David Levy Yulee
David Levy Yulee (born David Levy; June 12, 1810 – October 10, 1886) was an American politician and attorney who served as the senator from Florida immediately before the American Civil War. A secessionist and slaveowner, he also founded the Florida Railroad Company and served as president of several other rail companies, earning him the nickname of "Father of Florida Railroads."
David Levy Yulee | |
|---|---|
Yulee (c. 1855–1865) | |
| United States Senator from Florida | |
| In office March 4, 1855 – January 21, 1861 | |
| Preceded by | Jackson Morton |
| Succeeded by | Thomas W. Osborn (in 1868) |
| In office July 1, 1845 – March 3, 1851 | |
| Preceded by | Seat established |
| Succeeded by | Stephen Mallory |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida Territory's at-large district | |
| In office March 4, 1841 – March 3, 1845 Delegate | |
| Preceded by | Charles Downing |
| Succeeded by | Edward Cabell (Representative) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | David Levy June 12, 1810 Charlotte Amalie, Danish West Indies (now U.S. Virgin Islands) |
| Died | October 10, 1886 (aged 76) New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Resting place | Oak Hill Cemetery Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Nancy Wickliffe |
| Relatives | Charles A. Wickliffe (father-in-law) |
Yulee was born on the island of St. Thomas, then under British control, to a Sephardic Jewish family; his father was a trader from Morocco and his mother, also of Sephardi descent, was born in Sint Eustatius and raised in St. Thomas. The family moved to Florida when he was a child. He later served as Florida's territorial delegate to Congress.
Yulee was the first person of Jewish ancestry to be elected and serve as a United States senator, serving 1845–1851 and again 1855–1861. He added Yulee, the name of one of his Moroccan ancestors, to his name soon after his 1846 marriage to Nancy Christian Wickliffe, daughter of ex-Governor Charles A. Wickliffe of Kentucky. Though Yulee converted to Christianity, becoming an Episcopalian,: 187 and raised his children as Christian, he encountered antisemitism throughout his career.
Yulee was in favor of slavery and the secession of Florida. His fortune came from a sugarcane plantation on the Homosassa River, and his antebellum railroads were largely built by slave labor. After the Civil War, he was imprisoned at Fort Pulaski for nine months for having aided the escape of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. After being pardoned by President Andrew Johnson, he returned to his Florida railroad interests and other business ventures. In 2000 he was recognized as a "Great Floridian" by the state.