Annie Rachel Gordon Broxson

Term of Office, 1959 - 1959

Annie Rachel Gordon Broxson was born in 1903, the daughter of Lovett Pierce and Eliza Jane Wooten Gordon. She was appointed interim sheriff of Santa Rosa County by Circuit Judge Woodrow Melvin. Her appointment came after her husband Bart Broxson was killed in an automobile accident in 1959.  Mrs. Broxson remained sheriff until her son, John, was appointed to complete the term of his father.

Mrs. Broxson, the mother of eleven children, was not the typical stay-at-home mother of that time period.  She was independent, intelligent, an avid reader, a businesswoman, a homespun philosopher, and a respected churchwoman.  In 1942, she opened a grocery store and service station adjoining the Broxson home on Highway 98 in Gulf Breeze.  However, her generous heart and her willingness to extend credit to needy patrons led to the closing of that venture.  Following her husband’s death, she opened a successful plant nursery and was known by many in the community for her knowledge of plants and for her homespun wisdom.  She was named Merit Mother of the Year in 1976 in Tampa. Annie died in 1994 leaving over one hundred direct descendants.