Governor Rick Scott signs bill protecting John Gorrie statue

            Governor Rick Scott has signed the bill that will keep the statue of inventor John Gorrie in the US Capitol.

There was a move this year to replace both of Florida’s statues currently in the National Statuary Hall at the US Capitol.

Florida is represented by Apalachicola inventor John Gorrie as well as Confederate general Edmund Kirby Smith.

The statue of John Gorrie has been in the Statuary Hall since 1914.

Initially only the statue of Edmund Kirby Smith was proposed for removal as part of a broader program of removing confederate symbols, but John Gorrie’s name was added to the legislation.

Franklin county residents and commissioners opposed the plan and successfully lobbied to keep the statue of John Gorrie in Washington DC; the final bill only allows for the replacement of Edmund Kirby Smith.

Dr Gorrie lived in Apalachicola in the mid 1800’s – he invented a method of making ice that is still used today.

He is widely credited as being the father of air conditioning.

Franklin County Commissioners said John Gorrie’s work makes him one of the most significant Floridians to have ever lived – and because of him not only is Florida habitable year round but also the third most populated state in the US. 

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