1815 – David Shelby Walker, Florida’s 8^th governor was born on this date in Russelville Kentucky. He moved to Leon County in 1837 and was elected to the first State Legislature in 1845 as a Senator, serving again in 1848 in the House. Later, Walker served as the mayor of Tallahassee and also the Register of Public Lands. He was a Florida Supreme Court Justice before being elected Governor in 1865. Walker was a circuit court judge until his death in 1891. He is buried in the Saint John’s Episcopal Church Cemetery in Tallahassee.    

1913 – Happy Birthday Bay County, which was carved out of Washington and part of Calhoun County on this date. In February 1913, representatives from five towns on St. Andrews Bay met in Panama City to select a name for a proposed new county. Panama City was chosen as the county seat a year later and remains the most populous city. The name Bay was selected because it was satisfactory to the majority of the citizens and was descriptive of the territory that would be included. The population of Bay County in 1920 was 11,407, in 2010 it swelled to 168,852.

1897 – April 21: Bartow gets its first electric street lights on this date! Shown: Main Street shortly after electric streetlights were put in use, looking west from Florida Avenue. Gent's Furnishing is located in the building in left foreground. Lytle and Lybass Livery Stables and C. Schultz are located in the building in center of photograph.

1857 – Napoleon Bonaparte Broward, Florida’s 19th governor was born on this date in Duval County. Broward had an interesting career prior to being governor, first working on steamboats in and around Jacksonville eventually becoming one of the best captains in the region. He was appointed sheriff of Duval County and gained influen...ce among the city’s politicians and other powerful individuals. Broward was elected to the State Legislature in 1900 and ran for governor in 1904.

1822 – April 17: William Pope Duval became the first territorial Governor of Florida. In 1821, Florida became a U.S. Territory. Duval was named United States Judge for the East Florida district on May 18, 1821. On April 17, 1822, President James Monroe appointed him as the first non-military governor of the territory, succeeding General Andrew Jackson. He was reappointed by President John Quincy Adams and President Andrew Jackson.

1832 - The St. Augustine City Council passed an ordinance today authorizing the creation of tax-supported free schools in the city.  This was one of the earliest such ordinances in the American South and in the nation. St. Augustine is the oldest continuously occupied European settlement in the United States, founded by Pedro Menedez de Aviles in 1565. It was the administrative center for East Florida during the British Period (1763-1783) and the Second Spanish Period (1783-1821).

1863 - Federal army and naval forces continued evacuating Jacksonville on this date.  As they evacuated, Union soldiers set fire to much of the town.  Jacksonville was the center of Confederate military operations in Florida and the fires caused national outrage and debate over who was to blame. Rain helped to contain the fire, but the damage was already done as most of the city lay in ruins.   

1513 - Juan Ponce de Leon first sighted the Florida peninsula on this date, although he would not go ashore until April 2. The peninsula was sighted and mistaken for an island, which Ponce de Leon named “La Florida.” Ponce, who was most recently the Governor of Puerto Rico, set sail from that island on March 4^th with three ships and approximately 200 men heading north towards an unknown landmass referred to as Biminy.

1565 – Pedro Menendez de Aviles received his “asiento” or settlement orders from the Spanish government to travel to La Florida on this date. Two years earlier, Don Juan Mendedez, Pedro Menendez’s only son was lost in a wreck near the Bahamas and Menendez was determined to find him. He was also instructed to reconnoiter the gulf and east coasts, making detailed observations about the ports, currents, hazards, etc., and settle the new territory. The Spanish government also tasked Menendez with driving the French settlers out of La Florida.