The Historical Society of Avon ParkAVON PARK, FL · EST. 1886
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Voting Place No. 2 Election Officials and the 1951 Municipal Contempt Proceedings

On 11 September 1951, the City of Avon Park established a separate municipal polling station—Voting Place No. 2 at City Hall—specifically designated for African American electors and managed entirely by Black election officials[gough-1951][trib-1951-10-11]. The subsequent effort by a council faction to void all 397 ballots cast at the precinct precipitated emergency judicial intervention across the Tenth Judicial Circuit and the Florida Supreme Court[gough-1951][trib-1951-10-11].

The Four Election Officials of Voting Place No. 2

The management and supervision of Voting Place No. 2 were conducted by four African American civic leaders and residents named in municipal and judicial pleadings[gough-1951]:

  1. W. J. Robinson (Chief Election Inspector): Appointed by the City Clerk under municipal election procedures to preside over Voting Place No. 2[gough-1951]. Robinson oversaw voter check-in, ballot distribution, and the security of the ballot box[gough-1951].
  2. Calvin Gibbs (Election Official): Long-time resident of Commissioner’s District 2 who assisted registered electors in polling procedures[gough-1951][census-1950-avon-park].
  3. Nathaniel Backer / Packer (Election Official): Resident of Avon Park identified in community and cemetery records as Nathaniel Packer Sr. (1918–1996), a World War II veteran and civic figure residing in the eastern residential district[gough-1951][census-1950-avon-park].
  4. Earnest Sims (Election Official): Identified with the pioneer Sims educational and commercial family of Castle Street, including Hopewell School educator Prof. Ernest Eldridge Sims (1914–1983) and brother Elihu Ernest Sims[gough-1951][census-1950-avon-park].

When the defeated mayoral candidate O. C. Wilkes challenged the election, the council’s legal defense alleged that Robinson, Gibbs, Backer, and Sims had improperly entered the voting booths to assist voters who were not blind or physically disabled under Section 19 of City Ordinance No. 12[gough-1951]. However, the council’s own formal investigating committee had examined the precinct returns on 15 September and explicitly reported that no evidence of fraud or material irregularity existed to justify rejecting the ballots[gough-1951].

Council Factional Voting on 25 September 1951

Ten days after certifying the election results, the City Council met in special session on 25 September 1951 to reconsider Wilkes’s complaint[gough-1951][trib-1951-10-11]. The council voted along sharp factional lines:

  • Voting to Void Voting Place No. 2 (3 votes): Council President Edward W. Gough, Councilman Charles H. Lewiston (who made the motion), and Councilman John Delegal[trib-1951-10-11].
  • Voting Against Voiding the Precinct (1 vote): Councilman Manning Kirkland, who thereby refused to disenfranchise the Black electorate even though the resolution unseated him[trib-1951-10-11].
  • Abstaining (1 vote): Councilman Reason Shivers, who had originally been elected in 1949 with Black precinct support[adw-1949-09-25][trib-1951-10-11].

The rescission declared O. C. Wilkes elected mayor over Wiley Sauls, Jr. (877 certified votes), and declared Gough and Oscar E. Wolff seated as councilmen in place of Kirkland and J. B. Sparks[gough-1951].

Judicial Mandamus and Contempt Proceedings

The ousted officials immediately engaged Avon Park attorney Keith E. Collyer, who filed a petition for a writ of mandamus in the Tenth Judicial Circuit Court at Sebring[gough-1951][trib-1951-10-11].

  1. Hearing at Sebring (8 October 1951): Circuit Judge Don Register heard arguments from Collyer for the relators and from city attorneys S. Colquitt Pardee, Jr. and former Assistant Attorney General Sumter Leitner for the council[gough-1951][trib-1951-10-11].
  2. Peremptory Writ Issued (9 October 1951): Judge Register denied the council’s motion to quash and entered a peremptory writ commanding the councilmen to rescind their 25 September resolution and seat Sauls, Sparks, and Kirkland “forthwith”[trib-1951-10-11].
  3. Contempt Citations (9 October 1951): When the council failed to convene immediately to carry out the writ, Collyer petitioned for contempt; Judge Register cited the four councilmen for contempt of court[trib-1951-10-11].
  4. Contempt Hearing at Wauchula (10 October 1951): The councilmen appeared before Judge Register in chambers at the Hardee County Courthouse in Wauchula, where he was presiding over the fall circuit term[trib-1951-10-11]. Following assurances by Pardee that the council would comply that night, Register withheld formal sanctions[trib-1951-10-11].
  5. Tallahassee Supersedeas (10 October 1951): Pardee flew to Tallahassee and obtained a temporary writ of supersedeas from the Florida Supreme Court conditioned on a $1,000 bond pending oral argument[trib-1951-10-11].
  6. Evening Swearing-In (10 October 1951): At 8:15 p.m., the council formally rescinded the voiding resolution, and Keith E. Collyer, acting as notary public, administered the oath of office to Mayor Wiley Sauls, Jr., and councilmen Lenny Rush, Mark Smith, W. Clifford Thomas, Mannin Kirkland, and J. B. Sparks[trib-1951-10-11].

Supreme Court Precedent in Gough v. State ex rel. Sauls

On 20 November 1951, the Supreme Court of Florida unanimously affirmed Judge Register’s peremptory writ in Gough et al. v. State ex rel. Sauls et al. (55 So. 2d 111)[gough-1951]. Writing for Special Division B, Justice Chapman established that:

  • Canvassing Duties Are Strictly Ministerial: A municipal council acting as an election canvassing board possesses no judicial power to evaluate voter qualifications, inspect voter assistance motives, or void precinct returns[gough-1951].
  • Separation of Powers: The Florida Constitution vests judicial determinations of election fraud exclusively in the judicial branch; the legislature cannot delegate judicial powers to municipal bodies through charter provisions granting authority to “judge election returns” under the Avon Park City Charter[lof-1927-12514][gough-1951].

References

  • gough-1951 — Supreme Court of Florida, Special Division B (Chapman, J.). Gough et al. v. State ex rel. Sauls et al., 55 So. 2d 111 (Fla. 1951). 20 November 1951. gough-v-state-ex-rel-sauls-1951.md
  • trib-1951-10-11 — The Tampa Tribune (Tampa, Fla.). Supreme Court Halts Action Contested Avon Park Vote; and Avon Park Council Action Questioned, by Hayden Williams — The Tampa Tribune, 11 October 1951, page 17. 11 October 1951. tampa-tribune-1951-10-11-avon-park.md
  • adw-1949-09-25 — Associated Negro Press, in the Atlanta Daily World. Negroes Swing Mayor’s Election In Avon Park, Atlanta Daily World, 25 September 1949, page 3. 25 September 1949. avon-park-in-the-outside-press-1916-1941.md
  • census-1950-avon-park — United States Bureau of the Census. Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950, Population Schedules, Florida, Highlands County, Avon Park enumeration districts 28-2, 28-5, 28-6, 28-7 and 28-8. 27 April 1950. https://catalog.archives.gov/id/303137156
  • lof-1927-12514 — Legislature of the State of Florida. Chapter 12514, Laws of Florida 1927, Special Acts: The Charter of the City of Avon Park. 6 June 1927. laws-of-florida-chapter-12514-1927.md

Where this comes from

Evidence
corroborated — More than one independent source agrees.
Review
unverified — Drafted from sources but not yet checked by a volunteer.
Rights
society

Sources

  1. Supreme Court of Florida, Special Division B (Chapman, J.), Gough et al. v. State ex rel. Sauls et al., 55 So. 2d 111 (Fla. 1951) (1951)
  2. The Tampa Tribune (Tampa, Fla.), Supreme Court Halts Action Contested Avon Park Vote; and Avon Park Council Action Questioned, by Hayden Williams — The Tampa Tribune, 11 October 1951, page 17 (1951)
  3. Associated Negro Press, in the Atlanta Daily World, Negroes Swing Mayor's Election In Avon Park, Atlanta Daily World, 25 September 1949, page 3 (1949)
  4. United States Bureau of the Census, Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950, Population Schedules, Florida, Highlands County, Avon Park enumeration districts 28-2, 28-5, 28-6, 28-7 and 28-8 (1950)
  5. Legislature of the State of Florida, Chapter 12514, Laws of Florida 1927, Special Acts: The Charter of the City of Avon Park (1927)

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