Joseph Marion Hernandez real name

Answer 1

Joseph Marion Hernández was the first Hispanic to serve in Congress and the first Delegate from the territory of Florida. He was born in St. Augustine, Florida on August 4, 1793, when it was still a Spanish colony. In 1818 he bought land for a rice, cotton and sugar plantation he named "Bella Vista." When Florida became a United States possession in 1821 he became an American citizen and changed his name to Joseph Marion Hernandez.When the territory of Florida was established in 1822, Hernández transferred his allegiance to the United States and was elected Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he served until March 3, 1823. Hernández later became a member and the presiding officer of the Territorial House of Representatives. He was appointed brigadier general of volunteers in the war against the Florida Indians. From 1835 to 1838 he served in the U.S. Army. In 1837 he commanded the expedition that captured the Indian Chief Oceola, and was appointed brigadier general of the Mounted Volunteers.In 1845 Hernández ran for the United States Senate as a Whig candidate, but was defeated. He then moved to Cuba where he managed his family's sugar estate in the district of Coliseo, near Matanzas. He died on June 8, 1857. After his Congressional service, he joined the United States Army and fought in the (Second) Seminole War in Florida, aiding in the capture of Osceola. He retired with the rank of Brigadier General. He was a unsuccessful Whig candidate for the United States Senate in 1845. He later moved toCuba and engaged as a planter in the District of Coliseo, near Matanzas and died at the family's sugar estate, "Audaz", in the District of Coliseo, in Matanzas Province. He's interred in the del Junco family vault in Necropolis San Carlos Borromeo, Matanzas.

by Kurt c