Hernández, Joseph Marion (1793-1857), was the first Hispanic person elected as a representative to the United States Congress. He represented the Territory of Florida in 1822 and 1823. After Hernández finished his term, 30 years passed before another Hispanic American was elected to an official post at the national level. José Manuel Gallegos became the New Mexico Territory’s delegate to Congress in 1853.
Hernández was born in St. Augustine, Florida, on Aug. 4, 1793. Florida at that time was a Spanish colony. Florida formally came under U.S. control in 1821. After Florida became a U.S. territory in 1822, Hernández transferred his allegiance to the United States and was elected Florida’s delegate to Congress. He served in the U.S. Army from 1835 to 1838. He gained recognition for completing the construction of a supply road through the Florida wilderness during the Second Seminole War (1835-1842). He directed the expedition that captured Osceola, chief of the Seminole Indians. In 1845, after Florida became a state, Hernández ran for a seat in the United States Senate as a member of the Whig Party but was not elected. Later, he moved to Cuba, where he and his family had a sugar cane plantation. He died on June 8, 1857.
