Florida Became the 27th US State
On this day · 3 March 1845
After three centuries under Spanish, British, and territorial rule, Florida finally joined the Union on a single signature in 1845.
On March 3, 1845, Florida was admitted into the United States as the 27th state, ending nearly 25 years as a U.S. territory. President John Tyler signed the admission act on his final full day in office, bringing in both Florida and Iowa to keep the era’s balance of slave and free states.
The road was long. Florida had passed through Spanish rule, a stretch of British control, and a second Spanish period before the United States acquired it in 1821. Floridians voted for statehood in an 1838 referendum and drafted a constitution in 1839, yet years of debate in Congress delayed the final act.
A territory three centuries in the making became a state with one signature.
With statehood, William D. Moseley took office as the first governor, and David Levy Yulee, a leading champion of admission, became one of the new state’s first U.S. Senators.
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