Albert A. Murphree

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Albert Alexander Murphree (April 29, 1870-December 20, 1927) was the third president of Florida State College (1897-1909) (later renamed Florida State University) and the second president of the University of Florida (1909-1927) and was briefly promoted as a Democratic candidate for President of the United States in 1924.

Murphree was born in Walnut Grove, Alabama. He graduated from the University of Nashville in 1894 and taught mathematics at a number of schools in the Southern US. In 1895 he became an instructor at the West Florida Seminary in Tallahassee, Florida and two years later he was named president. He married Jennie Henderson, a daughter of one of the school's trustees. A residence hall at Florida State University, Jennie Murphree Hall, is named for her.

Murphree is considered to have played a key role in the development of the University of Florida. Under his tenure the school grew from 106 students to 2,200.

While President of UF, Murphree became friends with William Jennings Bryan. The three term presidential candidate from Nebraska established a winter residence in Miami, Florida in 1912 and became a permanent resident of the state in 1921. He became a frequent speaker across the state and first met Murphree at a speech at UF in 1916. Bryan became fundraising chairman for a drive to build UF's Florida Union (now called Dauer Hall).

Without consulting Murphree ahead of time, on January 13, 1924 Bryan announced his intention to become elected as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention, where he would nominate Murphree as the party's candidate for President of the United States in that year's election. Bryan vigorously campaigned despite Murphree's refusal to put himself forth as a candidate, saying that he was flattered by Bryan's effort but that "Nobody expects a Southern man to be nominated President, much less a Florida man." Florida newspapers urged Murphree to run, but few others took the notion seriously. Bryan won his appointment as delegate, but was greeted by boos and jeers at the convention in a moment Bryan told Senator J. Thomas Heflin was the most humiliating of his life.

Murphree Hall, a residence hall at the University of Florida, is named for Murphree.