Governor Charley Eugene Johns

CHARLEY EUGENE JOHNS, Florida’s 32nd Governor, was born in Starke, Florida, on February 27, 1905. He was educated in Florida’s public school system and attended the University of Florida, but left before earning a degree. Johns entered politics in 1935 as a member of the Florida House of Representatives, a position he held until 1937. He also was a member of the Florida State Senate from 1937 to 1966 and served as the Senate’s President in 1953. When Governor Daniel McCarty died on September 28, 1953, Johns, who was president of the senate at the time, assumed the duties of Florida’s governorship. During his tenure, state roads and highway construction was advanced and tolls on the Overseas Highway between Miami and Key West were removed. After being defeated in his bid to finish out the rest of Governor McCarty’s term, Johns left office on January 4, 1955, and returned to his seat in the state senate. Governor Charley E. Johns died on January 23, 1990.