Samuel Pasco

Early life and education Pasco was born in London, England, to a family of Cornish ancestry. His family moved to Prince Edward Island in 1841 before moving to the United States in 1843 and settling in Charlestown, Massachusetts. Pasco attended Harvard University He served as principal of the Waukeenah Academy, a school in Monticello, Florida, from 1860 to 1861.

Career

Military career When the American Civil War began, Pasco closed Waukeenah Academy and joined the army of the Confederate States of America in 1861. He fought as a member of the 3rd Florida Infantry Regiment. He was captured on Missionary Ridge in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Pasco was imprisoned by the Union for the rest of the war. He was released in March 1865 and immediately returned to Florida to resume his post as principal of the Waukeenah Academy. Soon after, Samuel Pasco became a clerk of Jefferson County from 1866 to 1868. He eventually became a prominent lawyer in the area.

Senate and Florida House of Representatives career In 1885, he was the president of the convention which wrote a new constitution for Florida. He was a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 1886 to 1887 and briefly served as speaker in 1887.

In 1887, Pasco was elected to the U.S. Senate from Florida, as a member of the Democratic Party. He served in the Senate for two terms, until 1899, when he was defeated for reelection.