| Paul Kickliter | |
|---|---|
 Kickliter in 1955 | |
| Member of the Florida Senate from the 34th district | |
| In office 1955–1957 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1904-12-15)December 15, 1904 |
| Died | October 12, 1994(1994-10-12) (aged 89) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Alma mater | University of Florida Florida State Normal College |
Paul Revere Kickliter (December 15, 1904 – October 12, 1994) was an American teacher, lawyer, judge, landowner and politician. He served as a Democratic member for the 34th district of the Florida Senate.
Life and career
Kickliter was born December 15, 1904, in Wimauma, Florida, to George Manning and Emma Walker Kickliter. He attended the University of Florida and Florida State Normal College.
He was a teacher in Hillsborough County and became the Palm River school principal at the age of 19 after three years as a teacher. Kickliter married Lucie Lucille Hall November 28, 1929, at a Baptist church. He served two terms on the Hillsborough County School Board after first being elected in 1930.
Kickliter was elected as the county democratic executive committee treasurer July 1936, with his first act being to donate $500 to the Franklin D. Roosevelt re-election campaign. He declared his intention to run for Juvenile court in April 1938, running against two lawyers including the incumbent judge Thomas B. Castiglia. He won the election in May 1938 and served as judge on the Hillsborough County Juvenile Court for four terms. He was admitted to the Florida Bar in December 1942. After several cases involving shootings by juveniles he advocated for boys to be taught safe gun use asking the police chief to authorise classes at the police gun range.
After 16 years of service to the juvenile court Kickliter declared that he would not seek re-election for a fifth term but instead intended to run for a seat on the State Senate. He declared he intention early in 1954 to give fair notice so any candidates for the court would have time to prepare. Since passing the bar he had practiced law as well as his judicial service and had argued cases at all levels from county, circuit and federal courts to the supreme court. He wrote an open letter refuting claims made by his competition John Branch in "approximately 100,000 scandal sheets". In May 1953 Kickliter won the senate seat over John Branch who had been the incumbent. Kickliter served in the Florida Senate from 1955 to 1957, representing the 34th district. During his first senate session he led the appropriation bill to fund the establishment of the University of South Florida with Kickliter also offering 1000 acres of his own land. Kickliter was a wealthy land owner at the time. He ran again for a second session, declaring in June 1958, but lost by a wide margin to state representative Sam Gibbons in September 1958.
Kickliter died on October 12, 1994, at the age of 89 and was survived by his wife and four children.
References
- "The People of Lawmaking Florida 1822 – 2019", Florida Legislature, February 2019
- ^ "Florida Senators 1845-2001". Archived from the original on March 19, 2007. Retrieved May 14, 2023 – via Wayback Machine.
- ^ "Obituary for Paul Revere Kickliter". The Tampa Tribune. 13 October 1994. p. 25. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- ^ Marino, Jennifer (October 13, 1994). "Paul R. Kickliter, 89, ex-judge, senator". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved May 14, 2023.
- "Marriage of HALL / Kickliter". The Tampa Times. 15 November 1929. p. 20. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "Gray Defeats Crawford in Hillsborough - Kickliter Wins Seat on School Board". The Tampa Tribune. 25 June 1930. p. 1. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "Treasurer's First Duty is to Write $500 check". The Tampa Tribune. 19 July 1936. p. 9. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "Paul R Kickliter Enters Race for Juvenile Judge". The Tampa Tribune. 3 April 1938. p. 3. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "Three in Race For Judge of Juvenile Court". The Tampa Times. 25 April 1938. p. 3. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "Kickliter ousts Castiglia As Juvenile Court Judge". The Tampa Times. 25 May 1938. p. 4. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "Admitted to Bar - Paul R. Kickliter". The Tampa Times. 3 December 1942. p. 8. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "Judge Urges Opening of Gun Range to Boys". The Tampa Tribune. 9 January 1946. p. 7. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- ^ "Juvenile Judge Kickliter To Run For Senate Seat". The Tampa Tribune. 10 January 1954. p. 17. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "An Open Letter to the Citizens of Hillsborough County from Paul Kickliter". The Tampa Tribune. 24 May 1954. p. 6. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "Kickliter Beats Branch; Collins Lead Here 11,000". The Tampa Tribune. 26 May 1954. p. 1. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "Who's For The People?". The Tampa Tribune. Tampa, Florida. September 7, 1958. p. 36. Retrieved May 14, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Kickliter Says He'll Run Again For Senator". The Tampa Tribune. 29 June 1958. p. 1. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
- "Kickliter Bitter In Defeat". The Tampa Tribune. 10 September 1958. p. 1. Retrieved 21 May 2023.