge: No.
Former Justices
- Justice Robert J. Luck
- Justice Barbara Lagoa
- Justice Alan Lawson
- Justice James E.C. Perry
- Justice Ricky Polston
- Justice Kenneth B. Bell
- Justice Raoul G. Cantero
- Justice Peggy A. Quince
- Justice R. Fred Lewis
- Justice Barbara J. Pariente
- Justice Harry Lee Anstead
- Justice Charles Talley Wells
- Justice Major B. Harding
- Justice Gerald Kogan
- Justice Stephen H. Grimes
- Justice Rosemary Barkett
- Justice Leander J. Shaw, Jr.
- Justice Raymond Ehrlich
- Justice Parker Lee McDonald
- Justice James E. Alderman
- Justice Frederick Brennan Karl
- Justice Joseph Woodrow Hatchett
- Justice Alan C. Sundberg
- Justice Arthur J. England, Jr.
- Justice Ben. F. Overton
- Justice Hal P. Dekle
- Justice David Lucius McCain
- Justice Joseph Arthur Boyd, Jr.
- Justice James Calhoun Adkins, Jr.
- Justice Vassar Benjamin Carlton
- Justice Wade Lee Hopping
- Justice Richard William Ervin
- Justice Millard Fillmore Caldwell
- Justice Stephen C. O'Connell
- Justice Benjamin Campbell Thornal
- Justice Edward Harris Drew
- Justice John Elie Mathews
- Justice Bonnie Kaslo Roberts
- Justice Tolbert Frank Hobson
- Justice Paul Dryden Barns
- Justice Harold Leon "Tom" Sebring
- Justice Alto Lee Adams
- Justice Elwyn Thomas
- Justice Roy Harrison Chapman
- Justice Fred Henry Davis
- Justice Rivers Henderson Buford
- Justice Louie Willard Strum
- Justice Armstead Brown
- Justice William Glenn Terrell
- Justice Thomas Franklin West
- Justice Jefferson Beale Browne
- Justice William Hull Ellis
- Justice Charles Breckenridge Parkhill
- Justice James Bryan Whitfield
- Justice William Adams Hocker
- Justice Evelyn Croom Maxwell
- Justice Robert Spratt Cockrell
- Justice Thomas M. Shackleford
- Justice Francis Beauregard Carter
- Justice Benjamin Sullivan Liddon
- Justice Milton Harvey Mabry
- Justice Robert Fenwick Taylor
- Justice Henry Laurens Mitchell
- Justice Geoge Pettus Raney
- Justice George Gray Mcwhorter
- Justice Robert Bruce Van Valkenburgh
- Justice Franklin D. Fraser
- Justice James Diament Westcott, Jr.
- Justice Ossian Bingley Hart
- Justice Edwin M. Randall
- Justice Samuel James Douglas
- Justice James Mcnair Baker
- Justice Augustus Emmet Maxwell
- Justice David Shelby Walker
- Justice William Augustus Forward
- Justice Bird Murphy Pearson
- Justice Charles H. Dupont
- Justice Benjamin D. Wright
- Justice Albert Gallatin Semmes
- Justice Leslie Atchinson Thompson
- Justice Walker Anderson
- Justice Joseph Bradford Lancaster
- Justice George W. Macrae
- Justice George Sydney Hawkins
- Justice Thomas Baltzell
- Justice Thomas Douglas
Contact Information
Florida Supreme Court
500 South Duval Street
Tallahassee, Florida
32399-1925 | EMAIL
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